Virginian-pilot. (Norfolk, Va.) 1898-1911, 1899-01-10
TWELVE PAGES.
TUESDAY. JANUARY 10. 1899.
THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT REFUSES
TO LEARN.

The writer OF the article headed
THE VIRGINIAN-P1LOT LEARN
ING" in the Richmond Times of the
9Th instant, would be Il flrst-rate judi
cial constructionist to reverse the
meaning and intent of n constitutional
provision, or n legislative act: for lie
entirely misapprehends the article of
THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT upon which
he comments so largely and freely. Re
peatediy, over and over has this paper
called attention to the concession of the
Times, that there is u woeful lack of
currency Cor money! in the country-a
thing which had never occurred before
the decentralization act of 1873; and we
have made 1t the principal charge
against that act that 1t caused the con-
traction of the currency evidenced by
this lack of currency, and also a princi-
pal argument for the repeal of that act
and the restoration of silver to its an
Client, traditional. historical, customary
prescriptive. legal and constitutional
equality with gold. at the ratio of 1G
TO /.
THE vIRGINIAN-PILOT has not
surrendered anything. although the
Times asserts that we have surrender
ed everything, so far as large CONNER
cial transactions are concerned, except
to ask why gold, rather than silver,
should be the basis of credit in these
transactions. The Times is utterly
mistaken. We did not admit that paper
credits were sufficient in these transac-
large shipments OF gold from abroad
to this country to settle the balance of
trade in our favor; and we only ad-
mitted alphabetically that this might
be so. for the sake OF argument. and to
put the Times III n logical difficulty;
for IL paper credits suffice. why insist
on gold, or any other metallic basis, as,
II the Times is right the real basis Of
commercial exchanges and credits be-
tween nations is the productions them
selves? And we repeat that question.
We did not ask why the basis Of cur
rency or money should be gold rather
than silver; but why n credit based on
production should be so anxious about
gold? To this inquiry we were anxious
to have the response of the Times. as it
admits OF but one of two rational an
swers, whether It be asked as to gold
or silver: one being that the produce
tions are not, in practice. exchanged,
nor the basis of credit, but that this
basis is actual money, and that inter
national commerce and other business
prefers gold to silver. or paper, UNI
less the paper guarantees the gold; tile
other answer being n maintenance that
productions are, practically, exchanged.
and are the real and ultimate basis of
credits: and then frank admission
that for these it is OF no consequence
what the money of any particular coun-
try may be. nor what its basis, wheth-
er gold silver or products, as. if any
country buys more than it sells il must
pay in the money of the country il
trades with. and if it sells more than
1T buys 1T must receive its own current
money. And the latter part of this sec
ond answer is the incontrovcrtible
truth, no matter how We exchange, or
what the basis OF money or credit.
OF course. we want no article from
the Times on why gold is better
basis than silver. or why it thinks so;
for 1t has furnished us already vast
surplus of these without at all dis
trusting our conviction that. whether
gold be better than silver, or silver bet
ter than gold gold and silver togeth-
er are far better than either alone. not
only because We have the wider basis