The Anaconda standard., 1899-09-29


per, but when it tries TO discuss
the money question it frequently
makes a woeful mess of it. This is well
eXempified in its attempted criticism of
the money plank of the Massachusetts
democratic platform.
After quoting its leading parasraph.
in which the increased supply of gold
is referred to, the Herald says: This
declaration strikes US as considerable
admission of the benefit of gold for
Bryanite convention to make, We
hardly expected to find it in a resolu-
ton reported by such gold-hater as
Mr.. George Fred williams has been
since he deserted the yellow metal. So
an increase in the gold yield brought
about an immediate revival Of prices
and trade did it? Why, the most hide
bound gold bug could hardly put the
claims of the metal in brighter light"
Yes, and it would be difficult for almost
anybody to put less sense into the same
number of words than the Herald has
in the paragraph Just quoted.
If 1t does not know that the entire
basic argument of the silver men rests
upon the "quantitative theory" then it
has yet to learn the a, b, c of the ques-
ton. The silver men have never ex-
pressed the slightest objection to gold
per Sc. Their contention has been that
there was not enough of it; that when
the supply from the silver source was
cut off 1t left the total quantity of avail
able money too small If gold had been
demonetiZed, they would have de-
manded its restoration just as they
have that of silver, and their demand
would have been resisted in exactly the
same spirit that has been shown in op-
position to the demonstration of sill
yer.
Then the Herald proceeds to deny
that there has been much increase of
money in circulation, quoting treasury
statistics to prove that in 1898 at the
time of the panic, We had $2501 per
capita and only s25.41 per capita now.
To this it may be answered that the
treasury statistics prove nothing as to
the amount of money in actual circula-
tion. They simply show in very hap
hazard sort of way how much there
is outside of the treasury of the United
States. 1t does not follow that it is in
circulation, by any means.
1t is a self-evident fact that there is
much more money in actual circulation
now than there was two or three years
ago. There is also more in the coun-
try. If not, perhaps the Herald will
explain what has become of the enor-
nous coinage of last year and the
one hundred and twenty million dollars
of imported gold.
OF course an increase OF gold does
good No silver man of any standing
ever denied that it would. At the same
time it does not give US the full measure
of benefit that would come from restor-
ing silver, because in the latter case we
would not only increase the supply but
at the same time restore the broken par
of exchange, which is now giving the
slver-using countries competitive
advantage in trade, as was properly
pointed out by the Massachusetts plat
form.
The Heralds closing remark is a gem
of economic thought. "In currency"
it says, "as in other matters, 1t is
quality, not quantity, that counts"
That sounds peculiarly Atkinsonian. It's
wisdom will be apparent when we con-
slider that the quality" of our currency
is exactly the same now. as it was
during the panic. 1t consists of gold
silver and paper, all on parity, and
mutually interchangeable. When the
panic was at its worst there was no
lack Of confidence in the quality of our
money. The silver certificates were
boarded away, just as the gold was. 1t
was the quantity that failed. People
could not get enough of any kind to
pay their debts and transact their busi-
ness. If the Herald thinks that guam
tity signifies nothing and that quality
alone counts, let it try to pay a ten
dollar debt with one dollar in gold and
see how it works.