Marietta daily leader. (Marietta, Ohio) 1895-1906, 1899-09-02
SILVER in INDIA.
FINAL DECISION TO DEMoNETlzE
THE WHITE. METAL.
II DIsposes OF One of the Favorits Illu-
sioDs of the FREQ siivor Advocates.
Reasons For IndiA's Adoption of the
Gold Standard.


sions of the Free silvOr Advocates.
Reasons For IndiA's Adoption of the
Gold Standard.
The discussion of the parliamentary
committee to place the currency of
nent a work that has been in progress
for six years or more. The India mints
were closed to silver in 1893, and the
decision not to reopen them is reached
after a most thorough study of the
question by some of the worlds great
est authorities on finance.
Director Roberts of the United
States mint thus explains the reason
why silver was demonetized in India
in 1893. He says:
THE mints were closed originally
because the decline in silver had be-
come so great as to embarrass the In
dian government, which received its
revenues in silver and had to make, a
large share CT its disbursements in gold,
The government makes its remittances
to London by selling bills of exchange
on the London market, these being
bought by people who desire to make
remittances to India. Before the mints
were closed the public could either
buy these council bills or send silver,
but by closing the mints the govern
ment hoped to force the purchase Of
the bills al a higher rate.
Hard times followed in India at
tributed by those who criticized the
government, to the closing of the
mints, but attributed by the govern
ment to the famine and other causes.
There was considerable agitation in
favor Of reopening the mints, and the
business world was in no little uncer-
sidered highly desirable that the gov
ernment's future policy should be def
nitely assured, and accordingly some
thing over a year ago a committee of
eleven was appointed by the Indian
Office in London to investigate the
whole subject. The committee has
published two volumes of testimony,
and now gives its own conclusions.
ut is unanimous in finding that the
mints should not be reopened to sill
yer. The committee says; Even apart
from considerations affecting the gov
ernment of India, it is not in the in
terest of India that her foreign com
merce, over 80 per cent of which is
with gold standard countries, should
be taupered with by the restoration
Of silver monometallism.'
The final adoption of the gold stand
ard in India will produce greater finan-
cial stability there, and it also greatly
lessons the chances for any interna-
tional reconciliation of the white
metal. India was the one point where
England was most interested in t.iv
silver question, and the decision of the
parliamentary committee reduces that
interest to a minimum.
India's permanent adoption of the
gold standard also destroys one of the
old stock arguments of the advocates
of free silver. 1t has been a favorite
plea of the silver men that the Amer
ican farmer was at disadvantage in
competition with India because of the
silver standard there. On this point
Director Roberts of the United States
mint says:
1T puts the wheat producers of the
two countries on common monetary
level, and disposes of the old argument
that the Indian farmer has an advan-
tage over the American farmer be-
cause he receives his pay in a falling
currency. Whatever intricacies ther
once were in the subject have been
cleared up, for the Indian farmer, like
the American farmer, is now paid by
the gold standard The alleged advan-
tage was an illusory one, for he only
held it while the currency continued
to fall, and then only as he could work
it off on some uniformed or helpless
fellow countryman at former value.
Furthermore, in the nature of things
a currency must stop falling sometime
when it becomes worthless, If not
sooner This committee agrees with
the Indian government that the inter
ests of that country as a whole de-
manded that the depreciation of its
money should cease, and that ITS Imam
cial system should be linked to that oi
the other important nations o. III
word"