The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-10-03
ARE WE PR SoEROuS, AND WHY?EH

In 1896, the Democratic party asserted
that the country needed more money
more gold and silver. In order to satisfy
that need, it demanded that the minis
of the country be opened alike to the
coinage of gold and silver. They lost
in the election and the mints have re-
manned closed to the coinage of silver.
The election of Mckinley did not re-
store confidence or prosperity. In fact
it accelerated the failures and business
disasters. The passage of the Dia-
gley tariff law retarded it. And yer,
confidence has been restored and in
many lines of industry prosperity has re-
turned.
What has caused the change from the
harrison Cleveland Mckinley panic 70
the prosperous days of 1900? The Re
publicans, who have a way of exclusively
appropriating the credit for every bless
ing that comes to the country, tell us
that it is due no Republican policies.
There is no foundation for such claims
Every bit of prosperity that has come
TO America in the past two years can
be directly traced to three things, neither
of which is due to the policy of any poll
tical party:
The increase in the production of gold.
Without this, prosperity would have
Jagged, prices would have halted, and
business have been slow or stagnant.
There was a money famine in 1896, and
until the mines should yield more gold
or the mints be opened TO silver pros
perity could not be expected. The Salt
Lake Tribune says that the gold m.nes
of the world will this year yield $3.50,
600, 000-''more than the gold and silver
product of the world amounted to five
years ago. Ii the Transyaal trouble is
settled peaceaibly this amount will be
swelled to $425, 10000 next year Fhe
business men recognize that this wonder
ful increase in the supply of gold il the
basis of much of the country's prosperity.
Hon. Thos l.. James, Postmaster Gem
eral under Arthur, an the October Re
reasons for present prosperous business
conditions" Among other things, he
says:
But there is another influence which
of any that have caused these last years
of the century to give industrial pros
perity. content, happiness, and Il W. lie
distribution of wealth to our people
That influence was created by the recent
amazing developments of the gold mines
of the world. Undoubtedly the action
of Congress in repeating the Sherman
law induced capital to turn its attention
to the American gold mines. But the
same impulse existed all over the world
The discovery of cheap chemical Ine-
thods of abstracting gold from low-grade
ore was as mGmentOns almost as that
of Bessemer to which much of the in
dustrial activity of the last half OF the
nineteenth century can be traced. That
process made it possible to utilize with
commercial profit the low-grade ores in
Sputh Africa and only year after the
Sherman law WAS repealed the highest
expert authority predicted that tine South
African mines would ibe adding yearly to
the gold of the world from S1o,0O0,00e
to 500, 100000, a prediction that has
been almost justified already. Then
Australia amazed the world with discoy-
cries of gold deposits: and Colorado and
Idaho and southern California began to
report profitable mining operations, until
at last it was reported by the director OF
the mint that the United States was
producing nearly S6O,00O0O0 of gold
year. the estimate for 1899 beng ABOUT
| s.. 100000 a month. Then, too, just as
| these inspiring influences We're begin
ming to have their legitimate effect upon
| business, there came from the. Wllds OF
| Alaska romantic tales of rich discoveries
Of gold, and SINCE that news was tirst
brought to this country the estimated
/ output of that once desolate territory
has been about $40,O00,000 gold, almost
| al eff which has come ito the United
States and remained here
1.-THE director of the mint estimates
4 that today there is in the United States
almost billion of gold. in coin and
ibullion. and whereas in Mr. Cleveland
| adInanl Stra tom the gold IN the treasury
had been drained so law that it seemed
at one time as though the government
would be compelled to suspend gold pay
ments. now the treasury possesses near
ly 5O,000,000 of gold and the banks
of New York nearly S17J.000,000.
lin addition to the gold that came
from the mines, there came many mil
\ lions of it in the year 1893 to the United
States from Europe in liquidation of