The Alaska daily empire., 1920-11-08
FIGHTING THE GOLD BONUS.


 Indications seem show that the coming session of Congress will take up for final disposition the ques- ton of putting bonus on newly produced gold Heh- tinent seems be crysallizing among the bankhG interests of against the proposal, their ati de being represented by a resolution passed at the recent annual convention of the American Bankers Association which opposs the bonus plan. If the banks actively oppose the project as there is reason to believe will the case, the McFadden bill Will lave hard sledding in Congress.
 The case however must not be considered as hopeless nor the fight abandoned. The harder the onposition becomes the more there is for put ting added into the argument for the bonus Those interested in the bonus, the sections Of the country which the gold mining industry IS one oi first importance. and Alaska is of them, have ii within their power to prove the necessity for stlmu lating the industry As interested parties 1t rests with them furnish the data and assemble the fact on which the question should be fairly decided
 The banking interests represented at the Bankers Convention conceded that during tho period of high Lg.ces many mining operators found their business unproftable but claimed that the fixed price of gold daring periods of adveity falling prices bring the gold miner, to one else, increased prohts Credit dehaton it is argued would cure the present situation of the gold miner The Convention declared
 The best banking opinion of the
 country looks forward a progressive and
 far-reachiag contraction of credit fabric
 and regards it as the only alternative to such
 a disastrous disruption of the credit system
 as Japan has recently
 "The proper course to take is not by arti-
 fcial methods to seek to expand the gold
 basis of credit system, but rather to con
 tract the superstructure of credit to point
 where it be safely maintained under con
 dtions of a normal distribution of the
 worlds gold supply"
 The special committee in the report contendef that gold miners only of the many industrial sufferers the and might well look forward to return of an industrial situation which would more than compensate for their present strineency.
 Contraction of the credit superstructure, as ad ,oeated by the international bankers is already unde wa9 That will result in lowered costs has 5eei proved previous occasions but that it will eve bring about conditions under which gold for main tenance of the credit foundation be produced ii the average mine at reasonable profit for he oper and enable him to pay anything like curren wages his employees is questionable.
 Gold production in America is decreasing. Labor CTS in the drifts are working for less money thar. similar labor in other ndustes and the mine operate who has thousands dollars invested is keepn his mine going giving employment to otherwise idi men, sometimes swapping dollars, breaking oasionally and more often losing money at the en ol the season The result continued decrease production The increase of materials in all indus tries has averaged 1l2 per cent yet the gold mine las been forced to sell his product pre-war pric fixed by the Government The result is that the Gov ernment is getting ifs gold at market value whic is less than the feal value Of the commodity sold
 Supporters of the proposed bonus plan incudln Representative McFadden, author of the bill introduce al the last term of Congress, deny that there anything n ii that threatens the gold standard bankers of national repue agree with tha view Many big bankers, however, claim that it vii upset the standard and is upon that ground tha' the strongest fight will be made the bonus Ther seems to be sound basis. however for the counter claim that the enactment Of the bonus bill would bc accepted abroad evidence of the dcterminatior of the United States 10 strcnghen its gold