Tombstone epitaph., 1921-06-05
PiTTnAN THINKS DOLLAR SILVER LIKELY TO LAST
 FOR GREAT MANY YEARS

'urgical Society of America at the Columbia University Club recently
 C. w. Handy. or Handy X Harman, also spoke on silver marketing condi- tions. and half hour of general dis cussion followed.
 Senator Pittman made it plain that there is no likelihood of the Pittman Act being repealed. However. he said there is always chance of nasty and improper legislation. and for that req son all who are interested in the sub i ject should be advised of every fact and of every action so that they can lend their support of the present act if necessary. Even if it were not for the conditions under which silver was fixed at a dollar. if it depended not upon the honor of the Government te maintain it. but upon the general nc cessity of the Government, upon the power that production of silver gives the Government. then that alone would be sufficient to maintain and justify the present price
 Going back to the origin of the ac; the Senator quoted Lard Reading as stating that the action Of the United States Government in furnishing sil. yer for India in April, 1918. was one of the most powerful acts that could have been performed toward the winning of the war It was essential to have sil. yer in India and have it immediately and there was not the requisite sup ply anywhere in the world except in the Treasury of the United States. In dia had been exporting large quanti- ties of jute bagging. . necessity in the conduct of the war. The Indians had
 been taught to accept silver certifi- cates for their product. However. the reserve of metal behind those certiti- cates was only 9 per cent. Germany understood this and sent propa gand- lists there. who spread the report that
 the paper money. which the Indians | h.I at, sI FN- silver. could not be redeemed beyond
 certain point Instantly run" be-
 gan. and to avert revolution the sil- | yer had to be procured. When Cor
 gress understood this the Putnam act
 was soon passed.
 As to the question Of what Great Britain should pay for the silver: The price at that time was .72c per oz..
 but it had been demonstrated that un-
 der existing costs silver should be
 worth s1 per oz.. so that was the
 price agreed upon. Now. with the
 emergency past, the United States
 Government is simply turning over the
 proceeds from the British Government
 to the silver producers who were re- isponsible for practically all of the
 metal sold. It isn't costing the Uni ted States Government a cent.
 Tt seems to me. said Senator Pitt
 man. that from business standpoint
 the necessity of silver production in
 this country. We have got to maintain
 the present law just as long as we
 can. I know that as a matter of hon
 Tor, it has got to be maintained Now. under the rules Of the Senate. four Senators have been known to talk so
 long on a bill that the Senate took up
 Other matters. know now about thirteen Western Senators who would do nearly anything to prevent a stain lbelng placed on the honor or our Gov
 ernment and upon the Congress of the
 United States. Some of them are get
 ting old: I doubt if they could talk lover six hours a day for over a week
 But I know four that are in excellent Ihealth and need exercise and can talk
 in six-hour shifts easily for a year.
 That bill isn't going to be repealed. Now the question is, how long will
 Il be operative l am confident
 that the price of silver will go above
 a dollar by reason of natural demand when the world commences to get on
 it's feet again and starts to work and produce Then the Government
 will cease to buy. and that fund will
 remain there until some other cata- clysm of some other contingency. or
 conspiracy, will force the price of sil.
 yer down below dollar in the gener-