The Pioche record. [volume] (Pioche, Nev.) 1908-1925, 1922-01-06

last three or four years III the Act
is amended as you suggest so as to
permit the Government to purchase
in the market of the world the fund
will last about one-third as long.
The Government OF the United
States only requires about 15.00O.-
OO0 ounces OF silver a year for its |
subsidiary coin. and that is all 1t |
would buy now IL It were not for the |
Pittman Act. That would leave |
about 100000 or 100000
ounces of American silver annually
to compete in the market of the
world with other silver.
II you should strike out the pur-
chasing clause of the Pittman Act
the Government would buy silver
wherever II could get it cheapest,
as it did before the Pittman Act was
passed. II could now get foreign
silver at Go cents an ounce. 1t
would try to get 1t for less. For
twenty years before the passage of
the Pittman Act the Government got
silver for its subsidiary coinage as
| cheap as it could get it, During that
time the average price paid for silver
by the Government was about so
cents an ounce.
have always been in favor of the
free coinage of silver at 1929 an
| DO he Luz tina hak
would keep it at that price. Ex-
perience has taught us that 1t is i'm
possible to pass such an Act. But do
not let us make the mistake Of throw
ing away something good that we
have got in an effort to get some
thing better. All of us western fell
lows would have gotten $1.29 an
ounce fixed as the price under the
Pittman Act if we had had any
chance to get 1t, but we didn't and
We knew 1t. We were even surpris-
ed when we got the bill through both
Houses Of Congress providing for the
Government purchasing American
silver at dollar an ounce.
There is great opposition to this
bill and it crops up everywhere. II
comes from those people who specu-
lated and made money out of the
buying and selling of silver up until
the time the Pittman Act was passed
Most of 1t comes from Lincoln where
they controlled the silver market OF
the world up until the time the Pitt
man Act was passed. They still
control the market for all silver ex
, cept that in the United States. Som,
of the schemes that they have sug
gested so as to get chance to re
peal the purchasing clause of tn
!, Pittman Act is to get 1t before Con
sress for the purpose of innocen
amendments. If it once gets befor
Congress for such purposes We d
not know where the amendment
will end.
This matter has been given mos
careful consideration by silver mir
ers all over the country, and up unit
- the time of your interview, as far a
. | know, they were unanimous In uri
ing that the Act be maintained jus
!, as it is and that no chances be take
i'll reconsidering it. Miners all owe
theh State have informed me tn;
the silver mines of the West woul
he shut down eXcept for tho mn
chase of silver by the Government.
In two or three years when E,
i. rope gets able to purchase anythir
it will have to buy silver, and the
a. theh price will go above dollar q
ounce. When it does go above
dollar an ounce the Government wi
= stop buying and the Ameraican mi
err will get the market price for
!. silver. When it again goes down b
low dollar an ounce, II it ever doc
~ then the American miner will at lea
: get dollar an ounce from the Go
n eminent. In other words, when 8
or yer is above dollar an ounce t
market of the world takes 1t. VIII
. silver Is below dollar an ounce I
Government buys American silver
a dollar.
Sincerely,