White Pine news. [volume] (East Ely, Nev.) 1920-1923, 1923-07-22
COMMODITY OR MONEY!

lndl lhG L. stAfNi ~ wv
mistake is based upon the assump-
ton that silver is a commodity and
not a money metal, and while h
White Pine News reprints the min
ing engineers article for reasons of
giving some Informing details, 1t
does not admit and never will that
silver is a~commodity.
From that day when Bryan de-
livered his cross of gold speech which
won him the democratic nomination
for the presidency until now, silver
dollars stamped by the American
government have been accepted any
and everywhere as full legal tender,
and there never has been a time
when if all the silver the American
mines could have produced were
coined into more silver dollars they.
too, would not have been taken as
the same full legal tender without
there being too many of them.
AS friends of silver understood the
motive of the Pittman act, it was in
is larger sense a recognition OF the
fact that one ounce Of silver is worth
81 in gold or any kind of money that
is made.
If it were not for this fundamental
fact Mr.. Balliet's argument would be
good. In other words, assuming that
silver is a commodity the argument
is good. And it is unfortunately
true that the effect of the law was
precisely as Mr.. Ballet says At first
it had the effect of abetting in the
reduction of silver from SLAP to
81 an ounce, which was unfortunate
and which was protested loudly by
silver producers no longer G thar
three years. Their when the market
for the metal fell below 81 an ounce
it had the effect of taking capital out
of the field foI investment in pros
pectiag for and developing silver
mines, diverting it to feverish pro-
duction to win a temporary prize i'll
the form of what Mr.. Ballet desig-
mates as 4 bonus. Their after it iS
all over and of the past it leaves the
silver mines and camps in the con
dition of a boom town after the boon,
is flown. It leaves their mines gut
ted and a dreary road ahead Tor
DI1D6llS .C.'uulIiODS JAIN W Ii
normal plane, with little ore in sight
and silver prospects anworked and
untouched. AS loEg as booms, min
ing camps and other boom towns are
a part of the creation of the human
psychology there will be that ever
recurring question for debate after
every one of such booms is past, Are
booms really a good thing or are
they not the worst that could happen
in the strife for a competency among
men? There is one plausible answer
and one only-that they are good
for the person who has the foresight
and the coldbloodedness to go
through with it, to cash in his checks
and quit when the boom is at its
height. But few indeed ever do that,
or are really convinced that a boom
is in existence until the day after it
has broken.
1t is true that all enemies of sill
yer will convince you to their W
satisfaction that silver is a commod-
ity. 1t is true that they have held
the whip hand over the laws OF two
countries for almost half a century
to the end of accomplishing it's Grad
ication as a money metal, and have
all but succeeded in their satanic
efforts against the welfare Of the
struggling millions of the earth. bu:
that does not signify that it is up
to the people who are fighting
valiantly for a worthy principle to
lie down and let them have their
way by admitting that which they
have moved the earth to make out
to be the truth, which is not the
truth, for that is exactly what the
anti-silver conspirators want. There
fore it is up to the people CT the
parts where silver is produced to
before the world and mankind.
which has always used silver as
money, the truth that it is a money
metal and not a commodity. Let
them back n plan which by asso-
citation or by law it will be held at
the position of being worth 100 n
in gold for one ounce of silver. Or
il it cannot be at exactly 100 cents,
let the ratio be fixed al something
tiidl Liz natural ldmS dH' 'lSitlc
supplies of the W MONEY metals
will warrant.
If decentralization had been accom-
plished by other than tricl;ery and
cold-dccking of the coinage laws
there would be q celor Of reason IT
talking about letting things take
their natural course under present
conditions, but such is the opposite
of the truth. and therefore the thing
to do is TO strive for the changing of
present conditions, bringing back a
positive affirmation in the laws that
silver is money. Leave such cor
rected law undisturhed and then let
things take their natural course,
avoiding the artificial.
To show that every ounce of silver
that America could have produced
would not have furnished in the ag-