The Western news. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1933-current, 1939-01-26

many billion dollars before the re
peal would ensue.
The point is that the law directs
the treasury to keep on buying sill
yer until the amount of silver held
/ is one-fourth of the value of all the
gold and silver held by the govern
ment-or-until the price of silver
shall reach one dollar and twenty
nine cents an ounce.
The law was passed back in 1888.
Very shortly the treasury started
: buying silver, on the world market.
When il began the world price of
silver was forty-five cents an ounce.
By prodigious buying, and with
many spectators all over the world
convinced that the U. S. treasury
would be able to Go just that to the
world price, the asking price grad
ually advanced. II went above
eighty cents.
Only Persons 10 Profit
Hare Been Foreigners
Then the treasury abruptly
stopped the tremendous speculation.
The only persons to profit, to any
extent, had been foreigners. In the
first place all silver then above
ground the United States had
been natlonalized and was bought by
the government at fifty cents an
ounce. In the second if an Amer
lean bought silver in some foreign
market-and some did-the specula-
tor was taxed SO per cent of his
profit. This was special tax on the
transaction, and of course was in
addition to any income tax. In
cidentally an investigation was
started to discover who was specu-
lating in silver. Names of wives of
senators and all sorts of bigwigs
were discovered. The investigation
was dropped
Without treasury bidding up, the
price Of silver promptly dropped
back to where it had been before
the buying campaign started. In
fact it went below that, and is now
lowering around forty-three cents.
SO that the treasury not only has a
tremendous loss on all the silver it
bought abroad during the buying
spree, but has loss of seven cents
an ounce on all the silver it took
over from American citizens.
This huge loss, augmented by the
subsidy price paid for silver mined
inside the United States, which has
just been continued until next June,
when the law expires, does not show
on the treasury books. The treas
ury does not admit the loss.
Peace at Any Price Lobby
Is Jolted by President
President Roosevelt iolted the old
peace at any price" lobby consid-
erably with the first part of his mes
sage. 1t SO happens that the ex-
IRENE pacifst movement in this
country has always been rather
closely associated with religion-or
rather with church organizations.
One line in the Bible which this
group never liked to hear quoted
though it has been thrown at them
many times by irate members of
the senate and house naval and mil
itary committees. not to mention
sundry generals and admirals-is
Christ's statement that He came not
to bring peace, but sword
Roosevelt, some researchers assert.
is the first important public official
in 1900 years who made a public
statement supporting that partcu-
lar statement of the Savior.
But the President makes 4 strong
and rather convincing case for the
argument that religious freedom. in
fact religion itself, is dependent
upon democracy, and goes right on
from there to prove that democracy
is dependent upon defensive arma-
ment.
It is a queer and, to the peace at
any price crowd, a very annoying
argument. They prefer texts like
turning the other cheek" and Athe
meek shall inherit the earth and
others clarifying the virtues, and eff
ficlency, of non-resistance They
prefer the attitude of the early +
Christian martyrs, who died in
physical agony but spiritual exalta-
ton to the thought of a bright and
shining sword to defend their re-
Iigious freedom.
On Capitol Hill, however, there is
40 doubt about the outcome. Lots
..1uuau of senators and rep
resentatives W h
are politically, or
personally, or eco