“If they say. ; w»* tiiust Have tlie same
money in order to carry on business
with them,’ my reply Is. ‘that, the big
gest business we ever did carry on with
the balance of tho world, and particu
larly’ Europe, was the time when they
had gold and silver as money and we
had neither.’ It is one of those pecu
liar arguments that wears its way into
a man’s brain when reiterated and
monotonously given out by tlie daily
press that we must have tlie same
money that the other great commercial
nations have; Wo never stop to investi
gate. i
"This nation can have an indepen
dent financial system without hny ref
erence whatever to the balance of the
world and can carry on its own com
merce by ocean and by land with the
other governments of the world not
withstanding. We do not now settle
our balances with Europe in coin ex
cept on its commercial value and by
weight. Our coinage has nothing to do
with It, Primarily balances of trade
fire settled with trade. We give them
our wheat, and we take tlielF glljis find
the balance that we indy owe tlieiii dr
that the.V. hiiiy bwo tis. will be settled
just as the merchant between, the, im
porting points may agree to settle. They
can settle it in gold for so much a pen
nyweight as measured in the money
of their country or our country, or in so
much silver or in so much copi>er, or so
much of any other mercliandise as may
bo agreed ii|>on between them and their
relations. There is no such thing as an
international money. What wo are con
tending for is the Opening of the mints
tn the ftp** i’’»ltu»**i’x*f sliven Jtliej’..ore
now open to the free and unlimited
coinage of gold) and have never been
closed to that metal, and the establish
ment of bimetallism on those simply
and fixed principles that were adopted
by those statesmen who had in view
the interest of no class, hut all the peo
ple.
