Show SILVER REGAINS MONEY STATUS Metal Metat Back in Favor Again as Result of Nationalization Nationalization Edict NEW YORK Aug 10 P Silver IP Silver climbed back to a position of monetary mone tary importance in the western hemisphere hemi hem sphere today for the first time in 60 years as the result of or President Roosevelt's nationalization of or the metal The or advocates of ot silver silver silo sil sil- sil ver er mo triumphed thus over the opposition of or many leading economists In Wall Street and else where Silvers Silver's fall from monetary favor began back in 1873 when Germany demonetized the metal after adopting adopt ing the gold old standard two years earlier During the next few years France the Netherlands Italy Haly Belgium Belgium Bel Bet gium glum Switzerland and the Scandinavian Scandinavian vian countries took action of one kind or another which deprived silver of oC its monetary status tatus Price Crumbles Crumble In 1874 the United States Stales dropped the he silver dollar doUar from its coinage system althou although h it was not until 1900 that a single gold standard was formally adopted During Durin the DOs DO's Hungary Austria India Russia and Japan chose the gold standard to the thc exclusion of silver Ever since 1873 except for lor the war period jeriod the price of oC sil silver stiver ve-r ve had crumbled crum crum- bled led until in 1933 a reserve movement movement movement move move- ment began which carried the price up per cent from train the record low Ever since 1873 silver sHyer has been the bitterest financial bone of ot contra contro vei Whereas many ites have claimed for their metal a virtually mystic quality there have been equally 1 as man many voices to assert that silver has no more value and no more deserves the dignity of a monetary status than tin or copper or cheese Would Rank Bank With China One side of the argument t points out rather regularly that half of ot the worlds world's population uses silver rather than gold sold for mone money The other side answers that this part of ot the worlds world's population is the poorest half halt that it consumes only 10 per cent of the worlds world's production and that in most cases gold is the official money if it not nol the hand to currency I Whereupon the assert that a rising silver price would increase increase increase in in- crease their purchasing power and the he opposition argues argues with equal force that an appreciating currency would reduce the ability of China to export abroad and therefore would restrict its ability to buy abroad foreign for eign trade consisting in the final linal analysis of an exchange of goods If It the United States Stales should carry carryout carryout carryout out its plan to bu buy enough silver to equal 25 per cent of or total metallic reserves reserve it would begin to rank with China and India as a consumer of or orthe the w white ite metaL China Chin Chief Buyer China the only important country countr whose currency system is directly based on silver has been for the past generation the chief chier buyer of or new production in world markets India played an equally important part in inthe inthe the more remote past Between them China and India possess billions of ounces of or the metal No one can even guess how much has been bought boucht and hoarded and t turned into trinkets and baubles for lor the natives to wear There is enough in jn this inaccessible form Corm to supply the American treasury with all aU the silver it possibly want vant to buy But whether the natives of China and India would be willing willingto to sell it is another matter Perhaps Perhaps Perhaps Per Per- haps American nationalization will wil spread just as currency devaluation did to other countries and silvers silver's value be enhanced out of reach Floating Supply Limited The floating supply of or silver on the other hand is relatively limit limit- ed The exact amount is not Jot known to bankers here but the total is con can less it is thought than the or more ounces which the treasury may have to obtain to complete its program In the long run bankers point out silver purchases abroad would be paid for fOl with ith gold since the American Ameri Arneri can balance of or payments would be affected by silver ilver imports as in the case of any other commodity imports Bankers here use the term terni longrun long run tun advisedly since they believe i it will take years for the plan to be completed Even opponents of s silver lver tion admit that this process of redistributing redistributing redistributing re re- re- re distributing some of Americas America's gold supply to other countries might bring about that very increase In the fa far east's purchasing power which sil all see as the result of a higher highe price for Cor their me metal al |