Mr. Cleveland has expressed to an interviewer his intention to
await the Session of Congress in December before he pro- poses his plans. The friends of silver are, he believes, at present too obstinate to hear reason. He expects, however, "hard times" from the senseless piling-up of silver, and believes that when they arrive, local interests will give way before the general sentiment. He will not, if possible, issue bonds in order to collect gold. This means that the American President will let things go to the point when the Treasury will be unable to give gold for silver, and the higher metal will rise to a premium. That situation, he thinks, will alarm the people, and then he will have his way, will stop the purchases of silver, and will maintain " parity " between the two metals by treating the white one as a metallic paper-money guaranteed by the Union, and exchangeable at a ratio for gold. The plan is a bold one, but it depends on the capacity of Americans to absorb silver as currency as fast as the world can produce it. We doubt that ; but then we are pessimists as to the production of silver. We see no reason whatever why its output should cease at 3s. ad. an ounce, or at 2s. either. At the latter rate, the metal will still be worth £3,500 a ton ; and if science cannot get a profit out of it at that rate, science has gone stupid.
