The Osceola times., 1878-02-23
abroad payable in a metal over which we

uhu uO CUmulAnu. lct us Ita5sbi OuI
silver currency, and Germany, and proba-
bly, the rest Of the world, including the
Latin union, would do the same, ard sill
YER would 20 back to its old place In
every nation except Great Britain. In
fact, II was probable that it would send
gold down and silver up until there
would be. no difference between them,
and nobody In this country would be
particularly hart BY It. aHua.
Mr., Ewing here took leave Of the silver
question and launched out on the subject
Of resumption. He was afraid tina. re-
monetization would not Immediately
help the distressed masses. The repeal
Of the resumption scheme only could do
that. That law had two objects. One
was to contrast the currency In the vol
rme possible to be held Of gold after Jan.
uary I, 1879, to shrink every value in
the land, and to increase every dollar
invested in secured securities. The ether
and more lasting and disastrous was to take
from the peoples government all control
Of the peoples currency and put the
money power into the hands Of the
national banks. Those objects strike at
the foundations OF a republican system
Of government. This is apparent to the
Mississippi valley and the south Atlantic
states, for there, thank God, the prers is
free and open, and an agitation has been
raised in the heart Of the country which
is shaking up party Affiliations and
reforming party lines At this point the
speaker entered into an analysis of the
recent vote ON repeal, to show that nearly
all the democrats were in favor, and
nearly all the republicans opposed to it.
He felt safe to predict that the democratic
party would in the end represent the idea
Of one currency, whether paper or metal
lie, and by the government alone. He
criticised the assertion Of fOrtheastern
democrats that the party was departing
from old faith In the matter and quoted
from Jefferson and jackson in roiutation.
He said that the idea of measuring our
business necessities now with our business
necessities of that era was as absurd as
to expect the canal-boat and stage coach
to do the work Of lightning and steam.
He next argued against giving power TO
issue money to any private individual or
corporation. The reduction of $780,.
10000 of currency by one-fith would,
he said, decrease the value Of property
by $l0, 900, 600 900, and those controlling
such power would be able 70 make hard
times or good times as they pleased.
Resumption would massacre the bust
ness Of the people, because it inevitably
involvesa contraction OF the currency
with which business is done to one. third
or one-iourth its volume, and consequent
shrinkage Of all the land and products
Of the country in proportion. This, he
claimed, had been demonstrated over
and over again. The banks cf Great
Britain, when there was only 4 per cent.
difference between gold aud paper, had 10
contract their currency As per cent. and
all values on the island were ahrunk in
almost exactly the same proportion. The
amount Of contraction depends on the
amount of coin we can get and keep in
the country. In England, France, and
Germany, the coin exceeds the currency
three or four times. 1t is not thought
safe to do business on any other system,
a. the banks can not hold only por.
tion Of the coin in the country. Here
we have notion that one gold dollar
will redeem three paper ones. Before
the war we had 1884 ,000, 600 of coin.
We have produced 81, 200, 600, 900 since.
Where has it gone? 1t goes TO Europe
and overtops all the balance of trade Ia
our favor. Even last year, when such
balance was Si65, 900 900 In our favor,
we exported sl6,0O0,OO0 more coin than
we imported. We have from $3.50, ,O0O,-
600 to $165, 900. 900 now in the country,
Of which but $l45. 000, 900 is gold, and
there is $3.50, 900, 900 OF paper, yet re-
sumption day Is next New Years.
II is as certain as that the sun
shines that our volume of currency
must be cut down to less than 5000, 000,s
600 before we can resume. Secretary
Sherman, with all the powers Of the
government behind him, has been able
to accumulate during three years but
$33, 900, 900 of gold. He tried to make
congress believe that he had $23. .0O0, 900
more, but he had not deduced the accrued
interest on the bonds. All nations are
struggling for the possession of coin as
basis for their currency. and we, their
debtors, cannot wreet any from them. We
cannot hold even what VIC have got, ex-
cept by their suferance. When Enel
resumed in 1919 1t was after twenty
years of unparalleled prosperity which
had made her mistress of the seas and the
mandatory of the world. Everybody
owed her. She had only onc.third as
much debt az we. Yet she bet CARED her
manufactures, bankrupted her debtors,
starved her laborers and increased her
army thirty.two thousand men to sup
press the cry of agony of her people. A
high officer of the army recently told the
speaker that we would have to increase
our army one hundred thousand men TO
carry cut the resumption law. 81 tell
you," said Mr.. Ewing, excitedly, "no
matter what difficulties the execution of
the law may bring about, the regular
army of the United States will not be
increased one man.n He them took
another fling at the press of the republi.
can party, and claimed that tho contrac,
tion thus far effected had caused us to
lose practically 40 per cent. He scoifed
at the notion OF over production,
with millions starving and unc.othed.
The panic of 1873 was over, he
said, when the resumption act was
passed. Former psnics deprecated
money, this had not in 1874 there was
a vast falling oH in the number of fail.
ures. Since then, the percentage had
steadily Increased J... ..t.l
He then considered the enormous loss
to the country, and instanced the loss on
the wages of 5000, 900 OF persons unem-
ployed at 81 per day; also the loss to
debtors by adding forty per cent, or
$3, COX, 900 to "a O0O, 900 that they did
not owe TO the $4,000, 900 or 1900, 900
that they did owe. 1t was mere rob-