The Osceola times., 1878-02-23
THE SILVER GOSPEL.

Mr.. Thomas Ewiug Boards the aold- n sgs
tn Their Den-Text OF Rlss speech
Before TumsItusus Au-
dfence I'm Cooper Insiiiute.
AT the meeting in favor of silver re-
monetization in New York city on Fri.
day night, at which Mr.. Ewing was the
only orator, that gentleman said: lie
had come 10 speak of two measures
which had passed the house Of represen.
tatives and were at present pending in
the senate. One was to restore the
ancient dollar and make it just as it used
to be. The other was to repeal the re-
sumption scheme. The vast debts OF the
world owned outside the countries max
ing them were held by few German
or English, and French bondholders
These capitalists always watched with
eager jealousy the production of the
precious metals, knowing that a large
production tended to reduce the
purchasing power of their dollars, and
that small production tended to in.
crease 1t. After Great Britain had
quadrupled her already vast national
debt by the Napoleonic wars her fund
holders demonetized silver. They did
this for the purpose of contract
ing the currency and bringing down
values, and making the nation pay
vastly more than it had promised them.
But as England was the great gold-pro.
ducing power of the world, avariee came
in this time otheir rescue, and helped
them to demonetise silver. From 1908
to ls4S the demonetiksd dollar increased
in value l45 per cent, and with that the
bOndholders were content and no other
demonetization was asked for. But when
California and Australia poured their
tide of gold into the world, lessening its
purchasing power Is per cent, there
arose a great agitation on the part Of
these bondholders for the demonetization
of gold, and Germany did demonetise it.
The production of gold gradually fell off
sfterward, while from 1854 to 1870 the
production of silver doubled. Then
came the agitation on the part of this
came class again, and they succeeded In
having Germany remonetize gold and
demonetize silver because 1t was getting
cheap. They also got the Latin nations,
consisting Of France, Switzerland, Bel.
GUM, Wallachiaand Modavia, to restrict
the coinage Of silver, and congress was
convened, which deliberated upon the
question of how to make the United
States the greatest silver.producing
country in the world, the greatest
debtor nation in the world, cut its own
throat by demoneti,ing silver. They
solved the question somehow but how,
we did not know exactly. They got q
clause into the innocent coinage act Of
1873 which nobody suspected, and which
| did not demonetise or forbid the coinage
of the old dollar. But the commission
who were appointed to codify the laws
I inserted in 1874 provision which forbids
the coiuage of the old silver dollar. These
commissioners had no power to touch
to the extent of hair the meaning OF
any existing statute. They presented
their report to the senate, and the senate
passed on it without opening the bundle.
In that bundle was this fraud. For two
years nobody knew anything about it
except the rascals who profted by having
the deed done; but now, when the out
rage had come out into open day and the
people demanded the restoration OF the
silver dollar, these men have the afro
cious impudence, through their great
organs, the press, to turn upon the
wronged and outraged people of this
country, and represent themselves as
perecuted saints. Why should not this
wrong be righted?. 1t was said that the
creditor class was to suffer. But how
were they to suffer II was said that
silver had deprecated. But how had it
deprecated BY this very act of de-
monetization. 1t had deprecated only
in respect to one commodity that exists
in our land, and that was gold. Take
one of these di-frsnchised dollars and it
will buy more by twenty per cent. than
it would in 1874. Who was wronged by
being paid with dollar whose purchas-
ing power had been rising every moment
since it was demonetized? The only
thing it would not purchase was gold,
because gold was the only money, and
that had reduced silver to the level of a
mere commodity. 1t was said that the
public faith would be impaired. But
how? We should be honest az nation
as much rs an individual, 80 far as our
keeping a good conscience required it.
He would rather take the honor
OF man in Wall street who paid all
his debts, but refused to pay any mere
than he owed than that of an insolvent
brsggsrt who attempts to raise more
from him than he was entitled to. Take
the funding act of 1870 which declared
that bonds issued under it should be paid
In coin as authorized and fixed at the
date OF that law, the 14th of July, 1870.
That provision was printed on the face OF
the bond 80 that all could see it. Now,
because some rascal has stepped in and
convertibly demonetized one Of our coins,
could it be pretended when these bonds
mstured twenty or thirty years hence he
would be cut off from paying them in
that coin. We had paid for the option.
Yes, we have it, and we will keep ii.
Suppose the gold dollar had been demo-
netized by accident at that time, what
would the bondholder say to the people
\ who should offer them paper in payment? :?
They. would say, stand TO my contract.
| If calls for gold or silver, as established
by the act OF the 18th of july, 1870, and
that they asked no more. He felt that
his dwelling on the subject was almost q
| loss Of time, because the remonetixation
Of the old silver dollar was already q
I foregone conclusion. Outside this little
corner OF republican America the people
were unanimous in favor OF it. Two
thirds and more Of the members OF both
houses had plainly indicated their pur-
pose to restore it, veto or no veto, and
1t would not be sixty days until that
dollar, which, for eighty years, had been
the standard of value in free
America, would b, restored TO the
currency. OF the country; but he