The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1878-02-21
Gen. Ewing's Mastery
Speech!
At Cooper Institute, New York
Effects of Forced Resumption
InteIliglbly Explained.

1 0%bs 1IWIhS SoAN ou1 uChO tiii
evening to address you on two meas
ures which have passed the House {
Representatives and are now pendin
in the Senate-one 10 restore tho an
cient silver dollar, just as it was, to al
its functions as money; the other L
repeal the resumption scheme. Gap
p'ause.) The vast debts of the world
owned outside OF the countries making
the debts, are held by few hundre,
German, English and French bond
holders. They have always watched
with eager jealousy, the production o
the precious metals, knowing full
well that large production tended Il
lessen the purchasing power of ever,
one of their dollars, while q sinai
production tended to increase tn,
purchasing power. After Great Brit
ain had quadrupled her already vas
national debt by her Napoleonic wars
hcr bondholders came in and demOne
tized silver. Why? To contract the
currency, to bring down values. t.
make the nation pay vastly more, in
real value in gold than the sum stipu-
lated to be paid in gold and silver, But
as Great Britain is the grea. producer
Of gold, national pride came in rs an
ally of craft, and secured the demone-
tization of silver in England. From
lSOS to lS4S the production of the
precious metals in the world fell off
SO much that the purchasing power OF
the dollar was increased l45 per cent,
and with that scarcity of money and
shriukage of values the great bond
holders of the world were content.
Hence, during that period of forty
years no further effort at the demone-
tization of either of the precious met
ais was made. But when California
and Australia poured their flood of
gold upon the W orld ,lesseniDg its pur-
chasing power Is per cent, a concerted
movement was made to demonefize
gold, and Germany did demonetize
it. In, however, the sixteen years Of
lS54-'7O, the production Of gold fell of
largely. and the production of silver
doubled. Then came the agitation by
this class for the
Decentralization OF SILVER.
They got Germany, which had de.
monetized gold when it was getting
cheap, 10 turn about and remonetize
gold and demonetize silver. They got
The States OF the Latin Union. that is,
France. Italy, Switzerland, Belgium,
Wallachia and Moldavia, to restrict
the coinsge of silver, and they held a
meeting of European bondholdsrs to
consider the question, How can we
make the United States--the greatest
debtor in the world, aud the greatest
throat by demonetizing silver?' Well
they solved the question somehow,w
don't know exactly how. (Applause)
They got preliminary change in our
coinage laws in 1873 which nobody
noticed particularly. And then, when
the commissioners who were appoint
ed to codify the laws Of the United
States, made their final report they
succeeded in getting inserted in that
codi6catiop, in 1874, the provision
which forbade the coinage of the old
silver dollar. The codifiers had no
power to touch, in the estimation of a
hair, the meaning of any existing stat
ute. They were appointed simply to
arrange and codify the laws as they
then stood. They reported the code to
Congress, printed, and it passed the
Senate without the bundle in which it
was tied up having even been once
opened, aud in that bundle this fraud
lay nestled. For two years nobody
knew, except the rascals who were in
the secret, and who were to profit by
it. that the deed was done; and now,
when the wrong is discovered aud the
outrage laid bare, and the people Of
this country rise up and demand the
restoration of their ancient standard,
these men have the atrocious impu-
dence, through their organs, the press,
to turn upon the people of the country
and denounce them as scoundrels and
set Themselves up as prosecuted saints.
Qmmense applause.l
WHY SHOULD NOT THE WRONG BE
RIGHTED9
They say the creditor class will suf-
fer, because silver has been depr. ciated
How was it deprecated ? By the very
act of demonstration. (Tumultuous
applause.) 1t is deprecated in respect
to only one comm adisy that exists in
our land, aud that is gold. Take one
o. those disfraEchised dollars, and i.
will buy twenty per cent. more OF la
bor, of breadsiuffs, of clothing, O.
Ian ], of everything that every human
being wants, than it would have
bought in 1874 Who is wronged then
by having it paid 10 ,hem3 But pub.
lie credit is impaired by righting this
wrong. How impaired We should
dividuals. We should do what law.
what equity, what good conscience re-
quires; but when We do that, say
WE MUST DO NOMoRE,
or we ourselves impair our own ma
tional credit. l would rather take the
credit of any man in Wall street who
would meet his obligations in letter
and spirit, but " no would resist any
attempt to extort more from him, than
the credit of spooney who would
suffer his creditor to come in and bully
him ont of more than he really owed.
(Applause.)
There is not bond in the United
States that is not in law. equity, aud