Union County courier. [volume] (Elk Point, Union County, D.T. [S.D.]) 187?-1913, 1890-08-20

Illlf mine. Th6
@Nes Aucttnte
Sfhsf 4anshe transported
Klssrs needed Of Yefy
Iiite lfCpble and there r. no danger
" Nn over production oE either; and
het1ce tlaoy make The best standard
s0f value knOwn 10 the world. The
/ Tinted States has decided tint Is
and ~ grains of gold 81 4i2l Of
silver make one dollar, and this
st2iadAtd can be increased or dimin-
shSd d pleasure, but when the
real iutrinsic worth Of the dollar IL
% b arrived At the alloy does not
enter into account, and its real
wurth Il estimated only by the
amount of gold Or silver Il contains.
For Instance, the bank note is worth
to-day Too csnts on the dollar; dur
ing the initiation period Of l5B4-5
the grceaback was worth thlrty-iive
ents on the dollar. Why this diff
farence when the government was
back Of both? Simply because in
The first mentioned instance the
government has the gold and silver
to redeem its promises, aud in the
| other instance ii did not.
Now let lis suppose that the
| government start its printing presses
aud turn out promises to pay with
out regard to its ability to meet
them, and then suppose that the
demand OF this alleged plank in All
alleged platform could be met, and
these promises be made full legal
tender in 30 far rs government r
actment could mike them such,
what would be the RESULT Why A.,
who Glanced to be owing B, would
Immediately secure a lot Of these
paper promises and discharge his
obligation to b. b, who had a lot
Of grain, cattle, or hogs, or some
other commodity. would not care to
part with something Of real value
for something that had no value and
confusion and business ~stagnation
would follow. With such 'curren-
cy' backed by such an enactment
il would be possible to discharge a
debt, because the creditor would be
compelled to accept the govern
ment's promises, butt it would no. be
possible to carry on business be-
cause a man who possessed coin
modities Of real worth could not be
compelled TO part with them for
either individual or government
promises. The result would be
financial ruin and business chaos.
But this alleged plank goes farth-
er. 1t not only wants the govern
ment TO print its promises to pay,
but it wants it to circulate them
without the intervention Of banks Of
issue-to hand them out to the
people. This remarkable plank
does not provide any means for Sc
curing the government for the al
legged money it issues directly to the
productive industries, but we will
suppose that the particularindustry
is farming and that a mortgage is
given on the farm to secure the gov
eminent. The time for payment
comes the same as il would at a bank,
and when the farmer cannot pay the
farm must revert to the government.
In the first place the government
gave the farm TO the individual then
loaned him alleged money upon it
and finally took back the farm as
payment in full. The idea of a
government going into such wildcat
land business as this is too absurd
to be- seriously entertained by think.
ing men.
The principle involved in this
crazy proposition, although much
more far-reaching in its. pernicious
effects, is very similar to the de-
bauch the people attempted in 1885.
This was . scheme for distributing
the land money among the states
either in the shape Of credit distri-
button or in the disguise of q depos-
it of surplus revenue. This bill, as
il finally passed, provided for a dis.
tribntion Of the surplus publicmon-
eys with the states, in proportion to
their representation in congress, to
DO returned when congress should
Gull for it. This Of course, was a
miserable evasion Of the constitu-
tion, but it was not half SO brazen
and revolutionary as the nefarious
scheme proposed by the so-called
independents Of South Dakota.
However, it produced panic and
financial ruin, and resulted in the
overthrow ofthe party that fathered
ii.
The real fact Of the matter il, had
the trainers Of the alleged platform
been wholly possessed of The spirit
that actnated Spies and Parsons
they could not have constructed a
document the success Of which
would SO completely wipe out the
last vestage Of a republican govern
ment as would this combination OF
Inconsistencies and idiocy which
they denominate a platform. IF it
could have any effect at all it would
delegate to the government all the
rights now possessed by theindivid-
ual, and by making the former tho
owner and operator OF railroad, tel
egraph and telephone lines. express
companies, manufactures, and other
branches of business, rs well as the
creator Of money, reduce the people
70 the position of mere serfs, it
would inangurate a system that
would preclude the possibility Of a
change of administration, place n
premium or the ability of the GOV
eminent to debauch the people, and
finally wreck the country and every
industry therein. It is the most in
iquitoua scheme ever gotten up by
political mountebanks, and the en-
| tire alleged platform ID rotten with