The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1891-07-25


it.
We have been doing business,
paying debts and distributing our
annual products by a money stand
ard that has been growing dearer
and dearer, until it has become 80
per cent. more valuable than eigh-
teen years ago, when silver was
clandestinely demonetized.
The people are determined that
this injustice shall cease, in spite
of the sophistry Of gold worship
pers or the cupidity of the credit
holding class. The remedy is in
the restoration of bimetallism.
Place our money system again upon
the broad basis of gold and silver,
as the money of ultimate redemp-
tion, instead of gold alone. Sup
port the credit structure of the
banks and the country by both the
metals under free and unlimited
coinage.
In other words, instead of less
money and more credit substitutes
for money, which may vanish when
most needed, the country requires
more actual money that is legal
tender when eXigencies come, and
fewer mere credit devices that lure
to speculation and then vanish, to
be followed by collapse of credit
and the breaking down of all busi-
ness enterprises. A stable and not
fluctuating currency is required
by legitimate business. Who can
doubt that greater stability resides
in money coined from the metals,
automatically regula ted by produc-
ton, than in credit devices that
today are and tomorrow may have
vanished?
Had it not been for the increased
coinage of silver under the act of
July 1890, we could not have stood
the drain Of gold that has been re-
Gently going on, without The pre-
cipitation of panic and the entire
prostration of business. Gold and
silver without limit are money by
the constitution, and this money
must be restored to the people.
This is the paramount issue in
this country, and should be made
such in the elections this year. All
other issues are involved in this
and cannot be separated from it..
The power to wipe out the fraud
of 1873 is with the people, and they
should see that no one is given the
right to represent them in the leg
islatures Of the States, who cannot
be relied upon to advocate and
vote for the full restoration of sill
yer to its constitutional place as
money equally with gold.
We regret that the Republican
State Convention of Ohio has prac-
tically declared against the free
use Of silver as money. 1t is true
that the convention paid to silver
the compliment which vice pays
to virtue by adopting the cuttlefsh
policy Of darkening the waters to
conceal its purpose. The danger
of openly advocating gold monop-
| oily forced the convention to adopt
an ambiguous platform calculated
to deceive the people. The silver
plank in the platform is as follows:
4, Thoroughly believing that gold
and silver should form the basis of
all circulating medium sic. !, we
indorse the amended coinage act
of the last Republican Congress,
by which the entire production OF
the silver mines of the United
States is added to the currency OF
the people.
How can silver be used as a ba-
sis of circulating medium while
it is purchased as commodity
and issued merely as credit money
redeemable, as is claimed, in gold ?
Why is it any more "basis" than
paper, if redemption in gold is ne
cessary? If silver coin requires
REDEEM ption, and is not otitselfmoney
of ultimatepayment, why use it all !
Why buy "the production of the
silver mines of the United States
at great expense, for the purpose
of issuing credit money. when pa,
per will answer the same purpose
Did the trainers of the platform
expect to deceive the people by de-
claring in favor of gold and silver
as a "basis Of all circulating medi-
um" when they declare as final an
act of Congress which denies to
silver the right of coinage equally
with gold.
At the same time silver was de-
monetized there was in the com
mercial world about $3,700,000,00C
of gold coin, and an equal amount
of silver coin.
u - q