Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1891-02-05
HIS LAST SPEECH.


dom at the New York Banquet just Be
fore He Died.
| NEW YORK, Jan. 31.-Responding to
| the toast, ''Our Country's Prosperity
| Dependent Upon It's Instruments of
| Commerce. Mr.. Window said, just prior
| to his sudden death at the Delmonico
| banquet:
| lam to speak briefly of the instruments of
| commerce in their relation to the wealth and
prosperity of the country. The subject is
| very broad and my time very limited. I
| shall, therefore, confine my remarks to the
| two chief instrumentalities of commerce
| transportation and money.
| nations wealth and prosper ty are usual
iy in proportion to the extent and success of
commerce and commerce itself is dependent
! upon the adequacy and adaptation of these
| two essential instruments. The history of
all civilized countries attests the fact that the
nation best equipped in these respects rapid
| ly becomes the most powerful and richest and
the most prosperous. Our own country is
| exception to the rule No nation has ever fos-
tered more literally or protected more care
! fully its internal and coastwise trade than
we have done, and the resultant magnitude
| and prosperity of our domestic commerce is,
| believe, without parallel in the history OF
| the world. We have more miles of railroad
| than all Europe, Asia and Africa combined.
The floating tonnage of the United States en-
| gagged in cOastwise commerce and our
| lakes and rivers is very far in excess of that
| of any other nation. Our Increase in wealth
|
| other nations, was: United States, $I3,573,-
| 481 1873; Great Britain, S, ESQ, OO,0OO; France,
| $1,l5oOO,0J0; Germany, s3,625,o0),O 1000 Our
| home markets in 1880 absorbed five times
| much of our manufactured products
| Great Britain exported of hers to all the
| markets of the world.
| Contrast these grand results of our liber-
| ally developed domestic commerce operat-
| ing upon our protected industries, with the
| present shameful condition of foreign
| carrying trade. There was time when we
! stood first among the nations in ship build
| ing, and Great Britain alone excelIed in
ocean tonnage. Once IS per cent. of our i'm
| ports and SO per cent. of our exports were
| carried in American boats, and our merchant
marine became the boast OF every citizen
and the envy OF the world. Now, as far as
foreign trade is concerned, our ship yards
| are comparatively silent and our flag
| has almost disappeared from the
| high seas. So strong had our position
| become under the protective policy of the
! first twenty-five years of national life,
| that our merchant marine continued to be
| prosperous SO long as wooden vessels were
| other nations refrained from heavy subsidies
| to their ships But when wooden vessels
| began to be supplanted by iron steamers,
| and European Governments poured their
| contributions into the treasures of their
| steam ship companies, the decadence of
American shipping began and has continued
| ever since. In my Judgment the remedy is
| plain and easily applied. If we would re-
| gain our lost prestige, reinstate our flag
| upon the ocean and upon the markets of the
| world to American producers, we must make
| the contest with the same weapons which
| have proved successful in the hands of
| our rivals.
The folly and danger of depending upon
our competitors for the means of reaching
competitive markets can not be estimated.
| Suppose that for twenty five years we had
given IS 100000 year in all OF our foreign
shippings. and reduced by that amount the
| payment of our bonded debt, should we not
| ar off we ara
| Iregret to say that the uniform record of
| Indifference, if not actual hostility, during
| the past fifty years affords little reason for
encouragement In fact, the tendency of late
has been to surrender to foreigners even our
domestic commerce. rather than to assert
| ourselves upon the ocean Determinations
| of the most astonishing character have been
made both by Congress and the Treasury
regulations in favor of Canadian railroad
lines and steamships against our own.
Presidents of the United States have re-
| peatedly expressed the national humiliation
! and appealed to Congress for action in be-
| half of our rapidly vanishing merchant
| marine, but thus far their words have fallen
on deaf ears. Let us hope that the urgent
| ject may bear fruit in well devised
measure of protection and encouragement.
1t is essential to commerce that the cur
! rency with which it is conducted be adopted,
both in quantity and quality, to the wants of
trade that the vehicles % transportation
should be adopted to their purposes.
|
be one that should furnish just
enough of absolutely sound cur
| rency to meet the legitimate wants of
| trade, and more; and that should have
| enough elasticity of volume to adjust itself
| to the varying necessities of these people.
| Could such circulating medium be secured
| the gravest commercial disasters which
| threaten our future might be avoided. These
| disasters have always come when unusual
| activity in business has caused an abnormal
| demand for money, as in the autumn, for the
| movement of our immense crops. There
| will always be great danger at those times
| under any cast iron system of currency, such
| as now have. Had it not been for the
peculiar condition which enabled the United
| States to dfsburse over SIS, 600, 0C0 in about
| two and half months last autumn, am
firmly e9nyineed that the s,ringeney In Au,
| wides pread financial ruin.
am thoroughly convinced that better
degree place the power of expansion and
| contraction in the hands of the people them
currency may be found in our bonded debt Ion
which nc should in my Judgment be in part ex-
a low rate of interest, and always inter-
changeabie for money at the will of the
| Believing that there is not enough of eli. her
| gold or silver in the world to meet the neces.
list. and concede to no one stronger desire
than feel for free and unlimited coinage of
through international agreements, other
| wise, by which such coinage shall be safe.
country to enter upon that experiment now
| would be extremely disastrous, and that it
| would result not in bimetallism, but in silver
| monometallism.
How, then, will unlimited coinage either
expand the circulation or enhance the value
! OF silver? The advocates of present free
coinage insist that it shall not wait the slow
| process of mint operations. but that the
printing press shall be set to work providing
| certificate to be issued for silver bullion at
| 81 for 37l4 grains. When this combination
! shall be reached, as it surely will be if I'M
limited coinage be adopted under existing
| conditions the too ardent and impetuous
| lovers of silver will sadly realize the truth
uttered by the wise King of Israel: He that
loveth silver shall not be satisfied with sill
YER"
Give direct and ample transportation
facilities under the American flag, and con.
trOlled by American citizens. a curren cy
sound in quality and adequate in quantity
and an international bank to facilitate ex-
changes, and system of reciprocity care
fully adjusted within the lines of protection,
and not only will our foreign commerce
again invade every sea, but every American
Industry will be quickened and our whole
people feel the impulse of new and endur-
ing prosperity.
-Four Horse Thieves Shot While Resisting
Arrest.
GRAND FORKS, Nd, Jan. 31.-Word
has just been received here that John