Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-03-10

YEARS HEScE-LEssoS OF A SILVER DOLLAR
With his left hand principally engaged in
caressing his abnormally long beard and his
. right pointing in the direction of large gilt
framed oil painting of the late Mr.. Sitting Bull,
Senator PETER of the state of Kansas delivered
himself of his second speech within the limits
of the District of Columbia. 1t happened last
night at the regular meeting of the True Com
monwealth Club. The meeting was held at the
residence of DR.. T. A. Bland, 1921 10th street
and fully seventy people assembled previous to
8 o'clock for the purpose of hearing those
arguments which the Senator from Kansas
might advance in favor of the methods and
propositions of the Farmers Alliance.
MONEY IN CIRCULATION.
From the time when the Senator was awarded
the floor it was evident that stage fright and
Mr. PETER had long been strangers A few COM
piimentary references placed the club in entire
sympathy with the speaker and he proceeded
! 10 discuss the amount Of money in circulation.
He said that the report of the Secretary of the
| Treasury on that subject unreliable and
calculated to mislead. because the Secretary as
surned that money lying idle in bank vaults and
In the safes of private individuals was really in
| Circulation No one doubted that this curtail-
ment of currency brought with it marked de-
probation OF property values and every one
4 must kHoW tnat III cost more TO pay a DEBT now
than 1t did thirty years ago. Every agricultural
| product was low at this time. 1t cost II cents
| bushel to raise corn in Kansas last year and
then 1t had to be sold for Is cents. Cotton,
swine, cattle and sheep have all deprecated in
| value.
| The FINANCIAL POLICY OF THE TREASURY.
| Senator PETER then turned his attention to
the financial policy of the Treasury Depart
ment, which, he said, was one of practical
philanthropy. He resdfrom newspaper clip
| ping how The late Secretary of the Treasury
had conferred with Wal, street whenever money
| became tight. The practice had been in oper-
| alton for many years, but it was ineluitable.
That method of pandering public finances hid
| brought Generalization. 1t was wrong TO go
| 10 New York TO relieve the stringency of the
| money market; 1t was wrong to anticipate pay
mcnts on bonds; 1T was wrong TO purchase the
peoples Indebtedness at premium. The
whole system was wrong. In Kansas. Nebraska
and Iowa the people were actually furnishing
| for money, Vet when the people asked for
| money public men turned their backs on them
and said the people didn't know what they
| were asking for. The eastern capitalist asks
for money and the government gives it to him.
| WILL ACT FOR THEMSELVES.
I'VE have been asking both parties to help
US, said the Senator. shaking lengthy fore
| finger at the uniformly ruddy countenance of
Mr.. S. Bull. but they have done nothing. We
now propose to act for ourselves" Then the
KansaH paused to give Notwithstanding
gentleman opportunity to relieve his pent-up
soul by burst of applause.
Adam Smiths simile was used-money COM
pared to vehicles on the public highway. MIR.
PETER said the comparison was good because
the function of money was to serve a public
| use. Wagons bore corn and wheat and cotton
and potatoes to the cities and returned the next
day with other loads. As those vehicles were
| so was money on the highway of trade.
SILVER DOLLAR.
Suddenly Mr.. PETER stopped speaking. and
then commenced a search through his many
pockets, which at last resulted in the produc-
ton of silver dollar. The Senator apologized
for the delay by saving that he had been SO
much among farmers that he had to be very
careful OF his money. He held up the coin and
SAID III is a vehicle 1t carried ten bushels OF
corn Ill Kansas last fall. Now. one dollar carries
with IL one dollar worth of value. Suppose Dr.
Bland was a merchant and went to his store
and asked him for one dollars worth OF nails
Here he. with every appearance of implicit
confidence. laid the dollar down on little ia
bic near the presiding officers elbow He
doesn't pick it up and see who signed it. He
gives me the nails. For half minute or so the
kansan wrestled with a big pocket book. and
| then his money-decorated left hand looked as
! though it might belong to a Benning sport
who was engaged in yelling make your bets.
gentlemen; two to one on Tournament" He
seemed to be in need of nails. for he purchased
HOtiilDR tlst. using. succsslNtlN, greeLDack.
| treasury note and silver certificate
This Is silver, said the Senator, holding up
the cart wheel These" hourshing the bills
are all pape. Why is there no difference in
| their purchasing power? They tell me gold
dollar Is worth one hundred cents and that this
silver dollar is worth but seventy cents. In
this silver dollar, then. there is thirty cents
worth OF nat. This. taking possession of his
paper wealth. lis also fat" lIoud applause
MONEY Is FOR PUBLIC Use.
LET MS adopt the principle that money is for
the public use" plead Mr.. PETER, and then
he went on to say that the government only
ought to supply that money. II it was con-
ceded that the government ought to issue
money then it must be evident that the govern
nent ought to Issue ii at Just what il
costs He had investigated the business meth.
ods of the money lender. In his town there
was "a very extensive money-lending establish
mt mt. so his opportunities had been good The
working expenses of that company amounted to
less than 100000. and as the business
aggregated S2,0OO,000 annually the expenses
were but / per cent of the amount loaned
Why, then. should people be compelled to paw
from 10 to IS per cent for long time loans and
from IL to 10 per cent on short time loans? If
private firm could cover its expenses with per
cent of its business the government could do the
same thing, and if the government loaned
money at 1 per cent the extra percentage
would be saved to the people. There was moth
Ing revolutionary, nothing dishonest in the
proposition.
100000. 900 NEW TREASURY NOTES.
An increase in the circulating medium was
| the Senators next suggestion. He wants $780,
100000 new treasury notes of the denomination
| of 81 This sum or much thereof as was
necessary he would loan out 10 per cent of
each loan to be paid each year, 9 per cent to be
apphed To the extinction of the principal in
debtedness and per cent covering the inter
est. In that way he believed it possible to re-
deem every mortgaged home in the land within
| period OF fifteen years. He wanted the
money-issuing power taken away from national
| banks and he thought those institutions should
| be converted into government agencies. II the
| banks would not do the business the people
I would Senator PETER concluded his speech
| with the twice repeated statement, ..The func-
| ton OF money is to subserye the public use
| When that has been done all the rest will fol-
| low-plenty OF money and cheap"
| GEN. WARNER ON SILVER
\ Ex-Representative A. ]. Warner followed the
Kansan and stated that he was largely in ac
cord with the views expressed He disagreed
with most Of them. though. before he got
| through. Gen Warner insisted that IL the
national currency was doubled tonight the
| value OF 81 would tomorrow be but half as
much as now: He attacked the demonstration
| Of silver. chaAged those who were Responsible
for 1t with being criminals, quoted figures in a
popular and pleasing way. demanded an in
| crease OF the money volume to maintain the
ratio changed by increasing population. and
] then placed his huge bulk Of good natured and