The Bolivar bulletin. (Bolivar, Tenn.) 1888-1946, 1891-10-02


more injured than any other class,
for the reason that he not only has
10 pay this largely Increased price
for everything he buys, but when
he carries his agricultural products
to foreign market, he il compeII-
ed to demand the gold. fer them, as
the tariff policy of this country de-
MES him the privilege of exchang-
ing for return cargo of the pro-
ducts Of that country, unless he has
the cash to pay about fifty per cent.
upon the value Of his importation
for the privilege of bringing it in.
Another instance of reprehensible
class Legislation was the demoneti~
zation Of silver in 1873. The small,
but very influential class known as
capitalists, were deeply interested in
diminishing the amount Of money
in the country, for IN the ratio that
you diminish the amount, you in
crease the purchasing power of the
remainder.
Gold and silver being the money
metals of the world, upon which all
circulating medium is based, the
demonetization of silver would dI
mInish the amount of money IN the
country about one half. the inevita-
BILE effect of which must be to
double the purchasing power of the
remaining half, and 10 enrich the
creditor and bring bankruptcy and
ruin upon the debtor class.
1t is a trulsm that will not be
denied, that if you reduce the
amount OF money in the country
one half, just SO SOON as the busi~
ness of the country could adjust it
self to that condition, it would take
twice as much property or twice as
much labor to raise dollar as it
does with our present amount of
money. Or if you will Increase the
volume of money in the country to
double its present amount, dollar
would be raised with one half the
labor or one half the property that
it takes to raise it now.
And while it is true that silver
was remonetized in 1878, it was not
admitted to free coinage, herce the
country has not been able to uti-
lize our entire silver product.
But l need not refer to, much
less elaborate the various measures
by which the public. and especially
the farmer has been wronged.
The people of Tennessee have
heard me often and fully upon these
questions.
The questions upon which you
want my opinion are the warehouse
or sub-treasury bill, the land loan
bill and the government ownership
of railroads and telegraphs, demand
ed by a portion of the Farmers
Alliance.
l have neither of the bills before
me and can therefore only speak OF
them in general way.
The object and purpose of the
sub-treasury bill is to require the
government to construct a ware
house IN each county in the United
States which has raised and sold at
current market prices, tor each OF
the two proceeding years, $500, 900
worth of cotton, wheat, corn, oats
and tobscco, provided that as many
as one hundred citizens of the
county will petition for it and do
nate to the government q suitable
sight for the same, in which, when
constructed the farmer may deposit
his cotton, wheat, corn, oats and
tobacco and take the receipt of the
general manager, specifying guam
tity, quality and market price of
each article, upon which the far
mer may have advanced to him
from the treasury of the United
States eighty per cent. of the value
In legal tender treasury notes to be
issued for that purpose AMI loaned
to him at the rate of interest of
two per cent. per annum; which
producer, however, the farmer,
must redeem within a year by pay
ing back TO the treasury the eighty
per cent. with the interest upon il
and paying all charges aud expenses
incident to its storage.
I am unalterably opposed to this
measure.
First, because the government OF
the United States has no c6nstitu~
tional power to deal IN, or advance
money upon, agricultural or any
other products, and no power to
loan money.
/ know that / may be told thai
the government has loaned money
to railroads, expositions, banks, etc.
My answer TO that is that fifty vi
olatIons of the constitution do no;
Justify another, any more than the
frequency of murders in the country
make it lawful to kill. He who
would perpetuate our government
in ITS purity as our fathers made 1t,
must resist every encroachment
upon the constitution aud every
attempt to violate it.
But if this measure was free
from constitutional objection,