Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1891-07-12
THE JOINT DEBATE.
An Interesting Meeting Held at the Opera
I.nuSr, Last rYcnin-.

Secretary Harry Tracy opened tho de-
bate. When De Oepan speaking there were
several hundred people present, quite
number being ladies. He laid down the
general ideas OF tho sub-treasury plan and
then took up the subject III detail. He held
that the government could do directly what
it could do indirectly. If the government
could cOnstitutiunally own One-Seventh of
bank why couldn't it own all of u bank?
The opponents Of the measure say it is class
legislation. This is not case where one
class of people are taxed for the benefit of
another class. AL classes depended on
agriculture. Some said it was paternal
legislation, but what was the legislation in
favor of 4 Confederate home? The free
school system and the homestead law were
paternal, but who wanted to repeal any OF
these laws. The men who voted for them
We're all right. He urged his hearers to
consider this question and then decide and
that would be Democratic. They talked
about pawnshops. Dallas, Fort Worth and
other Texas cities were in pawn
shops now; then why not start
Il pawnshop Of our own3 If we were sensi-
be people we would do 1t The speaker
then read from Daniel Webster on what
the government was founded for. The sub
treasury plan would give cheap money, and
the security would be Sl25 for every 800
loaned. Il would keep the wealth Of the
country distributed. In three years it would
make every county manufacturing center
and a money center. He affirmed that the
Alliance would not 80 into the third party
the members would vote as they pleased
The statement that the Alliance had gone
over TO the third party emanated from Wall
street.
L. :. HALL
was then introduced by Mr.. Robinson. He
nj once went into his subject He said the
foundation stone of the sub-treasury
scheme, the kernel of ii, was that the
volume of the circulating medium was in
flexible. If this could not be maintained by
the suh-treasury advocates then their pro-
iect fell 10 the ground. He denied most
emphaucally that the circulating medium
in this country had ever been intieXible and
never could be. 1t was flexible. When
Barring Bros. failed in England wheat fell
i = cents bushel in Missouri. What had
contracted! There was just rs much money
as before in the state of Missouri. there was
Just as much in the United States. But
just Us soon as the failure was announced
the wheat went down in price. The cur
rency had not contracted but credit had
contracted, and 92l5 per cent Of every 500
OF circulating medium was credit based on
the : per cent of actual money. What
was needed to stop the distress existing to-
day was more money on which to base
the e2-5 per cent O. credit. Repeal
the national banking law and
we would have state banks.
Repeal the Ubiquitous tariff law and the
money would remain in the pockets of the
people. He read 1T considerable length
from John Stuart Mill on money and credit.
The speaker showed in a graphic manner
the danger to the people in the sub-treasury
scheme. Old Hutch aud his co-gamble
did not corner wheat in Chicago. They
cornered wind. Hutchinson and others had
been asked why they did not actually cor
ia - i
too much money-at least $500, 00o, 600. How
would they do with the sub-treaSury
scheme in operation! They could raise
500. GJO, 600 and buy wheat which they
would store in sub-treaSury warehouses.
Then they would borrow SS0,000,0 n0 on
their wheat from the government and buy
more wheat. and so on until by being in
partnership with the government and using
the peoples money they could actually cor
uer wheat and make every bread eater pay
them their price. He was suspicious of
this sub-treaSury scheme. It was the hand
of ESau, but the voice of Jacob Were the
subtreasury scheme adopted il would BEN
eft but q few farmers and would bring un-
nitigated distress on all those who labored
in the cities. He begged the sub-treasury-
ties not TO distract the peoples attention
a. this time from the real issue
TRACY's IEJoINDER.
Mr.. Tracy in his rejoinder departed
from parliamentary usage, and intro
dueed new statements and argu-
first talk \ statement of his relative to
the nature of bank bills elected the ques-
ton from Mr.. Hall, Are bills of exchange
money!" to which Mr.. Tracy replied. no; and
advanced an alleged reason for it being So
He again took up the sub-treasury question
and said that in view of the
6,GO0.O00 mortgaged farms in our
country, and the 200 foreclosures
day something hadsto be done. That the
farmers must get money some way, and
this seemed TO be the best way, 1T
any rate it would get the money. Replying
10 the accusation that the sub-treasury
scheme was 4 Republican move he said that
a Republican never heard of it till it was
promulgated in the Alliance convention
AZ ST.. LoniS. Mr. Tracy tried
in vain 10 refute Mr.. Halls
argument that the volume of the circulating
Ne 80 fixed prices, an argument which