The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1892-10-05
NO GREENRAcKs FOR MONTANA.


There are many voters in Montana
who admire the courage and honesty of
Grover Cleveland, who believe him to be
sincere in his opinions, who know that
he gave the country one splendid adj
ministration and would give it another,
who are in hearty accord with him in
his efforts to correct the abuses of the
tariff, who recognize in him a man in
whose hands every interest of the peo-
pie would be safe, yet would run the
risk of making Benjamin Harrison again
president Of the United States by cast
ing their votes for Weaver, for the sole
reason that the Omaha platform con-
tanned a declaration in favor of free sill
yer.
Such voters lose sight of the fact that
Gen. Weaver, judging from his past, is
anything but q safe man in financial
matters. He has been a candidate for
office many times and on many tickets.
Those who heard him speak in Mon
tana are aware that he devoted much of
his argument to the fiat money idea, an
unlimited issue of g%reenbacks as a pan
acea for public ills. In the many
changes which he has made in his prin-
ciples in other respects, he has been
steadfast in his greenbackery. Now,
the voters of Montana are bimetallists.
They want the gold and silver dug out
Of the earth in this state to be coined
at the mint and put in circulation as
money. A %greenback circulation, not
based on gold or silver, but bearing
merely the governments promise to pay,
is not the kind Of money the people of
this state want. 1t would forever de-
stroy the mining interests of this state
If such a currency as Weaver favors
were put in circulation. Mr.. Weaver
has been hostile to our interests in the
past and we want some better evidence
of his fidelity to them % than the
Omaha platform. In 1876 Mr.. Weaver
was making speeches throughout the
country for Peter Cooper, the green
back candidate for president. He par
ticlpated in the convention that nomin-
ated Mr.. Cooper, and aided in formulate
ing it's declaration Of principles. What
was the attitude of that convention and
OF Nj. Weaver at that time toward sill
YER? We quote from the fifth plank of
the greenback national platform Of that
year:
We further protest against the sale Of
government bonds for the purpose of pur-
chasing silver to be used as a substitute for
our more convenient and less fuctuating
fractional currency, which. although we'll
calculated to enrich owners of silver mines,
yet in operation will still further Cypress in
taxation an already ver-burdened people.
That was the kind of silver man Mr..
same kind of silver man fof many years
afterward. War on silver was a cardi-
nal principle with these greenbackers
right along. Their platforms in their
various state conventions were against
silver. Thus, for example, the Pennsyl-
vania greenbackers in 1879 we're found
declaring: "That the federal govern
ment only shall issue money; that such
money shall be full legal tender, and
that full legal tender greenbacks shall
be substituted for national bank notes.
We demand for the sake Of conom
and convenience that the trade dollar
and fractional silver coinage be replaced
by fractional paper currency"
Now we have no desire to uniustly
assail Gen. Weaver or his supporters,
but we protest hat it is asking the peo-
pie of Montana to take d great deal on
faith when they are invited to support
Gen. Weaver as the only friend OF sill
yer among the candidates for president.
He has never taken back any OF the
principles that he held in the past; on
the contrary he has kept on affirming
them to this day.
And, unless we are very much mis-
taken, there are very few men IN Mon.
, ANA who want to see the country 90 tc
the sort OF currency favored by Gen
+ Weaver, and gold and silver disused
The people of Montana produce in vast
. quantities the two precious metals tina
constitute our circulating medium
. Iboy "hIb lilSse m6tulS Ulhuo INTO UOl
, lars at u mints on equal terms, anG
without tax. They do not ask for dis
t elimination for or against either. |
paper money Is circulated, they wan.
o the basis of such circulation to be Rolt
y or silver, or both. They do not wan
the Weaver kind of money, based OF
nothing but the general credit Of tn,
government. They want u gold or silve
s dollar behind every paper dollar. The,
o want exactly what Grover Clevelan,
says he wants in his letter of acceptance
q Sound and honest money abundantly gu
+ ficient in volume to supply their bushes
needs. But whatever may be the form q
d the peoples currency, national or state
whether gold, silver or paper-it should b
so regulated and guarded by governments
y action, or by WISE and careful laws, that n