Los Angeles herald., 1892-08-14
THE CONSTITUTIONAL M0NRY OF THE
FATHERS.


ing out silver. Both the great political
parties are austere and repressive as TO
the development Of the great lodes of
the precious metals which kind nature
has provided in this country, to arrest
the greed of the usurer. But, as one
watches the steady declension of silver,
following fast upon the heels OF con-
gressional legislation dictated from Wall
street, one cannot resist the impression
that it is the purpose of change, in Lon
don, to force its New York daughter of
Wall street to reduce silver to the price
OF copper. No honest Democrat, who
believes in the constitutional money of
the Fathers, can repress sigh as he
sees the conspiracy carried out in the
interest of the creditor class. The
United States, the largest single pro-
ducer of silver, is occupying, in the in
ternational struggle to place gold on top
for all time, and to make it the single
standard, the attitude of nincompoop.
1t allowed silver to be demone-
tized at blow, and it declines to re-
pair the injustice by remonetizing
it at stroke. Nothing can check the
intelligent popular demand for more
money. This demand can be met intel
ligently or it can be opposed stupidity.
The time is undoubtedly coming when
the masses will demand departures in
finance, commensurate with the growth
of the world. The conspiracy to res
trict money to one medium will react
with violence of whose coming cy-
clonic force hoarders of gold would do
well to take notice. If the people SO
desire, they can demonetize both gold
and silver, and make. iron the standard
for the payment of debts. There is no
reason why the few people who congre-
gate at the corner of Wall and New
streets in New York, on change in
London, or on the bourses of Paris.
Berlin, Vienna, and the other more or
less restricted bourses of Europe, should
regulate either the volume or the
standard of money. It is all very well
as long as the masses shall consent to
submit to this arbitrary, ,robbing financial
regime. But suppose that the hewers
of wood and the drawers of water take
it into their heads to buck like very
broncos? Suppose they conclude that
capitalists are at best but very parasites,
and that it is On easy task to adjust all
overdue obligations by the convenient
and not demonatrably dishonest expe-
dent of reputation
But the representative of the bond
holder would say, why, this would be
horrible"
Why would it be horrible? 1t GER
tainly would not be without precedent.
There surely never was nobler nor a
more honest debt than that which the
American colonies incurred during the
revolutionary war, and which was in
strumental in the achievement of their
independence-a struggle which made
the United States an independent
nation, and the premier republic of the
world
And yet the United States settled up
this sacred obligation on the basis of
paying one silver dollar for every con-
tinental dollar. The French ambas-
sador protested against this injustice,
and said, truly, most truly, that France
had furnished the colonies with both
money, arms, men and ships; and that,
consequently, La Belle and her citizens
ought to be treated with some con-
sideration.
The callous and recently emancipated
American republic, with an absence of
sentiment illustrative Of the great
American hog, crammed with prairie
corn, replied that che could see no dis
tinction between American and French
debtors, and proceeded to rob her
French and other creditors with volun-
tary promptitude which would gain the
plaudits of an American Greenbacker,
even though he were General Weaver
himself.
/ Next came the liquidation-it never
passed the stage Of liquidation, which
merely ascertains the delimitation of an
obligation = of the French magnates
themselves. The great French republic,
with arms in the hands of her innumer-
able soldiery, concluded that the best
way to pay the debt of the French re-
public was to repudiate it in toto, and,
in addition, to grab all the coin in the
rest of Europe besides.
The republic of the United States has
seen fit to be more sentimental than
other nations. It has paid the debt of
the war, with compound interest, half
dozen times since that epic struggle
closed. Bonds which cost their owners
only 371a cents in greenbacks have been
liquidated in gold on their face four or
five times since the war closed. The
American people are exceedingly good
natured. Ii allowed to develop the dis
tinctive interests of their country, there
is no telling to what extent their for
bearance may reach. But it is really a
question as to whether we shall not
reach a stage in which long suffering
may cease to be virtue. The whole
Pacific slope of the United States may
reach stage in which it may not tamely'
submit to subtle scheme of robbery in
which the robber knights of Ehren-
breitstein are respectable as compared
with the financial robber barons of to-
day. The silver issue is not dead. 1t
is doubtful if it even sleeps. Bimetallism