The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1893-08-27

anees be said the Democratic rsatgorm
did not declare for free coinage of silver.
An attempt was made in the convention
o. delegate from Colorado to commit
tne party TO that principle. hnt he failed
70 secure ten votes. Colorado and Ne
vada we're declaring that the party was
departing from the platform in this mat
yer. III that was so. why did these states
take to the woods In the election OF iS92f
II was because these states abandoned the
democratic platform that Pence was
elected TO theN house from Colorado.
Cochran declared that he was standing on
the platform with both feet. He
asserted, and defei Bland to prove
otherwise, that there Was no in
stance in the history of civilization where
gold and silver circulated side By side at
any ratio. Fluctuations, such as con-
stantly occur. drive out the dearer metal.
France had 70 import $50 0o0. 900 of gold
70 maintain parity. and the United States
would have TO do the same under like cir
cumstances- Cochran controverted the
assertion OF Bryan of Nebraska that silver
Is still the basis of value Of the farmers
products. saying: IF that is so why do
you not give him the full value of itf You
would give the farmer S7isx grain. of pure
silver while would give him 65li<. The
proposed debaselnent of coin would reduce
debts IS per cent" Bryan assumed that
the loss would fall on the banks, but the
fact was the banks and corporations
were the debtors of the country and
the workingmen the creditors. He denied
gold had appreciated. Never before did
the laboring man of America receive so
onIA
Bryan propose in their plans to make the
bankers Of New York present of $2f.-
ooo,o00 in the settlement of accounts with
depositors. and deprive the laboring man
of - per cent. of the value of his work.
Bryan, interruptsng. asked If that was
so. why the New York banks denounced
himself and Bland. and why Grand Mas
ter Powderly was with them. Cochran
replied that the banks had learned that in
business and politics honesty was the
best policy. Cochran claimed that busi-
ness depressions are always due
to imitation of currency, or
of credit beyond the capacity of the
business interests TO support. The opera
tions of the Sherman law proved this. IL
increased the currency and now strin-
gency follows. BANDS proposition to
give 3!1l4 grains of silver for 65ii& would
be called robbery II 1t related TO wheat or
corn. The farmer suffered most in depre-
citation of prices under the Sherman law,
and 1t was a strange friend of the farmer
who desired its continuance. Cochran :
spoke of the unity of interest OF the whole
country, and said efforts to sectionalize IL
on any basis would result in benefit to no
one. He closed with an eloquent appeal
for equity and justice as the basis of gov
ernmental policy, awakening a whirlwind
of applause and cries of "vote" The
speaker was overwhelmed with congratu-
lations on the magnificent effort The ex-
citement on the floor was so great that the
speaker had to call ON the officers of the
house to restore order.
Bland then began the closing argument
on behalf of the silver men. He said that
IL the gentleman from New York (Cock-
ran), whose financial theories were evil
IDENTIFY gained from the manipula.ions of
the stock exchange, would only go to that
cddntry where he said were obtained the
agricultural products shipped abroad In !
order to bring back the European gold
necessary TO sustain the public credit he
would understand why that gentleman
and himself were so radically different in
their views. 1t was true, as the gentleman
said, that it was to the products
of the soil of this country
that the fnanciers of this government
looked to bring back the gold of Europe in
order to maintain our present financial
system. Bland said all the dogmatic
utterances of the gentleman from New
York (Cockran) were made in the face of
history and truth. He tBland) did not
defend the Sherman law, and if he could
put in its place a provision for free coin
age of silver at the ratio of 16 to he would
vote for its repeal. He saw no reason
whatever for changing the existing ratio
of is to I. The production OF silver and
gold for the last hundred years had been
at the ratio of about I5ls to 1, and that
was the ratio of silver coinage of different
nation of the world. The propositions to
be substituted were for free coin
age of silver at ratios fixed. That
meant that the people should issue from
their mint their own money and not let 1t
be issued by banks. So far as the oper-
alton of the Sherman bill was concei ned,
the people issued their own money under
it; and what harm, after all, did silver in
the treasury dor Although the Sherman
act was not in conformity with bi-metai-
iism, yet under it thirty or forty millions
of greenbacks year were put in circu-
lation. He sent to the clerks desk and
had read a dispatch referring to an article
In the New York Epeniag Fost as 10 the ap-
plication of pressure in favor of repeal of
the Sherman act, the pressure sug-
gested being . threat to withhold
credits from country merchants
He denounced the article. and
declared it notorious fact that the peo-
pie of the South and West who had
money on deposit in New York banks
could not have their checks paid. This
was being done to weaken Western banks
and to have an influence upon representa-
tiyes in the house. The silver men in the
house had offered several compromises.
II those compromises were rejected there
would never be another compromise Of
fered. TApplausel To maintain the gold
standard meant 10 demonetize silver and
10 lower the prices of labor. Wilson asked
the United States congress TO so legisiate
an 10 add to the prosperity Of Eng
land and Austria and TO the dis
tress and adversity Of the farmers and
miners of America He had not
advocated the Sherman Law. He had
voted against it, but it was now the last
briwark Of silver. II was proposed to de-
monetize silver. Now was the time to let
the country see who were the friends of
silyer and bi-metallism in this house. To
strike down silver would mean political
revolution. That would strike down both
the great political parties. For one, he
was willing 10 join the people. even though
the Democracy would have to 60 to the
wnii IApplause