People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1893-07-14

vi Hio SllNtT DulllOn AZ less than ne can
get for it at the mint? Indeed, gold is
much more dependent upon the coin
age value than is silver, for, owing to
its divisibility. silver is suitable fol
small transactions, and must always be
used as money, while gold is not and
could much better be spared
Secretary Morton is at the head o.
the agricultural interests of this great
country. The producers of our staples,
the wheat raiserS of the west the cot
ton growers of the south. should be
leading objects of his concern. Let us
tell him that behind his sophistries
there lies the great fact that every ag-
ricultural interest requires a broader
basis than gold alone can afford. ami
that especially wheat and cotton. and
all other articles of which we always
have surplus to export. and which
are also produced and exported from
silver using countries, are bound hand
and foot" with silver. The laws Of God
and nature are not more certain. In
illustration of this let us recall to him
the words of his predecessor, Secretary
Rusk, in one of his annual reports:
The recent legislation, looking to
the restoration of the bimetallic stan
dard OF our currency, and the conSe-
quent enhancement of the value of sill
yer, had unquestionably had much to
do with the recent advance in the price
OF cereals The same cause has adj
vanced the price of wheat in Russia
and India, and in the same degree re.
duced their power of competition. En-
glish gold was formerly exchanged for
cheap silver, and wheat purchased
with the cheaper metal was sold in
Great Britain for gold Much of this
advantage is lost by the appreciation
of silver in those countries. 1t is rea-
sonable, therefore, to expect much
higher prices for wheat than have been
received in recent years"
Let it then be the chief concern of
Secretary Morton to devise methods
whereby the value of silver may be en-
HANGED and its ancient position as a
money metal restored, assured, as he
must be, that the values of agricultural
products will be equally enhanced by
the removal of destructive foreign com
petition, such as Secretary Rusk re-
ferred to, and by that broadening of
sound, metallic basis through the re-
establishment of both gold and silver
as coordinate money metals, upon an
established gal ratio. which will give
stability to prices generally and pros
perity to all classes.-Kansas City Jour
nal.
The Article from which the foregoing
excerpt is taken is an able and scholar
ly elaboration, from bimetallic stand
point, of the silver question as it exist
ed before the stoppage of free coinage
by the Indian empire. But look at the
absurd Inconsistencies of this able BIZ
metallic argument. After establishing,
beyond all controversy, with a simple
and concise vet logical and convincing
statement that bimetallism gives to
both gold and silver, by the fiat of law,
an arbitrary and artificial value far in
excess of their real value as commodi-
ties it is yet insisted that a safe none
tary system demands that we retain
these fictitious values as basis" for
our money circulation. This is equiya-
lent to saying that we can deceive our
selves into believing that certain values
are, although we are absolutely certain
that they are not. Away with such
foolishness.
Then, again, the article is valuable
and significant as showing Just what
degree of relief we may expect from
those whom certain reform papers are
just now pleased to term our repub-
lican and democratic allies" Great
Scott! Shades of Peter Cooper What
consort hath Christ with Belial? What
is there in common between a true pop
uliSt and a democrat or a republican?
Our republican and democratic allies
demand gold and silver, freely coined,
and paper money redeemable in specie.
A populist who has been born of the
spirit of monetary reform comedies gold
and silver in plying Difference to the
beclouded intellect, but he will enter
into no covenant with death, nor league
with hell, by advocating or sanctioning
the damnable fallacies "specie basis"
and specie redemption" The old
guard can die, but surrender-never.
The objective point of the peoples
crusade is the destruction OF the demon
metallism. The hopes of deSpoiled
and oppressed humanity cluster around
the demand for absolute, full legal
tender, inconvertible paper money.
AS the St Louis Republic said the
morning it printed the news concern
ing the stoppage of the free coinage Of
silver in India:
Yesterdays news Of the suspension Of silver
coinage by India had been foreshldowed b the
report Of the special commission which recon-
mended this action 10 the Indian government
The effect upon silver and upon the money sys.
TENS Of the world cannot be estimated but
must be awaited India has been the great sill
yer using country II it persists in adopting
the gold standard, the debate upon the curren.
ey question will be sharpened in all civilized
countries The whole world may be forced to
meet crisis between permanent adoption or
long continued rejection Of bimetlllism In this
and other countries governments may be
forced TO choose between silver and an ire
deemable paper currency. The people can
hardly stand q gold standard
Choose We this day between the two
Ye cannot fight for both. The idea of
specie basis" and money of final re-
demption" cannot be reconciled with
the demand for inconvertible paper
money.