The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1893-10-04
28,OOO,OOO

8 81, 600
Foreign silver coined. ............. 1880, 600
Available for coinage. 8 90. $50 900
Deduct 10 10 per capita for $4,000
increase in population ..... 8 Is, $685. 600
Increase in money. ................ 8 "a, 333 400
Per capita, S1.O8
Total increase for two years 50. 10 per
capita. A glance at the above tables
will show that metallism is powerless
to give us $50 per capita.
And yet the silver men, represented
by Chairman Thurman, at the Chicago
convention, say:
Based upon gold and silver the volume of
money must be regulated by the output of the
precious metals, which, of itself, would prevent
any sudden period OF either imitation or con-
traction Again, the volume being
regulated by the output of the Mines some
kind Of stability to our measure of value would
be insured, thing none of the gold using coun-
tries have had for twenty years. and which is
the one thing above all others that commerce
needs
Third. Populists want all money to
be money, in the fullest sense of the
term. They want to retire into Gin
nocuous desuetude" the terms 'sspecie
basis" and money of ultimate redemp-
tion!' They want money that is
fully sanctified and needs no redeemer
or redemption and desire to put stop
to the foolish practice of Swapping
dollars" Let's be manly and own the
-populists want an absolute, in
convertible, legal tender paper dollar,
equal in every respect to a metallic
dollar. But the silver men assembled
at the Chicago convention, which was
called and held to influence congress
TO bestow forty per cent. fat value up
on each ounce of silver mined, said
through Chairman Thurman:
The fight between those who believe that the
circulating medium of this country should be
hard money-that is, real money, gold and sill
yer and paper redeemable in the same-and
those who believe in soft, or paper money. is
on. I am against an irredeem-
able currency in every way. There is no need
of fiat money, for it is true that there is enough
real money gold and silver. upon which our
currency can safely rest and if the people of
this country are only true to the principles of
hard money which was taught them by their
fathers, those who seek to issue fiat money
will be doomed to disappointment, for when
the full import of this demand to destroy sill
yer they will, in no uncertain sound, let these
people know that they are for hard money
against paper money still
How, then, shall we reconcile and
harmonic these apparently irrecon-
ciliable and inharmonious principles
into definite policy that shall be ear
nestly, honestly and enthusiastically
supported by both these diverse ele-
ments?
Did you ever enter sideshow and
gaze with wondering terror at fakir
fondling and caressing huge and re-
pulsive, Shiny rattlesnakes, single
blow from the fangs Of which would
strike the poison of death and destruc-
ton into the veins. It is gruesome
and fearful sight, calculated to appal
and terrify. And yet it is simple
farce. The poisonous fangs of these
snakes have been pulled and they rem
dered harmless, by robbing them of
their power to hurt
We must extract the poisonous fangs
of the serpent metallism and rob it of
its power to destroy.
How? Our demand for the unre-
stricted coinage of both gold and silver
at the legal ratio of 16 to 1 must be
coupled with demand for the issue of
absolute, full legal tender, inconverti-
BILE paper money, in sufficient volume
to properly transact the business of the
nation.
How shall we enforce the demand?
Do you remember how, when this
special session of congress was called,
the silver men all declared that they
would hold the Sherman act ''host-
age" for free silver. Let us thank
them for the precedent and follow it.
We must hold s1uer as hostage for
paper money.
In what manner? Let the candi-
dates for congress be the living host
ages. Say to the silver men: >"We
must select the candidates They
shall be earnest and devoted, true and
reliable silver men, but we must fur
nish them from the populist ranks
Then let the watchword be: "Put
none but paper money men on guard.
Select men who will see to it that any
bill providing for the free coinage of
silver also provides for the issue of
legal tender paper money. Let silver
and paper stand or fall together, and
say to the silver men, mo paper, no
silver
The ideas thus advanced do not rep
resent my individual feelings Could 1
direct and control it's policy, the peo-
pies party would raise the banner of
nometallism and, inaugurating an
energetic campaign of education, fight
under that flag for the establishment
of a scientific American monetary sys-
tenn for America.
But the peoples party is placed in a
peculiar position. At the Omaha con-
vention. more than year ago, it in
corporated into its platform of princi-
pies demand for the free coinage of
silver at ratio of 16 to 1. Since that
time so earnestly has the campaign of
education been waged, the entire rank
and file of the party have loosened the
metallic scales from their eyes and
stand solidly for an absolute, incon-
vertible, legal tender paper money.