Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1893-07-27
Idle Army OF Labor.

| Idle Army OF Labor.
THE reduction of the price of silver to about
% cents has shut down 80 per cent. of The sill
yer mines of the country, and the smelters
must soon follow their example There are in
Colorado to-day 1900 idle miners who know
not where to turn il work is not resumed
| There will soon be added to this idle army
OF labor 4,0J0 men from the smelters. The
stone quarries are nearly all shut down. the
| railway companies are laying of train crews ~
the score. the foundrieS nearly all cut OF
orders. the farmers and fruit growers viii! De
barely paid for the cost OF saving their crops,
the merchants are countermanding their Or
ders, the travelling men for eastern horses
| seek almost in vain for customers.
| This is no exaggeration. The destruction If
the silver industry will devastate the country
| as II swept by cyclone, reaching from tn,
British possessions to the Mexican border
| line. This sorrowful picture Of Colorado With
| its mining industry destroyed but represents
| the condition OF the other mining states aui
! territories with the same calamity upon them.
Lead and Gold Dependent.
''If the silver mines shall remain closed one
half of the American output of lead must he
| lost The great bulk of the lead product is
! taken from sllTer-bearing ores. II requires the
| one metal supplemental by the other TO re-
munerate the lead-silver miner.
Not less than IS per cent. OF the gold prod
uct Of the country depends upon the main
| terance of the silver industry The placer or
/ creek washings. the earliest and most pro
life source OF our gold supply, arc practically
| exhausted.
Those who contend for the gold single stand
| ard wiflfuliy mislead you to the cost OF pro-
| duc!ng silver. We say to you in the most sol
emn and truthful manner that reliable statis-
! tics prove that, including but legitimate items
| in the account, the silver of Colorado costs bv
| the time it is On the market not less than Si.e9
an ounce Like gold. some silver is produced
for much less than its market value. hut the
average cost OF silver ia fully the highest price
| it ever brought i'll the market
Question Of Paying Creditors.
"All Of the mining states and territories are .
debtor class. Stop and consider, men Of the
east, how many millions Of your money are in
vested with US. The funds Of es tates of widows
and orphans have been loaned on our lands and
have built our edifces Colorado has been a
favorite field for such inves tment5 Have the
people OF any state ever proved more punctiii-
Gus in prompt repayment: The legislature has
enacted laws cruel to its own people, and
rivaied in liberality to the creditors that no
man might shrk or escape repayment OF the
borrowed dollar There are held throughout
the east hundreds OF millions of dollars in rail-
road stocks and bonds, in municipal securities.
IN trusts and mortgages, the payment of the
greatest body OF which depends upon the pros
perity OF the silver mining country.
I'VE OF Colorado pride ourselves upon our
commercial and financial integrity. No calami-
ty induce to repudiate one dollar of an
honest OeDl- All OF our assets are az the Will ~
our creditors for their REIN endorsement But II
by bad congressional legislation if through
congress you shall wipe out the great industry
Of the section around which all others cluster
for vigor and profit, the values Of our proper
ties will shrink. our business will be destroyed.
our towns and cities will be largely depopulated
and the railroads traverSing the western half
Of the continent will be sent into bankruptcy.
Certainly in the face Of such unmerited infic-
ton you cannot blame if are thus de-
11-o1 of oil NJ o},l;r
You may, it is true take the country in pay
ment. but after you get it what will you do
with it:
Not Ready to Submit.
''But. though you may do all IN your power,
whether in ignorance through selfish greed
to destroy US will not submit to the destiny
of poverty without struggle. We shall seek
to open up new markets and build up silver
industry along new lines and with new and
more sympathetic neighbors. Colorado has
aided with her vote to build the tariff wall be-
tween this country and Mexico and the silver
producing and Using republics of the southern
continent AS Senator Teller, of the
staunchest supporters OF this exclusive policy,
declared but two years ago in the United States
senate, it was not in Colorados interest to
vote for such isolation, but Colorado thinking
more of her sister states than herself, had pa
triotically sacrificed her own in their interest
Special Appeal to the South.
ITO the south Colorado appeals with more
soulfelt words. Two years ago you feared with
sinking hearts and paIing lips the enactment OF
the law that threatened to deprive you of self
government and to turn your election booths
over to the tender mercy of federal bayonets
election day. To save you from the outrages OF
the federal force bill Colorados two senators,
republicans, defied the edictS of their party
Caucuses and defeated what was TO you the
certain humiliation and the horrors OF subjec-
ton to the electoral will of your former slaves.
We saved you then. You now.
With now it is more OF death struggle than
it was then with you. If the schemes Of the
gold kings accomplished, If the present sill
yer Jaw shall be Internationally repealed, the
great bulk of Us will be made paupers and our
beautiful and wonderful state will be set back
in its march OF progress more than a quarter
of u century.
Confident Of the Result
Colorado. great in its resources. proud OF its
business record. filled with brave men and reso-
lutte hearts, makes this it's appeal for preserva-
ton to the open-hearted and generous people OF
the country. We are confident that it will not
be in vain. The atrocity of making homeless,
through the destruction of the chief indus tries
OF 100000 square miles Of American territory,
the 100000 men, women and children, with
all the attendant SCourSe of enforced and hope
less idleneSs, can never be the work OF an
American congress with our approval.
Hopeful of speedy delivery from the crush
ing burdens of i financial system, begptten OF
the greed of Great Britain remorseless money
power and Of the prosperity inseparabie from
an American system which includes the free
coinage of gold and silver at the American ratio
of Is to l, we submit to the people Of the United
States this statement of our cause.