The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1893-10-07
HAVE WE A "PBIyILEGED MONEY
GLASS;"

may abolish trial by jury and other mu
| niments of American liberty, and peo
pie accustomed 10 freedom Will get alone
somehow and after some fashion: but
II you place the people Of this or Of any
| other country at the mercy of a privileg-
| ed money class, you had better take the
| hot winds of the desert and let them
| sweep over that country, for destruc-
| ton will follow as surely as the day fol-
lows the night"
| The idea in Senator Buffers mind that
there is a privileged class Of rich men in
this country is a very prevalent one-the
idea on which the whole Populist party
| is built-yet no such class exists in the
| United States, and no such class can OK
ist. Ours is a government Of laws. The
Congress Of the United States can make
no laws except those the Constitution
| authorizes il 10 make, and the Consti-
| tuition does not authorize it 10 create any
| privileged order. while It expressly for
bids such, and the Congress has passed
no law which undertakes to create any
| privileged class Of rich or poor men. The
fourteenth amendment 10 the Constitu-
tion forbids the States to deny to any
person the equal protection of the laws,
which is a declaration that all laws made
by the State Legislatures shall bear
equally upon all persons. Here then are
the only law-making powers in this
Union expressly forbidden TO pass any
laws which by any possibility can set
up and establish an order Of men with
privileges. How is It possible, then, that
any privileged money class can come into
existence? Such thing is not possible,
and it Is only wasting breath to talk of
one Whoever performs an act which is
within the scope of the law of the land
our equal laws--is performing an act
that he has n right to perform. Whoever
performs an act outside Of the laws of
the land and seeks to justify It upon the
plea that he is privileged, breaks the law
and makes himself liable to punishment
under the criminal laws. or TO damages
in a civil suit, as the case may be. II is.
therefore, to ignore wholly and entirely
our institutions and laws to talk of a
privileged money or any other class in
the United States. 1t is not possible for
such thing to exist, and none such
does exist.
But operating within the limits Of our
equal laws there are a number Of persons
who have become rich-some enormously
rich. Outside of the tariff laws these men
have no sort of privileges" secured to
them by the laws, except what are Sc
cured by the laws to all other men. But.
in common with all other men. they have
one privilege" secured to them, and that
is the privilege of retaining their own
and enjoying what is their own. Now. the
cry against the privileged money class" is
nothing when it is looked into, but a cry
that their money Shall in some way be
taken away from these very rich men.
and distributed out amongst those who
have not got any, but who would like
exceedingly to finger and enjoy some of
that now fingered and enjoyed by the
rich men. This is all there is in the cry
against the privileged money-class," and
how the principle that they may be forci-
bly, compelled to surrender a part, or
ALL OF what is their own is to be admit
ted, without admitting all that is con-
tended for by the anarchists and COM
munists. passes our comprehension.
Senator Buffers utterance was made I'm
the silver debate. Is this not pretty
nearly a confession, then. that the move
for free silver is a move against the rich
men, and. that being SO. it is neither
more nor less than anarchy and COM
munism?
In an article on the PopuIist party.
by Mr.. Frank b. Tracy. In the currant
number of the Forum, he gives the fol-
lowing as the Populist view Of the money
question as it was stated TO him bv
zone Of the ablest Populists in the
West"
"The money market is like the pork
market in which John Cudahy lost his
millions. Eastern flnanciers and gold
bugs are attempting 10 corner the money
market. just as Mr.. Cudany attempted
10 corner the pork market. Mr. Cudahy
failed because the supply Of pork was
beyond his estimation. Wall Street is
succeeding because the supply Of money
is limited. We insist that the govern
ment shoul increase the circulating me-
dunn 10 fifty dollars per capita and
keep II there. AS fast as the plutocrats
gather In The money the government
should issue more money until the money
corner is broken"
Now, this looks promising on it's face,
but how would 1t work? They do not
propose 10 give the money away, and
who gets the money when all men have
an opportunity to trade for it? Is it
not these same rich men? They have
every possible advantage in trading and
engineering schemes over the men who
have no money so that II all this money
were issued, the rich men would get It
and the poor men would still remain
poor.
But Mr., Tracy's friend did not fully
state the purposes of the Populists. They
intend TO provide a way for the poor
men getting the money that they pro-
pose the government shall issue, and
that way was most admirably described
by Mr.. Johnson. Of Indiana, a few days
back In the House of Representatives.
His remarks were anent that peerless
Statesman, sockless Simpson. whom he
described as coming from a State so
largely given over 10 the production OF
Populists and grasshoppers-the gentle
man who has been designated upon this
floor az fha cara NJ Madtofua oae. %