The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1893-07-18

The waee worker needs 10 clearly under
sand thaa thu tyinmph offres silver viii not
hurt the gold bugs" but II viii hurt him
seversiy--the wage worker. The Popuiist
fsbul,ss 10 never weary Of telling the work
ingmsn that "frss silver" will put money
In his pocket and eviscsrase the ''goid
bug. The truth 10 that the gold bug"
II he Is SPECTATOR. has nothing TO fear
from "free silver" while the wage worker
will have the purchasing power Of his
dollar reduced by 80 cents
The talk about '.ths crime Of 1878" 10 .
Popnlist faiiscy; this 10 not . question Of
opinion 1t all. IL II = question Of historical
fact. While the act in question was
Anaily passed In February. l673. II was
prepared in 1870. introduced in the senate
In January, 1871. thoroughly debated and
finally passed there. II then went to the
house Of representatives.. where debate
upon II delayed Il until the 9TH OF March
arrived. and . new house Of reprsssnta-
tives came into existence. Consequently
the work had 10 DO commenced over again.
more debate ensued. and, after two year,
delay. the oct was again passed BY the
senate with amendments. which the house
refused TO accept, committee Of confer
sncs Was appointed. and in their report
both houses concurred. During all this
time not word Vas said about the silver
dollar; the act Of 1873 dropped Il from the
list Of coins because ever sincs 1854 IL had
bsen disussd and obsolete.
The coinage act OF 1854 practically de-
monetised silver BY undertaking. Il and
made the gold dollar the sole standard Of
value Of the country. United States Sen
ator Stewart, Of Nevada. In the debates Of
1871 and Of 1873. never once referred TO the
silver dollar. and voted for the oct OF 1873
side by side With John Sherman. Nevada
st that time Was selling IT. silver In the
market 1t &i.33 per ounce. while IT. COIN
age value II our mints was but - Per
ounce. and. Of course, neither Nevada nor
Colorado cared button whether our laws
permitted free coinage Of silver or mot. II
was not until silver dropped to &l.23 per
ounce. ~ u did In 1870. that the advocates
Of cheap dollar discovered Of how great
. power 20 cheat creditors the demone-
tisation Of the metal had deprived them,
and began to denouncs tho crime OF 1879"
II silver had not been demonetixed in 1873
ws should have suffered 40 India has
been suffering since 1875 from the shrink
age Of the purchasing power OF the dollar.
This would have deiranded creditors Of
their dues according to the only standard
~ Ina t~k
nisel since 1854. and il would have
swindlsd the wage worker Of the United
States.
This Is the historical truth concerning
what the Populist calls ''the crime OF
1878" The New York San (Dem.) cites
thess facta which every wage worker
ought to cut out and paste in his hat, aud
says:
The nxht for FREQ silver IL practically Q nsht
20 redace wages. TO scas down savings bank
oepcsits. and Ia take from every investment In
shs Obligations Of corporations and individuals
cne-shird OF more OF its value. The persons ON
whose behalf il 10 made are the silver miue
owners. tho owners Of moyteaxed land a, N.
West ana Southwest. and ether sperulator,
who have bought property on credit aud wish to
PAY their debts ia dollars Of less vs.ue than
their contracts call for. They make q rrsst
noise aud present IN apparent show of numb.ra
bat sa overwhelming majority of the rsorls In
against them aud will not allow them 20 cue.
coed.
The Fost-isrrtlaoxScxa In its I'M
s~erving snd earnest opposition to free
silver coinage Is not pleading for gold
bugs II Is soiemnly warning tho wage
worker against the danger of being .tunr
to death by the "silver bugs" whose hi,e
10 A. fatal TO financial sanity as the bite of
rattlesnake Is 10 physical health.