Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1893-07-26

of present conditions.
Our country is on the dangerous
verge of a financial crisis that might at
any moment precipitate chaos, anarchy
and revolution. Would not these nat
urally result if the wheels of commerce
stopped and labor were thrown out of
employment, bringing privation, hunger
and starvation? Such are the condi-
tions that exist to-day, and what
brought them about? This brings me
to the inquiries contained in the afore-
said circular letter. The letter stated
that our country is on sound financial
basis, and then inquired the cause of
the present embarrassed situation, the
great cause of alarm in financial circles
and what would be the effect if this
Sherman silver purchase act were re-
pealed? l answered that the present
financial basis, that is, the gold basis,
is not a sound one, and can never be,
judging for the future by the past
The past financial history of our coun-
try is filed with financial wreck and
ruin when we made use of both gold
and silver. Gold and silver in the past
were more plentiful than now and their
need far less, as the demand for both in
the arts and requirements of trade, and
as a medium of exchange, were not
nearly SO great as at present.
Gold and silver can never give an
ample currency because Of the great
scarcity of the former, the insufficiency
of the latter, and the inadequacy of
both. The annual product of both can
never furnish the required amount of
money to keep the vast machinery of
the commerce of the world in>motion
with its numerous dependent and in
ter-dependent wheels and cogs
There are other reasons against gold
as sole medium of exchange In the
use of gold, money sharks, in conse-
quence of its great scarcity, are,
through a system of skillful financial
legerdemain, enabled to corner it
and divert it from it's legitimate uses.
Anyone familiar with the debates on
the passage of the Sherman act knows
that it was not the intention to redeem
the certificates in gold. This was an
after-scheme, a bargain made after
ward to swindle the west and south
the debtor class-and put money into
the hands of Wall street brokers, bank
CID c1ho hS, WIZ dIC uOW
through the connivance of those high
in authority-still robbing the people
of their daily sustenance.
l think 1 have answered the ques-
tions as to the cause of the present
Strengthened conditions. Now as to
the next-'What would be the effect
of the repeal of the Sherman act?"
Its repeal, without the substitution
of provisions more favorable to silver,
would utterly degrade the white metal
to common commodity of simple COM
mercial value. Gold, having thus
pushed silver out of circulation as
money, would be the sole standard of
value, and, having the field to itself, as
well as being scarce and easily mani
| pulated, would appreciate above it's al
ready high price, increase its purchas-
ing power, enable money sharks to con-
troll the markets, reduce below the cost
of production all commodities and all
produce, whatsoever. By silver being
thus demonetized we would lose over
one-half of our coin currency, which,
together with our limited cir
culation (gold being left us as the
sole standard) would cause still
further depreciation of prices to fol-
low, thus inf1icting disaster and whole
sale ruin on the producing and indus
trial classes Thus the repeal of this
infamous act, made in the interest of
Wall street, would precipitate finan-
cial, agricultural and industrial ruin,
if there followed no legislation to pro-
tect silver from the onslaught of the
gold monometallists.
The old theories of finance, like hui
man codes and creeds, are vanishing
before the resistless sweep of this nine
teenth centurys progress, which is
proving so demonstrative and regener-
ative-creating new theories, new doc
trines and new systems-thus enlarg-
ing human facilities and possibilities
The idea that gold and silver afford
the only safe medium for an honest
currency is giving way as the true ma
ture and philosophy of money-its
functions, it's beneficial uses and dan
gerous abuses-are becoming better
understood.
We know, if we know anything, that
neither the monometallic nor bimetalic
standard alone will do, but in addition
thereto we must have as circulating
medium a legal tender treasury note,
ample and sufficient to meet the ever
increasing demands of commerce and
trade, issued by the national govern
ment- AS long as we use silver and
gold alone there will always be great
uncertainty and rivalry between the
interested advocates of both, growing
out of sordid and selfish motives. An
other difficulty, too, is in keeping them
at proper, equalized ratio and regu-
lating their parity, all of which will
create contention and confusion among
the various advocates of the two met
ais, thereby creating a want of conf
denee in business circles and crippling
the business interests of the country.
Having come TOT definite conclusi on
| after much research, as to what money
is, what are its uses and what have
been its abuses in the light of past ex-
perience; that money is simply a
medium of exchange to facilitate COM
merce, and outside of this function,
which is it's essential principle, it can
confer no further benefit on man, hav-
ing no intrinsic value of its own, but
having the exchange value conferred
upon it by the fat of the law; hold
that one thing as well as another, le-
gally authorized, may constitute money
in its fullest and widest sense. Our
country is not dependent for an ample
and sound currency on either silver or
gold, monometallism or bimetallism.
They cannot furnish the motive
power to keep the vast machinery of
the worlds commerce in motion with
out, at times of financial strain, caus-
ing wreck and ruin, and hurting woe,
want and desolation throughout the
land.
What the country needs is currency
issued by the government, sufficient TO
meet all requirements, legal tender
treasury note, receivable for all dues