Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1894-07-25

who tried TO incorporate in the Bland
Allison law of 1873 the proyiso that the
| silver dollar provided for by that act
should be legal tender for all debts, public
and private. except duties on imports and
interest on the public debt, well knowing
that this exception would disoredit the
silver dollar and send gold to a premium.
They were not then SO much concerned
| about the character of the dollar held by
the laboring man.
Let Us see if present conditions are
beneficial to the laboring man. It is uni
versaiiy acknowledged that labOrs best
condition is that of constant employment.
IL Ii not so important for Q laboring man
that he should have occasional EMPLOY
ment at higher rate of wages as that he
should have constant, uninterrupted en-
ployment, even at a lower rate of wages
In country like this, where there is so
much to do, there is something wrong
With the conditions whenever a single
able bodied man is unable to find employ
ment- With the inventive genius of the
American people, with the field we pos
sees, with the start we have in the race for
national prominence, if we follow the two
rules for regulating the amount of our
currency which have suggested, there will
not be day of enforced idleness for any
man who is willing to work. Labor in
this country is SO well organized, that under
such circumstances this excessive concern
for Its condition, so suddenly manifested,
would be uncalled for.
Do you consider what such condition
of affairs would mean? Does it occur to
you that a days labor can never be re-
gained? Here, where there is more than
enough for every man to do, it is claimed
that for the last year a million men have
been idle. Let Us estimate mans wages
at 81 per day. With a million idle, this
nation in one year would lose $500, 600, OOO
The $60OO0O,OOO of gold would have to
go to premium of so per cent. to equal
that.
Let US investigate the claim that there
Is $6OO,OOO,OOO of gold in circulation in
this country to-day. Where is iti The
last report of the DOM ptroller of the cur
rency shows that, on July IL, 1898, all Of
the banks of the United States national,
state private together with all savings
banks and loan and trust companies, had
on hand only SOCIALISTS. The treasury
statement, about the same time, showed
that outside the United States TREASURY
there was $4s4, 296, 100 of gold in cireula-
ZION. Here IL a discrepancy Of more than
$3.50 100000 Of gold 10 be accounted for.
Was that In the pockets Of che people!
II so, there was more than s. of gold in
the pockets Of the people for every man,
woman and child in the United States.
Do"you believe it? Which seems the more
pTobabls, that this money was in the
pockets of the people, or that the gre ater
part OF 1t has been lost, destroyed, or has
emigratedf
We all know that when a jeweler wants
piece of gold in his work he does not
want gold bullion; he takes a piece of
gold coin and uses it. Yet the treasury
statements, issued monthly, give the total
amount of gold coined and issued since
the first coinage law was adopted.
If gold coin could increase in amount
as the tax returns show that greenbaoks
can, we would probably not urge the free
coinage of silver. There are supposed to
be 346 million dollars in greenbacks in
circulation, If we make no allowance for
those that have been lost and DESTROYED.
The greenback is not taxed, and if on
assessment day q man owns $1,000 in
greenbacks he is entitled to exem ption to
exemption on that amount. member
of the congressional committee on bank
ing and currency declares that official
returns show that, in the United States,
banks and individuals claim exemption
on billion dollars of greenbacks.
We know that all the gold coined is not
in the United States treasury nor in circu-
lation among the people; and / doubt if
there is to-day $500, O0O, 900 of gold in
circulation a. the United States.
If this assumption be correct, then the
loss to the United States, by the idleness
of 100000 men one year, equals all the
gold in circulation.
When does laboring man receive high
wages? Is it not when there is a persis
tent and constant demand for laborers?
When there are two laborers for every lob,
then labor is cheap; but when two Jobs
can be found for every laborer, then labor
is fairly paid. So, there is no class of our
citizens who would be more benefited bv
free coinage than our laboring men, be
cause of the stimulus it would give to en-
terprise.
The American laboring man is intelli-
gent He knows that his services are
worth more than his board and clothes,
and he is bound to have more.
Many worthy men say, ave are in favor
of the free coinage of silver if you will put
dollars worth of silver in a silver dollar
yer? When the United States, in 1892,
adopted system of coinage, we adopted
new coinage nomenclature. We did not
coin francs; we did not coin pounds,
shillings, and pence. We coined eagles,
dollars, dimes, and cents; double eagles,
half eagles, quarter eagles half dollars,
and quarter dollars.
We provided by law that the silver dol
lar should be the unit Of ruLte, and should
contain 3713 grains of pure silver. The
same act provided that a gold dollar
should contain 24.75 grains of pure gold.
So the silver dollar weighed just Is times
as much as the gold dollar. In 1884 there
was q change made in the coinage law for
the following reason: The European ma
tions, except England, we're coming both
gold and silver at a ratio of 154 to 1. The
silver in our silver dollar therefore was,
when compared with the silver coin of
Europe, worth less than our gold dollar
In other words, an ounce of gold would
only buy Is ounces of silver here, while it
would buy 1871 ounces of silver in Europe.
The consequence was that spectators
shipped our gold to Europe for the profit
there was in it, and gold disappeared al