The Atlanta constitution. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1885-19??, 1894-07-30
An Inevitable Result.

Last week Il further decline III cOIlon
ton and wheat surprised people VINO
thought that those staples had touched
bottom and could not go any lower.
Cotton went lower than it has Decn
this season at any time, and wheat drop
ped to the lowest price ever known III
our history.
This result might have been expected,
and it was expected by all who are
familiar with the operation of the SIN
gle gold standard. We have no right 10
look for any change in the workings OF
recommendation when the experiment IS
fully tested in this country. we are
travelling The same road that England
had to travel when she adopted the gold
standard, and the same evils that 1ol-
lowed it in that country will Cypress us
ehere, and we are having taste OF
them now.
At the close of the NapOleOnic wars
England had q paper currency, ana
was in very much the same situation
that we were in after our civil war Her
statesmen forced the resumption OF
specie payments and adopted the Singles
gold standard. Numerous historians
have recorded the disastrous results
The very rich and the creditor classes
grew still richer, but the debtor classes
were ruined, the poor were plunged
| into the mire of abject poverty and the
| middle classes were beggared. The
| change left well-to-do people bankrupt
| in cases whore they had purchased land
on time. They contracted these
! debts when they had good reason to be-
leve that they could meet their pay
ments, but money became scarccr every
| year, land, labor and labor's products
| declined in value, and thousands or
men who had paid half the purchase
money for their estates lost their land
and still owed debts which they could
not possibly pay. Year after year prices
| continued to Decline the Wrctched poor
starved or went to prison, and thou
sands who had the means to pay their
passage sought homes in foreign lands,
This blight of the gold standard is
making itself felt here. We have fol-
lowed in EHgland's footsteps and we are
reaping Il similar harvest Of misfortune.
There need be no surprise when wheat
| and cotton and other staples fail IN
price If we are going to stick to Eng
lands financial policy we must accept
| our share of the disasters that go with
it. The only thing that makes labor
and property worth even their approx
iuotre Win Ifr1rfy tn" rhl4ipp hap" nIh1if tlh1ti
cause the dominant party to redeem
til" financial relief pledges of the Chi
cago platform. If we are disappointed
| in this hope. then cur farmers will see
| TO what lower levels @hcir products can
| fall Real estate, railroads, factories
| mines ana forests will be sold for q
song and the eastern and British CAPT
| talists Will become their owners. Our
commerce. and industry will be par
alyzed and the land will be filed with
idle Workingmen demanding work or
bread.
Downward and still downward will
go the value of land, labor and products
so long as the currency continues to
contract under the fatal policy Of LON
bard street and Wall street The only
remedy is to convince the powers that
De that IhpY must carry ont the prom
ises of our platform. We must have
more money, whether it comes in the
shape Of free silver, state banks or
both. 1t is useless to attempt to dis
@Jise the real facts of the situation
They cannot be misunderstood when
they are viewed in the light of present
and past experience.