Hot Springs weekly star. (Hot Springs, S.D.) 1892-1917, 1894-10-05

thirty years before. The wealth Per
capita mOre than doubled in that thir-
ty years. and the increase from 1880 to
1880 was :pld9 per capita. or about 10
per cent, while in the same time the
population increased % per cent. The
greatest increase OF wealth in the ag-
gregate and in percentage is found in
the States whore agriculture is the
largest interest. In the last census
decade the value of farm lands in
creased 1923 per cent, and that of
and though the price OF farm imple-
ments had decreased one half in that
interval. OF the agricultural prod
ucts, 80 per cent. las found a market
at home.
Our manufactures have grown from
q production of five billions in 1850 to
nine billions in 1890. Oar internal
commerce has grown almost beyond
computation. We nearly doubled our
railway mileage, carrying by rail eight
times as many passengers as the total
population. and moving $40 million
tons of freight i'll 1880. Our external
commerce has increased year by year,
reaching its maximum o. two billion
dollars in 1892 under the Mckinley
law. Ous laborers have received better
wages by one-half than have any other
laborers on the face Of the globe and
twice as much as most OF them in Iu-
rope. These wages steadily advanced,
measured in money OF power to pur-
chase the com 'ort. of ii e, until and
during ls2l and Lag all We're employed
at those wages who desired employ
ment.
Farmers received fair prices for
their crops from lNso to 1892, except
that corn and wheat were low in ISIS
and lSs:'. The .4.t00. coo Of the people
who we're ca able of doing work were
ing thing, that found !; ready an | re-
m%uneratiye market. as in proportion to
work aid wages is the consuming
power OF the people. The farmer, the
mechanic. the day latorer. the do
nestle, the merchant, and tie men en-
gagged i'll transportation, all were occu-
pied and all consuming the products
thus created and all cont ibuting 10 the
aggregate of pros Gritty.
This was the situation when Grover
Cleveland again became President and
q Dem cratic Congress convened. 1t
was not expected and certainly was
not known until February, 1893, that
the Senate would be Democratic.
From that NOM mt Il deadly blight APP
peared, and it increased in Intensity as
the da,s and months passed away.
There was a just lear that a liemo-
cratic Congress and President would
carry. out their proclaimed policy re-
speeding the tart Il: that the $500
millions invested in manufactures
would be imperiled if not Gestroyed:
that the four million laborers would be
thrown out OF employment or forced to
work at reduced wages: that there
would be a sudden and large influx of
foreign goods thrown on the market at
greatly reduced prices: that the nine
billion dollars OF annual value of manu-.
featured products would dwindle
because of the influx of foreign
fabrics and the destruction of the
earning power of the people:
that the earnings Of railways
would diminish, new enterprises
cease or be greatly clrtailed, thus
throwing out of empl 1yment those en-
gagged in the building trades; that the
accumulated earnings OF wage n
which they had deposited in the saw
tngs banks would be partially with
drawn, and that in consequence the
business of the country w, uld be rapid
ly cnrtailed. With it came distrust of
credit. Manufacturers we're asked to
pay money loanei them, the savings
banks preparing for a crisis which
they saw to be approaching. Then
there was q fear that our gold would
go out to pay for the probable large
increase in imported goods. and that
the continue ! purchases of silver. with
the issue Of treasury notes for such
purchases. would impair our power to
maintain the parity in value Of all
money, the paper part of which was
increasing at the rate of three or four
million dollars per month, while the
treasury balance was beginning t. run
down because of diminishing revenues.
Universal distress was the result.
Tho President called Congress to.
gether. and after q long debate. due