The Philipsburg mail. [volume] (Philipsburg, Mont.) 1887-current, 1894-01-04
STEWART TO GROVER.

An open Letter from the Nevada SEM
ator-Silver Pledge Broken.
Senator William NJ. Stewart gave out
for publication a long open letter to Pres
ident Cleveland. After reviewing the
effects of the repeal of the Sherman act,
the senator says:
"Hhe contrast between the indecent
haste with which you reduced the country
to the gold standard and your delay in pro-
noting legislation looking to supply of
money for the revival of business has at
tracted attention and needs explanation. :
''You now ask the country to wait until
confidence is restored. Confidence rests
on an assurance Of safety and the absence
of apprehensions of danger. What
foundation can there be for confidence
when the people know that there is not
gold enough for use as money and that
there can be no relief during your term
of office?
"In your message of December S, 1893
you suggested that after the restoration
of confidence survey OF the situation
will probaly disclose safe path leading
to permanently sound currency, abuu-
dantly sufficient to meet every require
aiCA4o ~ Jul AIC1 .pCpu1dLlOIl HHu
BUSINESS" How long will it require to
make that survey? How long must the
distressed condition Of the country be
viewed before the path of safety can be
found? You must bear in mind that the
standpoint of observation of the millions
who suffer is very different from that Of
yourself and your London and New York
friends whose connsels you follow and
who gather fortunes from the wrecks of
bankrupt estates and from coupons cut
from gilt-edged securities. Both you and
they may survey the disasters of the
country which follow in the wake of gold
contraction with deliberatlon and compo-
sure, but the people are becoming i'm
patient Of further delay to find path Of
safety and are clamorous for relief
"The suffering victims Of enforced idle
ness and starvation with which your ad-
minlstration has filled the land present
a condition which you must consider
unless no amount of suffering of your
fellow-citizens an diminish the pleasure
you enjoy in the honors are emoluments
of your high office. The people who have
trusted you are slow to believe that you
have arrived at the conclusion that the
gold combination is less able to wait fer
spolls than they are for bread and cloth
ing. 1t is hard for them to suppose that
you think the owners of great fortunes
who deal in money futures will suffer
more from delay in acquiring other peo-
ple's property than the millions Of the
unemployed do for want of the necessaries
of life. The gloom and despair caused
by your statement that nothing should
be attempted to relieve financial distress
is aggravated by your suggestion that
our only hope is in foreign aid. You say:
ut seems to me that it would be wise
to give general authority to the Presi-
dent to invite other nations to confer
ence at any time when there should be
fair prospect of accomplishing an inter-
national agreement on the subject Of
coinage.
"This IS not new expendient, but the
old invention Of inviting England to as.
sist the Administration to deceive the
people of the United States by sham
bimetallic conference, while plans are
executed in this country to maintain the
gold standard. This device misled many
honest men under Republican rule, but
it is now obsolete.