San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1894-04-12

proper allowance for the accretions of
time. is many thousand millions of dollars
less than IL was 20 years ago, when the
war was commenced against silver, and TO
force the business Of the country to a sin
gle gold standard of currency.
Who will deny the substantial accuracy
OF the facts of the case, as above stated?
Aud, whether denied or not; and If denied,
for whatever reason, still these facts are
so fully before the country, and so ground
into the minds of the people, that denial
cannot change them.
The cause which led to this lamentable
condition of things is as palpable and I'M
deniable as is their existence.
Less than fifty years ago, when the out
nut of gold in California and Australia
was greater than the output OF the
silver of the world and was causing the
prices of property and labor to rise in
value, and reducing the purchasing power
of money, the holders of bonds and other
credits and those receiving salaries and
fixed incomes in Europe made war on gold,
and sought to have that metal demone-
tiled, not because 1t was not suited for
money but for the purpose of reducing
the volume of money, and to Increase lts
value as compared with property and
labor, Austria actually did demonetlze
gold and made silver the money OF the
empire.
Before the other governments OF Eu-
rope, except possibly some OF the petty
German states, adopted that policy, the
output of gold became less abundant and
the production of silver increased so as to
exceed the production of gold. There
upon the same classes who had sought to
demOnetize gold turned about and
used the same arguments to secure
the decentralization of silver: not
because silver was not one of the preci-
l. ID hr HnanfitiaS
for standard money, but because
they wanted the volume of mo ney
reduced so as to increase its value, and
make IL purchase more properly and la
Dor, and thereby relatively reduce the
value of property and labor.
From this you see the governments of
the world were called on by those who
were governed by selfish interests and
avarice to strike down one half of the
standard metal money of The world In or
der to promote the interests of those
classes at the expense of the industries
and labor of the balance of the world.
Upto the time the crusade for the re-
ductiOn Of the volume of money was in
augurated the gold and silver of the world
measured the value of its property and
labor and regulated the amount of
bankable paper including exchanges.
How could any one have doubted that
money and established the single gold
standard. so that all values were to be
measured by gold alone, the result would
be. as it has been and is, that the value
of all property and labor would go down
in a CORES pOnding degree. This question
has given rise to different and conflict
ing opinions among men claiming to be
Democrats, and this is one Of the trou-
BILE some questions which cOntrOntS us
and must be met. The traditional policy
of the United States and Of the world I'M
til within about the past twenty years
was that the two precious metals, gold and
silver were the money lOf the world. as
of the United States. Silver was demOne-
tiZed by a Republican congress in 1873.
When the Democrats obtained MAORI
ty in the House of Representatives in
$50 that party commenced the
struggle to restore the silver to
its proper place as part OF
the standard money of the
country. Many test votes were taken on
this question, in the Senate and House of
RepreSe natives from that time up to the
| time the vote was taken on the repeal OF
the purchasing clause of what was called
] the Sherman law, in 1898. And on every
vote the great body of the Democratic
| members were for and the great body OF
| Republican members against the free and
| unlimited coinage of silver The Demo-
cratic conventions, State and National,
were for the free coinage OF silver. Dem
| OCratiC newspapers and speakers and peO-
pie generally were for the coinage of
silver. Republican newspapers and speak
| erS and people generally were opposed to
| the free coinage OF silver, so that this he
came and was a party question. The Re-
publican admins tratiOu. which preceded
| and followed CIeveland'S first term, multi
| fled the law which made silver a
lawful tender for public debts, and
| refused to redeem silver certificates
with silver dollars as provided for by law,
using gold for that purpose, as means
of aiding in the degradation Of silver. In
CleVeland'S first term he repudated the
| policy Of the Democratic party as to the
coinage OF silver and on financial ques-
| tiODs, and adopted the policy and praC-
! tiCes of the Republican party; and thus
| did more than any Republican president
| COnld have done to degrade silver, be-
| cause by adopting this course he added
| the weight of Democratic administration
TO that of the Republican administration.
| Cleveland was elected the second time on
| the tariff question. His national eXecu-
| tive committee urged Democrats through
out the country to make the issue and to
| avoid discussions of the question OfcOinagG
and finance. After being elected on that
| issue he called Congress together not to
consider the tariff question but to com
pIete the war on silver or standard money
and TO secure the adoption OF the single
gold standard when he knew. as all others
knew. that large majority of the men
who elected him were in favor of the free
coinage of silver.
Proceeding on this issue. the Judge
jumps all over Cleveland. tooth and nail
for the next four or five pages. and con-
cludeS his paper by saying:
| There is one other question Of serious
import to the Democracy of Texas Demo
Gratis who are disappointed and discOur-
aged by the course which has been pur.
sued by the President and some Of thu
Democratic members of Congress, hav,
some of them quit the Democratic party
10 min the PnnmliStS Ihn Pnnmlists n nrn.