Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1894-07-14
REED,s ROTTEN RANT.
The Ex-C1ars's Giratory Ideas on the Sill
yer Question.

The Ex-CEars's Giratory Ideas ON the Sill
YER Question.
When a man gets the presidential
bee in his bonnet its buzzing interferes
with and prevents that clear concep-
ton Of cause and effect and OF condi-
lions which should distinguish an as
pirant for SO exalted a station; and it
also affects In q singular manner the
optic nerves, causing them to present
to the active brain a distorted picture
Of things and their relations. 1t is
only on this theory that n may ac-
count for this aberrancy so conspicu-
Gus in so many of these ambitious pa
triots. We might cite distinguished
instances of this from our history, but
the present is rich enough, and we need
not point to any other than Mr.. Nc
Kinlev, who insists that the foreigner
paws the tax; to Mr., Bland, who insists
that as Adam dragged humanity down
with him into sin, 50 silver has pulled
the values of everything down with it
in its demonetization.
But equally prominent with any in
the present or the past who have had
the wheels in their heads set in mo-
ton by the busy presidential bee, mono
is more, few so conspicuous as Hon.
Thomas Brackett Reed, of Maine. Mr..
Reed is a stanch protectionist, one of
those who laughed scornfully at the
reciprocity dodge of Mr.. Blaine as a
delivery to the enemy of the keys to
the gates of the fortress Of protection,
But Mr.. Reed sees that Mr.. Mckinley
has a dead cinch on the single question
of protection; that there Is a decidedly
silver lining to the clouds lowering
over his party; and he fancies Il he can
couple silver and protection and reel
procity he will have three trunps in
his hand to McKinley's ono. So we
have him in his noted interview boldly
announcing a new policy, in which he
propose to drive protection, silver and
free trade tandem. They are kittle
cattle, aud we shall watch with inter
est Mr.. Reeds handling Of the ribbons
over his wild team.
But there are some fallacies In MI.
Reeds statements that are too PLAIN to
be hidden under any gauze OF rhetoric
he may have at command. One of
these is the effect of the demonetiza-
ton Of silver on the exports of the Sill
yer using nations. They have been
vastly stimulated by crafty merchant
men, who bought silver bullion at its
market valve, took 1t to those IL
tries, converted 1t into coin and bought
produce with the coin at its face value,
making Il profit which they either
pocketed or shared with the consumer
In n reduced price. This was not on
original discovery OF Mr.. Reeds; we
remember that Senator Davis made
something of the same statement in
his opening speech at Crookston in the
campaign of 1890, but which he did not
again repeat, because his fellow cam
paigner, Gov. Merriam, told him, after
tho speech, that II was dashed nom
sense.
II this Is II true fact, as the boys say,
with q nice discrimination, we might
confidently look to the trade returns
Of these countries to find confirmation
of 1t In the increased imports of silver,
the decreased imports of gold and a
great increase Of imports Of merchan-
disc and exports Of produce, As India
is the great silver OF the sill
ver nations, we might expect to see its
effects there most marked. For the
eleven months ending with February,
1893. the latest return at hand, her i'm.
ports of merchandise, stated in tens OF
rupees, of the nominal value of $3.50,
amounted to sc, 953, 992, and for the
same period In "a they were 81, 403, 097,
q gain Of less than 1000, 900. The
total value of her exports Of merchan
disc during the same periods were co.
46s, 044 and Of, 522, 00o respectively
showing o gain Of u little over 1000, oot
In "a.
The imports Of gold into India were
1,4s4, ITO tons of rupees In the clever
months ending with February, 1868,
against zoos, $50 for the same period II
1894, showing n gain of 100 per cent. il
the latter term. The inflow of silver
which should show Il large increase /
Mr.. Reeds conjecture Is accurate
shows a hardly perceptible increase } il
the periods compared, the imports be
ing ID. 900, 1854 tens of rupees In the frs
and IA, 2l9, 024 in the second term, a gail