The representative., 1894-10-10
THE TIDE RISING.
The decentralization of Silver De
manded Everywhere.

The RECOMMENDATION of Silver De.
manded Everywhere.
It is astonishing how the world is coming
around to our way Of thinking! We feel
like putting our thumbs in our vest holes.
a la Pioneer Press thowing our head back
and assuming that we did it all. That ami
able paper has way, when anything trans
pires in the American congress or English
parliament, Of saying: "Just as we sug-
gested the other day, Mr.. Gladstone-or
Mr. Sherman, as the case may be-has in
troduced a bill," etc. And the common,
Republican, small-potato St. Paul politi-
cian-God help him!-has visions Of the
American and English cabinets grouped
around copy of the tin-pan thunderer OF
the North Star state, eagerly devouring its
profound hints for the government of man.
kind. 1t reminds one of Fish's marvellous
detective work, when he would ride two
hundred miles $50 he said) without eating
or drinking or blowing his nose, and in the
dead waste and middle of the night would
unearth and ferret out some terrible and
mysterious something, which in the last
analysis turned out to be just-nothing.
But, seriously, the cause Of bimetallism is
advancing with giant strides. Take for in
stance, the following letter which appeared
in the Chicago Herald:
News items from London inform us that
the Bimetallic Lague of London, now in
session. has before it proposition to en-
large it's borders internationally. This Is
the most hopeful sign we have had, since
silver was demonetized in 1873, of a prob
able rehabilitation of silver INTO money
functions in the near future, undOubt-
edly England holds the key of the situation
Europe will follow her Balfour, the leader
of the conservative party in England, is
leader in this move. Grenfel, an ex-gov-
ernor Of the Bank Of England, introduced
q resolution proposing to ascertain the views
of every candidate for the house of COM
. mons on bimetallsm before voting for him.
When such men Balfour, Lidderdale
Grenfel and scores of men like them in
politics and finance make such propositions
it looks like business London financial
paper recently closed a column in favor of
bimetallism thus: "a new international
conference is demanded by the character
and extent of the crisis, and it depends on
the British cabinet whether such confer
ence is to be fruitless or not. No man in
his senses, whether he be a monometallist
or otherwise, can pretend that the silver
question will right ITSELF and that all we
have to do is to await the development of
events. Just as well might a man lie in
bed and argue that things must take their
course if his house were in flames"
AS it seems to me that tie owners of
| capital for investments only are the small,
single class of citizens, who are benefited
by monometallism, while capital engaged in
| banking and in the various industries, to-
| gether with the laboring masses, have suf-
| fered enormously by the demontiza ton Of
| silver, and must continue to suffer until it
| is again made money by international law.
The recent very able address by Prof.
| Andrews before the Commercial Club, Of
| this city, gave the reasons why such has
been and will be the outcome of legislation
| for one small class of citizens.
The insufficiency Of gold to meet the de-
| mands Of growing populations and Of vast
| ly increased commerce forms the basis of
| his argument for bimetallism, and 1t is un-
| SlimSV Dretoyt e
| that bank checks and credits make up 95
| per cent of exchanges in the course of
| trade.
Where were the banks in the late panic?
| They were indebted to the public for their
| outstanding circulations, and for deposits,
| theoretically payable in gold, as nothing
| else is a legal tender. How small a frac-
| ton Of such indebtedness could have been
| met in gold Qf demandeO reveals the hy-
pocrisy or ignorance of those who claim
| that the present system of finance in this
| country and abroad is safe for the masses
| who don't live by cutting gold coupons
but by brain and muscle, in the use OF
money and credits in the great industrial
interests Of the world.
What good IL a gold coupon cutter to the
business world, when the rise in gold sc
paralyzes industries that the class of citi
| zens thus engaged dare not continue in g
business whose profits mostly absorbed
by the rise in the yellow metal, that has
been going on disastrously in the past dec
ade especially. England was quite willing
that we should go to a silver basis, while
4 she hung to gold alone, but now that WI
have come to our senses on this question
she may take the laboring oar to cure tht
financial disease which her system ha!
created.
Bank bills and bank credits and check
are not money, and the bare fact that gold
the only thing that is money, is INSULT
cient as basis for these bills, checks ant
credits makes all the mischief in the bust
ness world. In 1873 more than one-half O
the then accredited money of the world
relegated to the domain of potatoes ant
wheat-a mere commodity to be measured
only by gold like all other property. Can i
b possible there are men 20 blind t. eco