The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1895-06-21
WHITE METAL ADVOCATES.
Fifteen Hundred Delegates 10 Attendance
at the Memphis Convention.

at the Memphis Convention.
MEMPHIS, Tenn, June 13.-Friends
of silver representing twenty states of
the south and west began a two days
convention in this city yesterday. On
the stage, besides the officers of the
Central Bimetallic league of Memphis,
under whose auspices the gathering
was held, were, with very few ex-
ceptions, all the leading advocates of
the free coinage of silver in the
United States. A permanent or
ganization : was effected with Sem
ator Turpie, of Indiana, as chair
man, and addresses were delivered by
that gentleman and Alexander Delmar,
of California, in the afternoon, and by
Congressman Sibley, of Pennsylvania,
c. ). Thomas, of Denver, and Arson
Walcott, of Indiana, in the evening.
Senator Turpie, of Indiana, was in
troduced as permanent chairman by
Senator Harris of this state In his
speech he opened by defining the four
uses Of coined money-nedium of ex-
change, measure of values, means of
reduction of paper currency and legal
tender for the payment of all debts.
Then he discussed credit as creature of
legislation and a product of statutes,
holding that it could not gainsay the
right of legislation to enact or con-
tract that coined money should be paid
10 liquidation of itself He held that
the depriving of one kind of coined
money of legal tender qualities
tu-nC sr,s., 4
only perpetuate a system of
bondage. He declared that coined
money always had two kinds of
value-one bullion, the other legal.
For 1000 years gold and silver had
been known as the precious metals
and there was no reason to believe
that any discoveries would so cheaper
either as to make it lose its precious
value. No gold coinage had bullion
value equal TO the legal tender value,
and vet no monometallist claimed that
it was unusual or dishonest. 1t was
the same with the bullion value of
silver coinage and of other coins of the
United States. Therefore he held that,
according to the test of the enemies of
oimetallism. there was not an honest
dollar, either silver or gold. in exist
snce. On the contrary, he held, as did
bimetallists, that a silver dollar was as
honest as gold dollar, because it was,
or should be, 4 lawful coin, having 2
lega! value.
At the evening session, which began
promptly at o'clock. Senator William
VI. Stewart, of Nevada, presided and
introduced Congressman Joseph C.
Sibley, of Pennsylvania. Mr.. Sibley
was greeted with thunderous APP
plause, and in a two hours speech
aroused his audience to high pitch
of enthusiasm. He made an earnest
appeal for independent political action
in 1895 and occupied a good deal of
time illustrating the necessity OF
breaking away from the old parties.
His auditors were evidently with him,
forevery time he asked the crowd II they
would remain with their own parties
and continue the domination of Eng
lish power, he was greeted with a
chorus of Noes" He paid his respects
to the president and Secretary Carlisle
in very plain language for their part in
the demonetizing of silver and fasten-
ing upon the country the gold stand
ard.
I'VE must win this fight in 1896, con-
tinued Mr.. Sibley, cor we lose it be-
yond the lifetime of my generation or
the one that follows it. You cannot
put this fight off beyond 1896 and win
it. If the monometallists win, then
comes the retirement of greenbacks,
the forging of 500, 600, 900 letters on our
industries. There are other great
questions to be considered, but they
are insignificant as compared with this
one. If we lose this fight in 1896, two
great conditions are to be feared-re-
pudiation or revolution. One or the
other is sure to come"
Mr.. Sibley expounded the political
axioms, which, he said, contained the
result of his studies of the money
question. They were: First. double
the volume of money and you double !
prices; second. divide the volume of
money and you divide prices; third,
double the volume of money and you
divide the debts; fourth, divide the
volume of money and you double the
debts.
cIME EDIuT DDOCDENTC