Crittenden press. [volume] (Marion, Ky.) 1879-1907, 1895-06-06

" W vbu nOt UnhncltTt, mol rs
specialists, but Ne men Of good, hard com
mon sense, and tell me, my countrymen, if
the world itself does not produce enough
gold each year to pay the interest on your
debt If you had II all, and you are not even
the bret gold-producing nation of the earth
but il we had all the gold and that is
not enough " pay the interest on the debt
abroad, how IN Gods nsfse can we ever |
pay the principal of the debt il that is TO
De paid IN gold alone You can not do it; {
II lie Impossible.
They tell u of the dire calasities that
are 10 befall the American people if we
pass All unlimited free coinage law. As |
have ALREADY told you, We have heard those
threats before. They never we're fulfilled.
Everything happened under the act Of 1878
that Sherman never predicted would come,
and not blessed tning ever old happen
that he told us was coming. But they tell
US that dire cAlaInities are to befall US # we
pass the law restoring silver money TO the
system Of this country. i do not believe |
II. But suppose for the sake of argument, |
that 1t IL tr4e. / answer and say to the |
Secretary and 10 all the other advocates Of |
gold who think with him, more trouble has
already come, more suffering has already
been imposed, more POVERTY has already
been endured, NJ the result of the Sherman
law Of 1873, than even you claim can be
brought upon the American people by the
passage OF a silver bill. We have gone
through more of it than even the gold
advocates predict the Passage Of the silver
act could ever bring 10 the people OF this
land.
1 beg you to remember, my friends, that
more than seven hundred million Of the
civilized people of the world to-day stand
upon silver and not upon gold. IL is true
Europe is upon the gold basis. England
demonetized silver in 1916 and tried but
never got but one nation to follow her ex.
ample until 1873. She did induce the
Kingdom Of Portugal to demonetize silver
in 1913; but Portugal was more just and
honest than the American fnanciers who
demonetized silver IN 1878. When Portu-
gal struck down silver in 1919, by the same
law that demonetized 1t she arbitrarily re-
duced every debt in the Portuguese realm
70 per cent. from its face value. The same
law in Portugal that struck down silver re-
duced every debt owing in that country
and provided, whether evidenced by mort
gage, bond or note, there should be stricken
from the debt 20 per cent. of its value. That
law declared that the characterization of sill
/
that in fairness it was no more than right
where II man owed thousand dollars two
hundred dollars should be stricken from the
face OF his obligation. England never per-
suaded anybody but Portugal to follow her
example and demonetize silver until 1873,
when we did it in February Of that year.
Germany followed later in tue fall Of the
same year, and the five nations constituting
the Latin Union followed in 1876 our bad
example. And here is the result for which
we are mainly responsible.
But some of these gentlemen tell US
Hold still, keep to the financial system
you have until Europe, and especially I'm
gland, should grant you permission 10 put
silver back" No, no. The issue il pre-
10 sented plain and fair. Shall we, my couD
trymen, have n foreign system shall WI
have an English system, or MI American
I system, n system OF our own. When THU
: country had only four millions OF people in
. it you whipped Great Britain and estab
lished your own system. What sort Of son;
of honored sires disgrace this eon'isns n' to
undertake TO maintain n system Of their
own. What would your forefsthers have
said If the proposition had been made t.
them when, flushed with victory over the
British armies, the proposition Was made to
them to tsmely hold out their wrists and
have the shackles Of financial servitude
riveted anew
My oountrymen, this is the issue. Ii can
not be gotten around. You have to meet
IT in this campaign and the presidential
contest next year. The issue is in front
ofyou, you can not flank it, you can not
bridge over it, you can not tunnel under it,
40 haxr. 70 =
and settle it like men. Judge between
these systems, contrast the present condi-
ton of the American laborer with what
IT was at the end OF eighty years of trial
under the Jefferson system, and tell me,
not Ms Democrats, not rs party men, but
Ms patriots tell me MS American citizens
which system. was the best for the promo.
ton of your interests. Was it the system
founded by the Immortal leader Of De.
mocracy, the builder Of free government
among the people; was il the Democratic,
the Jetiersonisn system Of oldsn times or
is it the Senator Sherman system of mod
ern timesI Was it the double standard Of
gold and silver Ne the time-honorsd metals
of free people or was ii the single gold
standard that has never found its way into
| circulation among the masses2 IL it the
money Of war OF the money Of peace that
stands as your stesdfast friend
But he has made one more discovery,
and with that | believe he finishes He
tells us in his recent speeches that which
will be glad tidings Of great joy 10 the
toiling millions of the country. He SAYS
there is no distinct debtor class among our
people, but Ms far as the debtor class can be
located OF described, it is not the masses
of American people that are IN debt but it
is the railroads. the insurance companies,
the banks, the savings and trust CON.
panies-thst these are the principal debt
ors of this land. The masses are the cred |
itors and the railroads and banks are the |
debtors. Joyful tidingsto the thousands Of |
sons Of toll Happy news TO the farmer |
whose farm is plastered over by mort. |
gage held by the bank Glad, indeed. is
he TO know that he has been laboring under
deiuslon he does not owe the bank at
ALL but ths bank owes him he is the cred.
Itor and the bank and the railroad company
are the debtors. There lie but one mercifnl
mission left for the bearer of these tidings.
Let him make one more speech. | plead
in the name Of the toiling millions OF nv
eountrymen, in the name of mercy, in the
name of heaven, make one more speech and |
tell that farmer and the laborer how 20 |
proceed to collect that debt. Applause
Then we shall all be happy.
1t is Painful to Criticise the Admins
tration of His own Party, but
the Truth Must be Told.
1t is no pleasursble duty for me TO criti-
else. 10 nnd fault with or 10 censure the
financial policy, OF sny other policy that Is a
adopted and pursued by my own party t
Am party man. am partisan, not SIM :
ply for the sake of party. but because 9
honestly earnestly and religiously believe Il
hat the best interests of my country OF "
avery section of il, Of all its people, are To st
be- promoted and served by the triumph of X
he principles Of my party ! am the last OF
man Ia criticise or oensure, but my regret Is is
hat can not complain, as ! have done in
he halls Of Congress, upon the hustings, 10
anywhere and everywhere. publicly and Ii,
since entered upon the estate Of |
n.nbood. have been complaining Of and W
the financial policy OF the Re re
,ublican party. II | am to continue this IN
riticism fear that in a measure st least II Of
Vim strike the present financial policy of III
nv own administration as heavily as II does In
be enemy. III
What Is it | lind here to-day in times Of 2,
rofound peace THIS great minister Of |
nance was for DAYS selling bonds 10 get N,