The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1895-05-24

he6uib In silver mOnOm6tall10R,
MEMPHIS, Tenn, May ss.-The sound
money convention is much larger sfs
fair In point of attendance than the
most sanguine OF it's projectors had an
ticipated. The number of delegates
slready on hand is between 300 and
1000. and still they are coming.
Secretary Carlisle's speech went over
much Of the same ground as that of his
address At Covington covered, but she
facts were very attractively arranged,
and. ifpossible, more plainly eluoidated.
The following extracts embody the msin
points OF his address, and are deserving
of careful consideration. Speaking to
tie president of the convention. he
said:
"Mr. President, the proposition to
revolutionize our monetary system and
thus destroy the credit Of the govern
ment and the people at home and
abroad, violate the obligations of all
contracts, unsettle all exchangeable
values, reduce she wages of labor, expel
capital from our country, and seriously
obstruct the trade Of our people among
themselves and with the peoples Of
other countries, Is one which challenges
the intelligence, patriotism and com
meroisl honor Of every man to whom 1t
Is addressed
mo matter what may be she real
purposes and motives Of those who
make the proposition to legalixe the
free and unlimited coinage Of nilver at
the ratio OF 10 to /, these are the oonse-
quences involved in their scheme, and,
In my opinion, they cannot be avoided
II IL should be adopted. In no part OF
the country will the consequences of
suoh policy prove more injurious TO
the material interests of the people
than In the undeveloped and progress
sive South. When the great civil war
closed your industrial system was de-
stroyed, but your great natural resources
were still unimpaired, and upon that
foundation you have constructed and
are still constructing, asystem Of diver
sized industries aud interstate and in
ternational commerce which, If not dis
turbed by unwise experiments In fnan-
cial legislation, must attracs TO your
section OF the country all the active
capital and skilled labor necessary to
make 1t the most prosperous part of the
continent. Your magnificent deposits
OF coal and iron, your fertile soil,
adapted to the growth OF cotton, sugar,
and many other products which no
other part of the country will yield,
your unrivalled facilities for the manu-
facture OF iron and steel, cotton goods,
lumber. oil, furniture, and almost in
Vulnerable other articles which can be
cheaply produced from the raw ma.
tlJif6
the elements of marvellous growth
and prospe rity which nothing can pre-
vent II the people Of tho South will
continue TO exhibip In the future the
same spirit Of conservatism and the
same devotion to principle that have
always characterized them in the past.
II do not charge that our fellow-oiti-
zens who propose to revolutionize our
monetary system by sudden change in
the standard of value really desire to
see the business of the country ruined,
or even injured, or that they believe
any injurious consequences would fol-
low the adoption OF their policy, but, in
my judgment, the results would be most
disastrous to the material interests of
all the people In every part OF the coun-
try, and, therefore, shall appeal to
them carefully to review the grounds
upon which their opinions have been
formed before it is too late to correct
possible mistake upon subject Of suoh
supreme Importance to themselves and
to their posterity.
Before proceeding to Che discussion of
the main question presented 10 may be
advantageous to state as briefly &c pos-
aible few admitted or we'll established
facts having an Important bearing
upon IL. From the earliest times geld
and silver have been used es money, NOT
because there WAS at the beginning any
law declaring them to be money, bat
because, by reason of their limited and
regular supply, their great value as
compared with other things In propora
tion to weight and bulk and their dura-
bility, they were more stable and con-
veniens than any other commodity as
measures OF value In making exchanges.
Consequently, these metals were
used as money by common consent of
the people for centuries before there
was any law upon the subject or any
coins In existence; they passed by
weighs and their values In efYecsinG
exchanges were determined by the
quantity OF pure metal contained in
each piece. Each metal had distinct
value OF It's own, and when 10 was used
In srado neither the buyer nor seller
troubled himself about the ratio be-
tween ID and the other metsl. The
laws OF trade fixed and regulated the
actual and relative values OF both
metals in the purchase and sale of
other commodities, just as they do now