Goldsboro weekly argus. [volume] (Goldsboro, N.C.) 1885-1909, 1895-06-06
"DRINK, FAIR BETSY
Charlotte Observer.

ny OhC hOl POAioi'
But it can be pardoned, perhaps,
in them, on the ground of in
sufficient education. Yet it is a
gen that is not over frequent
" found in the mental makeup
of those who profess to teach the
''hoi polloi-" The politician
hath it not. It is drowning glory
of the statesman. 1t is a quality
which ought to be cultivated, for
we believe it can be. 1t is ex-
empliied in some of the MASTER
minds Of the past. Horace Gree
ley may be mentioned, as a sin
gle instance, as possessing it in
It's highest development, as wit
ness his fearlessly running the
gauntlet Of a storm Of Northern
Kisses to sign the bail bond of
the eX-President of the eX-Con-
federate States. He was one of
the small handful Of men who re-
cognlzed that the war was over
after the surrender.
Fairness is especially notice
able by its absence on the stump
and in the political arena. Men,
in their eager desire to win favor
to their side, go to the furthest
extremes of misrepresentation,
perversion, garbling, which
brings US to the fact that eX-
Congressman Bryan, the Boy
Orator of the Platte, is going
up and down the length and
breadth Of the land in the inter
est of the free and unlimited
coinage of silver at the ratio Of
16 to l., which is all we'll and
good, for he has a perfect right
to express his convictions to the
public. But the information
comes that instead Of seeking
the conversion or up-building in
the faith Of his hearers by his
far-famed eloquence and convinc-
ing argument, he is making his
main point the Inconsistencies
Of Secretary Carlisle. Before
audiences that fill every nook
and corner" ETC., ETC., he rings
the changes on Inconsistency"
and that, too, in spite Of having
read Mr.. Carlisle's Memphis
speech we're the Secretary most
convincingly clears his skirts of
inconsistency.
Mr.. Bryan does not tell that
that speech Of Representative
Carlisle in the House in 1873 was
made against free and unlimited
silver coinage, The circum-
stances were that the original
House bill, which provided for
free coinage, was returned from
the Senate with the Allison
amendment authorizing the coin
age of not less than 2 1000, 900 and
not more than 1900, 900 silver
dollars a month. Mr.. Carlisle
supported this amendment as an
alternative to the danger Of free
silver. He distinctly stated that
although the amendment was
Objectionable to him in some re-
spects, it was mot on account Of
it's Reputation of the free coin
age provision Of the original
To the charge that Mr.. Car
Isle while in Congress favored
free coinage, the following ex-
tracts from his speech may be
pointed to:
Under the free coinage provision s
Of the House bill the foreign holders o
the demonetized silver of Germany
would have the right to food GU
minis with it, and have it coined into
dollars for their own benefit at the ex
pense of the government and people,"
And again:
''The great mass of the people neither
own bullion nor n etal requiring coinage
so that the provision of the House bill
was not a provision for their benefit
but for the exclusive benefit OF a few
bullion dealers and mining companies
The overloaded taxpayers of thi:
country, already staggering and sink
ing under the burdens imposed on then
by unwise legislation, would have beer
subjected by that provision to a new
exaction of several millions annual!
to pay for coming h bullion of C api
talists at home and abroad"
Even in 1873 when silver wa:
but slightly deprecated, MI
Carlisle, with greater foresight
than his colleagues, due no doub'
to his superior knowledge O
finance and economics, saw thu
danger of free silver and did no
hesitate to do his duty in warn.
ng against it. He has admitted
IN his speech before the soun(
money convention at Memphis
that he was mistaken in believing
that the limited coinage unde
the Bland-Allison act, would
have the effect of bringing silve
to a parity with gold.
And for this he is accused of in
consistency. But let Mr.. Carlisle
defense of his record speak 70
itself, for it is unassailable. HI
said at Memphis:
''In view of the determination OK
hibited in some quarters to CRITICS
my personal record upon this questio
rather than answer my arguments,
think my old friends here at my HON
ave fright to expect at least a brie
reference to that subject. 1t is proper
in h first place, to say that my oppC
sition to free coinage is not dictated b
n prejudice against the use of siIve
as the standard of value merely be
cause it is silver, nor by any preference
for the use of gold as the standar'
merely because it is gold. for. if tn
conditions now existing were reversed
if silver was our standard of value an
gold was deprecated in value as silve
now ISL would base much opposed to
change from silver to gold as [ al