Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1895-08-09
A SOUND PLANK.
MISSOURI DEMOCRATS DECLARE
FOR THE WHITE METAL.

FOR THE WHITE METAL
A State Organization Effected or
Cnequtvocai Lines-A New state
Committee Named Who are in
Accord with that Object.
\ convention was held at Pertle
Springs, Mo, Wednesday, by which a
plank favoring the coinage of silver
was adopted with great enthusiasm.
Il. p. Bland presided. Among the
speeches made was one by Hon. NJ. f..
Benton, who declared that Every
gold advocate in the State OF Missouri
Is either al usuper, an ofiice-holder, or
Il man with large prospects Tor an Of
flee"
The preamble and resolutions re-
ported by the committee and adopted
by an almost unanimous vote, were rs
follows:
The Democrats of Missouri, in State
convention assembled, make the fol-
lowing declaration on the monetary
question, which has been forced into
the leading place among the issues of
the day. The federal constitution
names silver and gold together as the
money metals of the United States.
The first coinage law passed by Con-
gress under the constitution made the
silver dollar the unit of value and adj
mitted gold to free coinage at ratio
measured by the silver dollar unit.
From the beginning of the COVER
ment, following the policy formulated
by Thomas Jefferson and firmly estab-
lished by Jackson. the Democratic
party has been the party of bimetnl.
ism, favoring the free coinage OF both
silver and gold at the national minis,
and opposed to farming out to the
banking corporations the govern
ment's sovereign power OF issuing and
controlling the money Of the people.
The act of 1873 demonetizing silver
was surreptitiously passed without the
approval or knowledge of the Ameri-
can people, and from that time when
the effect Of this act in fastening upon
the country the single standard was
understood, the Democratic party has
consistently urged that the grievous
wrong be righted.
Failure to accomplish this object
has resulted in the steady apprecia.
ton of gold and corresponding fall
in the price of the commodities pro-
duced by the people, a heavy increase
in the burden Of all debts, public and
private, the enrichment of the money
lending class, paralysis of industry
and Impeachment OF the people and
unexampled distress in all gold stand
ard countries. Experience has shown
that while, under the single gold
standard there may be an occasional
revival OF business activity accom-
panied by enhanced prices of limited
number of commodities, such revival
is due to artificial and temporary
causes, and cannot permanently allie
viate the sufferings due to falling OF
prices brought about by the apprecia-
ton of gold and an inadequate supply
of primary or redemption money.
Duty to the people requires that the
party OF the people continue the bat
tie for bimetslism until the efforts
are crowned with success; therefore,
be it
Resolved, That we, the Democratic
party of Missouri, in convention as
sembled, demand the free and I'M
limited coinage Of silver and gold into
primary or redemption money, at the
ratio OF 16 to l, without waiting for
the action or approval of any other
nation; second,
Resolved, That we are irrevocably
opposed to the substitution for money
of a panic-breeding corporation credit
currency based on single metal, the
supply Of which is 80 limited that it
can be cornered at any time by a few
banking institutions in Europe and
America; third,
Resolved, That we are opposed to
the policy and practice OF surrender
ing to the holders of the obligations OF
the United States the option reserved
by the law to the government Of re-
deeming it's obligations in either silver
coin or gold coin; fourth,
Resolved, That we are opposed to
the issuing of interest bearing bonds of
the United States in time of peace,
and especially are we opposed to plac-
ing the treasury Of the government
under the control OF any syndicate of
bankers and the issuance of bonds to
be sold by them at an enormous profit
for the purpose af supplying the fed
eral treasury with gold to maintain
the policy Of gold mono.metallism.
Additional resolutions were pre-
sented authorizing the chairman OF
the convention to appoint delegates
from each congressional district to at.
tend a conference in Washington, on
August IA. as recommended by Sena-
tors Turpie, Harris and Jones; that
the State Central Committee be re-
quested to call State convention to
be held not later than April 10, 1896,
in St. Louis. to select delegates to the
national Democratic convention in
1896. Greetings were sent to Senator
Blackburn of Kentucky in his fight
for silver; also to the Democratic
State conventions at Fort Worth,
Texas, and Mississippi City, Miss.
After selecting the State central com.
mittee, nineteen in all, the conven.
ton adjourned sine die.
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