Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1895-05-18

metal and we have established an
aristocracy upon the frmest of all
foundations. Say, tonest-hearted,
hard listed, labor bowed farmer, are
there any such gentry in our land ?
Say, how long, forsooth, will it be be
fore you can hopeto wrest the smallest
portion of your share of this precious
bankers standard of value out of the
all-grasping hands of the money
changers
Is there no remedy? There is, and
an easy one. All we have to do is to
get good solid silver lever and pry
on the off side of the log. Then will
the wild cries of bankers, bond-hawk-
ers, and all sorts of money-mougers
rend the heavens. Then will the
great and mighty of the land rush
into print to prove SILVER spells
ruin, and ruin silver. There are
most excellent reasons for this orthog-
raphy-that is money-mongers rea-
sons. Why this horror of harmless
metal For thousands of years-in
fact ever since Abraham paid cash
down four hundred shekels of silver
to Ephron the Hittite for a burying-
place in the field of Machpelah for his
wife Sarah-silver has been used
jointly with gold in the currency Of
the world. In Greece and elsewhere
it was coined before gold Ages be-
fore the Christian era the Romans is
sued silver in preference to the more
precious metal. Through all the vi
cissitudes of time the white metal has
held its own in competition with its
yellow rival In these latter days it
has fallen under interdict. Whose in
terdict? Whose interdict but that of
the money kings-men whose fiat
rules the finances of every civilized
country on the globe. They have
only to say, Let gold be, )" and gold
1s-tor them. They say, "Silver be-
gcnel" and, 10, silver vanishes from
the pockets of the people as if by
magic.
We all know that gold is the bank
ers' money. 1t is on the security of a
gold capital that he issues his paper
promises to pay There is not an I'M
limited supply of gold il circulation,
and when this metal gets wholly or
in great part under the control of the
money-monarchs, they depreciate sill
yer, flood the land with paper, and
say unto themselves, Verify, gold is
mighty and must prevail But sill
yer is the poor mans money. All
day long, a winged blessing, it flies
from hand to hand and home to home
carrying with it plenty and admins
tering to the wants of all. 1t is the
peoples best friend. While the lotd-
ly golden eagle, like a sleepy bird,
lies idle, or is called forth only as
medium in large transactions, the
ninble dime, or quarter, or half dol
lar is purchasing here, there, every
where, the things we need for our
daily sustenance and pleasure. Look
on the face of silver dollar; it is a
good, honest, solid looking face, not
worn, torn, haggard thing, mere
shadowy representative of represen-
tative Of value. 1t speaks for itself
not for another. 1t says, Il am
good sound dollar It does
not refer you to something else, or
somebody else, tor a certificate of
character. 1t does not have written
on its face intrinsic worthlessness in
the form of a mere promise to pay. It
pays its own way and has no middle
men between itself and the govern
ment that minis it for the daily use
of its people.
"Ah, but we cannot send silver
abroad to buy what we need of foreign
commodities, cry the gold mono
metallists. So much the better say
we. We cannot send your bank pa
per money abroad on the same errand, |
and yet you have never made outcry
against it on this account. 1t has
been used as an argument for State
banks that their notes wotld stay at
lone; how much better then that our
silver should remain with us? Gold |
eagles have wings to carry them far. |
With these we now purchase all we
need of such things as foreign coun-
tries can supply. How can it be
shown that by ever so large coinage
of silver gold will be deprived of its
foreign value and purchasing powers
Is it not plain, then, that the real
issue is between silver coin and paper
money! Every dollar of silver will I
not only stay at home among our
people as it should do since it is for
the peoples daily use, but it will sup
plant the bankers flimsy and falla-
cious promises to pay in proportion !
to its increase of circulation among
the people. Then let us have more
of this sound money" of this
poor mans dollar which needs no Sc
curity of the rich mans gold to make
it pass at its ninted value anywhere
in the land save over the bankers
counter HERMEs.
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When the ground dries and more