The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1895-03-20
THE DREADFUL CONSEQUENCES
1t Destroys the Business of the
World.

MI. y. w. fOrCcf, OF CnarlOUUeSVlllc,
Va, writes as follows to Barker s
"American:"
Greater misery never was produced
by single act. It has afflicted the
world worse than constant warfare,
and our country is today suffering the
inexorable penalty of violated law,
handed down to us under the sanction
of the ages.
A member of the British Parlia-
ment, at a great meeting held in Lon
don seven years ago. said that the
evils resulting from the change
caused by the legislation of the
United States and Germany were
greater than they would be by fifteen
years of foreign war, and doubling
their national debt.
No such act of spoliation was ever
recorded in history. Yet men, profess
sing to be honest and in Christian
country, defend the wrong of a con-
stantly appreciating standard of pay
ment for debts so vast that the gold
of the world would not pay years in
terest.
In a carefully prepared work by an
eminent friend of the late DR.. Soet-
beer, of Germany-"The Future of
Silver" by Prof. e. Suess, of Vienna,
M. P.-the author says, in his preface:
'"The world has been amply warned
by geological experience that it's
whole financial system was approach
ing an abyss" And in closing the
work he emphasizes the words: "The
question is no longer whether silver
will again become full-value coinage
metal over the whole earth, but what
are to be the trials through which
Europe is to reach that goal''
How puerle is the flippant utterance
of the editor of the Oregonian and
others Of his class, in view of such ut
teranceS as this, and in view of the
ineXOrable logic of events; for the de-
struction of values now going on is
not only shaking confidence in the
vaule of all property, but in the Sc
curity Of our ins stitutions.
In this long-continued battle of the
standards our contest has been for
simple justice by the repeal of the
fraudulent act of 1873, 3,unconstitution-
al in itself-fOr we have repeatedly
challenged the other side to admit
that it was constitutional exercise
of the power 'to coin money and
| regulate the value thereof" to change
regulation once made, and govern
ing contracts involving one-half (more
or less) of the wealth of the nation:
and sanctioned by three -fourths of a
century's use. and by legislation to so
greatly wrong all debtors and taxpay-
els. They dare not so affirm, for it
would admit that future Congress
| might lawfully demOnetize gold. We
have won in all the debates, over
| thrown all opponents; we have even
| won great victories, only to find some
secret, malign influence to secure
| vetoeS, and delusive compromises, and
twice at least parliamentary rulings,
which prevented decisive vote by a
majority Of the representatives. of the
people to pass bills already approved
| by the Senate. 1t now seems strange,
in view of all this, that our chief pres
ent hope for relief should lie in the
growing conviction of the very class
for whose selfish gain the whole
scheme of mOnometallism was devised
that it means ruin for them.
The bankruptcy of great corpora
tions, and even of States. the tremen-
dous decline in securities, indeed
threatens many grand fortune, very
many having already been broken
and a halt is being called. Interest
now demands that which sense of
Justice should have accorded years
ago.