Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1895-05-30

Wt1C pICStuI dL lilc dutIIOl4uLu W ucu
Chairman Crawford called the sound
money convention to order. Richard
II. Clarke, Of Alabama, presented Con-
gresham Catchings for permanent
chairman in a highly mplimentary
speech
The election Of Catchings was made
unanimous by a vote and
the congressman accepted the
honor in a graceful speech
in which he said: believing that the
free and independent coinage of sill
yer at a Is to l alto would be disas
trous to all private and public inter
ests, we have laid aside our private
affairs for a time to counsel together
as how best to prevent it. This body
is composed of a great mass Of honest,
intelligent, patriotic citizens from
every walk in life. 1t is said we are
monO-metallists. Let us here and now
place the lie upon that charge. ZAP
plause) 1t has been said again, that
we seek to so contract the currency
that prices will fall Let US stamp
that also as a lie.' Let us adopt a
series of resolutions that will be our
declarati ton of faith, and then chal~ !
lenge any man to put other words on
our lips. Let US organize ourselves in
to a movement militant and not quie-
sent; for believing as we do we would
be recreant to our duty if we failed
at all times to let our views be known.
'GentIemen of the convention, we
should take heart at the fact that
Tvin ono oil +ln
great people of this country outside
of political life. Suppose that we
adopt free coinage of silver at a ratio
of Is to /. 1t will bring about silver
mono-metallism pure and simple.
When the simple issue is put before
the people | do not believe they will
be willing to put this country on
silver basis"
His remarks were frequently inter
rupted by applause, and a committee
on resolutions, representing twelve
southern states, was appointed.
Secretary of the Treasury John G.
Carlisle was then introduced. He was
enthusiastically cheered for several
minutes. After quiet was restored,
tn secretary proceeded to discuss the
financial and currency questions OF the
day, in which he reviewed at length
the history of the use of gold and sill
Yer as money and said the use of
coin III exchanges in business is so
small as to be almost inappreciable.
oG1 stock of gold amounts to only
One-third our annual currency, and
every dollar is kept equal in value.
1t is this financial condition which
advocates of free coinage propose to
reyolutiOniZe by change in the stand
ard so that the whole mass of circu-
lation would be reduced One-half in
purchasing power. Advocates of free
coinage claim they intend to establish
bimetalliSm; the secretary said we
could no more have a double standard
than we could have one standard
pound weighing sixteen ounces and
another at eight ounces. He pointed
out that free coinage would result in
all who owe as having the privilege
of paying in silver, while all from
whom we become indebted have the
privilege to require us to pay in gold.
At the conclusion of Carlisles ad-
Stratlon. When order was restored the
couN ention took Il recess until even
ing.
When the convention reassemblcd,
Judge Ross, chairman of the resolu-
tons committee, presented the follow
ing report, which was unanimously
adopted:
The people of the southern states
who believe the maintenance of a
sound and stable currency to be essen
tial to the prosperity of the whole
country, and the Welfare Of the people
in all yocations of life, through their
representatives in this convention,
make the following declarations.
L Believing uniform and certain
standard of value necessary to the ag-
ricultural, commercial and industrial
development and prosperity Of our
common country, we favor the main
tenance of all of our money, whether
gold silver or paper, on parity to
the end that each dollar, whatever nay
be its composition, shall have an
equal purchasing and debt-payng
power with every other dollar.
- Protiting by the experience of
Washington, Jefferson and Hamilton,
and the teaching of the great stu
dents of the monetary science, we &C
cept the truth of the principle now
universally recognized and applied TO
the commercial world, that a bimetal-
lie standard cannot be maintained
where the ratio fixed by law for the
free coinage of gold and silver, does
not correspond with the market ratio
of the two metals, and that wherever
and whenever the legal coinage ratio
varies from the market or commercial
ratio to any aDpreciable extent, either
gold or silver, which thereby becomes
the more yalUa BILE as bullion than as
money, will so to a premium and re-
tire from circulation. We say this
principle appears in onr own national
experience when, under the act of
1872, which fixed the coinage ratio at
15 to l, gold retired from circulation
because of the slight decline in try
price Of silver in open market, where
by the bullion in a gold dollar beca me
worth a few cents more than the bull
lion in silver dollar, and was there
fore sold as a commodity because it
was worth more as bullion than as
money, and, again under the act Of