The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1895-04-03

change happy republic into "chaOS
and old night" You, sir. were lead
er of the people. We trusted you as
Washington trusted Arnold. We hon.
Ored our leader. We followed him.
But we have been deceived and be-
trayed.
Just for a ha ndful of silver he LEI us,
Just fora ribbon, to stick on his coat.
Blot out his name, then record one lost
soul more.
One task more declined, one more footpath
One more DEVILS triumph and sorrow for
angels,
One wrong more to man, one more insult
Sir, having betrayed the people and
insulted God, you seem now deter
mined to serve no master but Nam
mon. TO please the Shylocks you
trample the peoples money under
foot by refusing to pay out lawful
standard silver dollars on coin con-
tracts. Washington, Jefferson, Jack
son, Benton, and all the fathers and
defenders Of American liberty agreed
in making the standard silver dollar
the unit of account and standard of
value" in the American finances.
You have spit upon their standard
money and branded it as base metal.
ulo yOu w III VlOld ClOu-lu TcDuU1d-
tion-of all coin contracts, because
your masters. the great fund-holders.
demand it of you. At their bidding
you pay gold on coin contracts, thus
appreciating that tickle and unreliable
metal, so that as your gold reserves
disappears you may find an excuse to
load the people with interest-bearing
bonds
Having betrayed the people until
soup-hOuseS are needed in every city
to aSsuage the public hunger; until in
creased police forces and even federal
troops are required to suppress the
cries of distress; until brave men and
helpless women can no longer find en-
ployment, but are met with threats of
violence, or, at best, with the crust of
charity; until your own truthful pre-
dictions of 1873 seem to promise ulti-
mate fultllment; you now propose ,as a
remedy to retire the lawful paper
money of the government, and to sur
render the finances of the country en-
tirely into the hands of the banks.
You, a mere administrative officer.
have had the hardihoOd to formulate
a banking bill, and to send it into the
halls of legislation demanding it's en-
actment into law. You demand that
the government shall surrender to
corporations the sovereign power of
issuing money-that the people and
the government shall take all the
risks and guarantee the currency
while the corporations enjoy all the
profits. This you do, in spite Of the
teachings Of those great Democratic
statesmen who founded your party, and
whom you profess to follow
Thomas Jefferson, the first great
Democrat in this country, expressed
himself on various occasions, sub
stantially as follows:
Bank paper must be suppressed
and the circulation restored to the
nation to whom it belongs"
1.-The power to issue money should
be taken from the banks and restored
to Congress and the people.
II sincerely believe that banking es-
Establishments are more dangerous
than standing armies.
Il am not among those who fear the
people. They, and not the rich, are
our dependence for continued free
dom. And to preserve their indepen-
dence we must not let our rulers load
us with perpetual debt.
''Put down the banks, and if this
country could not be carried through
the longest war against her most pow
erful enemy without ever knowing the
want of dollar, without dependence
on the traitorOuS class of her citizens,
without bearing hard on the resources
of the people or loading the public
with an indefinite burden of debt,
know nothing of my countrymen."
Mr.. Secretary, as follower of the
great Jefferson and member of that
great party founded by him, how is it
possible for you to favor the issuing of
United States bonds and the estab-
liShment Of banks of issue, when the
issue Of nOn-interesting bearing legal
tender paper by the government, as
recommended by Mr.. Jefferson, will
meet every useful purpose and every
legitimate demand? These are ques-
tions that the people are asking; and
the public officers who fail to listen
and obey will pass from power into
merited oblivion or eternal infamy.
Sir, for a generation or more, your
party stood by the teachings of Jeffer-
son, Jackson and Benton, and their
compatriots on the money question,
and, almost uniformly, marched to as
tions. In those glorious days the
platforms of your party held aloft
their victorious banner, bearing the
following inscription:
Resolved, That Congress has no
power to charter a national bank:
that we believe such an insti tuition
one of deadly hostility to the best in
terests of the country, dangerous to
our republican institutions and the
liberties of the people, and calculated
to place the business Of the country
within the control of concentrated
money, and that above the laws and
will Of the people; and that the result
of Democratic legislation in this and
all other financial measures, upon
which issues have been made between
the two political parties of the coun-
try, have demonstrated to candid and
practical men of all parties their
soundness, safety and utility in all
business pursuits.
Resolved, That the separation of
the moneys of the government from
banking institutions is indispensable
for the safety of the funds of the gov
ernment and the rights Of the peo-
ple."
In those old Democratic platforms
it was declared to be indispensable"
that the government moneys should
be kept separate from banking in
stitutiOns." Your party now does not
hesitate to place the government
money in the hands of hundreds of
banking institutions. 1t is placed
with them by the millions without in