Mississippi leader. (Jackson, Miss.) 1892-1895, 1895-06-11

man from the third district, addressed
a small audience in Brookhaven on the
currency question last Friday evening.
Mr.. Catchings is one of the recognized
standards of the gold standard school,
and it is to be regretted that ne did
not have a large audience. His speech,
which occupied about two hours, was
defense of the financial policy of the
Cleveland Administration and an ad-
vocacy of the gold standard as held by
Mr.. Cleveland and Mr. Carlisle.
Mr.. Catchings' principal contention
was that no country had ever been
able to maintain double money stand
ard of gold and silver Tor, scientific
bimetalism"), and that wherever the
effort had been made to maintain the
two metals side by side as money the
practical result was either gold mono
metalism or silver monometalism. The
only remedy for this is to adjust the
ratio by international agreement of
the principal civilized and commercial
nations, and it is suicidal for the Uni
ted States to attempt alone to main
tain the parity at the ratio of 16 toll.
The present attitude of Mr.. Catch
ings in the role of a gold-bug, recalls
to THE LEADER little political history,
which shows his conversion to this new
doctrine to be quite as remarkable and
surprising as Mr.. Carlisle's. In the
Mississippi Democratic State Conven-
ton of July 18th, 1891, called to nomi-
nate candidates for railroad commits
sioner, Mr.. Catchings was chairman of
the committee on resolutions, to which
position he was appointed by Hon. R.
H. Thompson, the gentleman who In
troduced him to his Brookhaven aud
fence last Friday night. AS chairman
of that committee he reported the fol-
lowing resolution on the currency
question:
sWe believe that gold and silver
should be coined upon the same terms
and conditions, and that arhen the goU-
eminent ceases to discriminate bettceen
them, they aciH freely circulate side by
side and be equally useful and accep-
table to the people We also believe
that there should be an additional is
sue of Treasury notes, interchangeable
with coin, sufficient to transact the
business of the country, and to relieve
the present financial depression"
1t has been charged in Mr.. Catch
ings' presence that he not only reported
this resolution with his endorsement,
but that he wrote it, and he has not
denied it.
Let the intelligent reader compare
the financial policy outlined in this
resolution, with the financial policy of
the Cleveland Administration, which
Mr.. Catchings now endorses and eulo-
gizes. Only two countries have chang
ed their legislation on the silver ques-
ton since this resolution was reported
by Mr.. Catchings, and one of these was
India, an English dependency, and the
other the United States another En-
glish dependency, according to the
Cleveland idea).
1t may be remarked in concluding
that the chief bent and determination
of the convention of 1891, was to side
track and down the Sub-Treasury, just
as the money power now seems bent
upon striking down silver, and it may
that Mr.. Catchings did not really
mean what he then wrote. If not, so
much the worse for Mr. Catchings,
and the greater the need for vigilance
and determination on the part of the
people to see that they are not again
duped by political leaders and their
interests still further trenched upon.
For ourself, we prefer to believe Mr..
Catchings was right on the silver ques-
ton in 1891, and that he is wrong now.