The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1895-07-03
SOME QUERIES FOR GROVER.
MR.. BRYAN ASKS THE ARTFUL
DODGER SOME KNoTTY
QUESTIONS

UAC W dld, OA0udY 4COss lids
recently published an open letter to
President Cleveland, which is well cal
culated to expose to thoughtful men
the essentially dishonest positions of
the usurer class and its tools in the
battle they are waging against the
wealth-producers of the republic.
In noticing the recent letter Of
President Cleveland, in which the
president has displayed his ingenuity
as iuggler with popular terms and
misleading phrases, the editor of the
World-Herald observes:
Since you secured the unconditional
repeal OF the Sherman law you have
very properly taken the place SO long
held by the author Of that law, Sena-
tor Sherman, and are now the &C
knowledged leader of the gold-stand-
ard advocates of the United States,
both Democratic and Republican: and
to you, therefore, as the leader of
that element, the people naturally
look for "a plain and simple presenta-
ton Of the argument in favor of sound
money" as you understand 'sound
money" or, at least. for an intelligent
definition of "sound money" What do
you mean by the phrase Sound mon
ey''? In your letter you make fire.
quent use of that and kindred
phrases. In fact. in the course of your
letter you speak three times Of
''sound money" twice Of ''safe cur
rency," once of ''sound currency"
once OF ''safe and sound currency"
once of ''safe and prudent financial
IDEAS" and once Of Wholesome flnan-
cial doctrines" You also speak once OF
"debased currency" once of ''de-
generated currency" and once Of
"cheap money" In one place you de-
scribe your opponents as ''the forces
Of silver monometallism," but you
nowhere explain that you mean by
s'sound money" OF what you consider
"cheap money"
Now, everybody favors "sound mon
ey," and ''safe currency" and plain
and simple statement of what you
mean by these euphonious and uni
versally admired phrases might dispel
the war-clouds and make a Zine Of
battle" unnecessary. II by ''sound
money" you mean gold standard,
why did you avoid theuse Of the word
"gold' in your letter? If by safe
currency" you mean bimetallism, why
did you avoid the use of the word ''bi-
metallism" in your letter? Your let
ter nowhere contains a direct refer
ence either to the gold standard or to
bimetallism, but is quite replete with
expressions which may mean great
deal or nothing, according to the in
depreciation placed upon them.
Your opponents are in favor Of the
free and unlimited coinage OF gold
bullion into dollars each containing
%. 8 grains Of standard gold; are you
in favor of this? Your opponents are
in favor Of the free and unlimited
coinage of silver bullion into dollars,
each containing 4l2.5 grains Of stand
ard silver: are you in favor of this?
If not, are you in favor of the coinage
Of silver bullion into dollars of any
size? II not in favor Of the free coin
age Of silver, what charge, ii any,
would you make for coinage? II you
are not in favor Of the unlimited
coinage of silver, what limit would
you suggest? Your opponents not on
ly believe in the restoration OF the
free and unlimited coinage Of both
gold and silver at the present ratio of
l6 to l, but they are in favor OF TAX
ing this action at once, without wait
ing for the aid or consent of any other
nation on earth; do you agree with
them? Ii not, do you favor the re-
stora tion of bimetallism by interna-
tional agreement, and how long are you
willing to wait for it? Your oppo-
nents are in favor of making standard
gold coin equally legal tender for all
debts public and private, and are op-
posed to making silver dollar a
promise to pay gold dollar, or gold
dollar promise to pay silver dollar;
do you agree with them? Your OPP
ponents believe that the free and un
limited coinage Of gold and silver at
the present ratio of Is to by the
United States, regardless Of the ac-
tion of other nations, will give us
''sound money" and safe currency;
they not only believe this. but they
support their position by arguments
SO ''plausibly presented" that even
you are frightened into the belief that
'sthe sound money sentiment" "must
be crystallized and combined and
made Immediately active" in order to
prevent their success at the polls.
Can you define your position SO
clearly and defend it SO plausibly as to
scare your opponents as badly as they
scared you? Is the failure Of gold
standard advocates to define their
purposes and defend their financial
system due TO lack of knowledge Of
the subject, or to an unwillingness to
let the people know what they in
tend? II s'proprieties' of your "of1i-
cial place oblige" you "to forego the
enjoyment which you would derive
from the writing Of another letter eX-
planning your last letter and defining
your position on the financial ques-
tion, please designate some one who
has authority TO speak for you so that
the people may be afforded an intel
ligent opportunity, as you suggest, to
study and decide this now paramount
public question.
One would think that the disgrace
full bond transaction, whereby the
agreement, drawn by President Cleve
lands former law-partner, in the in
terests Of a syndicate headed by a
former client of the president, and
by which the American wealth-pro-
ducers will be plundered out of mil
lions Of dollars, would be injury
enough to be inflicted upon the citi-
zens Of the republic by one admins
ira tion. 1t seems, however, that the
III ~ Mol OF nd n