The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1895-04-16
Vigorous Reply from Chairman Har~
vey, of the Executive Committee OF
the BimetaIlic League.
ALTGELD ALSO IN A RAGE
MIR. CLEvELAND's VIEWS NOT REI.>
IsHED BY sILvER-DoLLAR BLAND.
Good Indications of Merry Wax
Among the Democratic Brefhren-
Comments of Leading Papers.

CHICAGO, April 15.-Mr. w H Harvey,
chairman OF the executive committee of the
Bimetallic League whose headquarters are
in Chicago. prepared a reply to Presiding
Clevelands letter to the Chicago COMMITTEES
of business men. 1t is addressed ITO His
Excellency, Grover Cleveland, President
Washington, ID. Co. and reads:
Dear Sir-In reply to your letter. ad-
this city we Wish ta eav oi fSa % men & oI
mittee that waited on you and the persons
who attached their names TO the petition
a majority OF the business men and citizens
of this city who take a deep interest In the
that class that owns money and securities
payable In money-fixed incomes.
I'VE respectfully submit that your letter
does not present the true merits OF the
controversy. You call the attention of far
mers and wage-earners to the fact that
raising prices. while enabling them to sell
their products and labor at higher price.
will also cause them to pay equally more
iect to say that your statement is not ap-
plicable to debts. With prices coming down
regularly and steadily since the demoneti- s
ers and the people generally have been do
ing business on a falling market, thar
of their merchandise raw material and
placing it months after on thdsmarket, has
wise made This shrinkage in values, added
to the ordinary risk and expense Of busi-
ness has led to an eyer7increasing volume 9f
has increased, all told. public and privates
to about forty billions OF dollars. or about
property in the United States.
Money and those debts payable in money
have been steadily increasing in exchanges
able value with the property of the people.
A debt for $1,000 that one thousand bushels
of wheat would have paid ten years ago
thousand bushels of wheat in exchange for
these dollars with which to pay the sans
l-I~& 1.l1f In
cipaIly old debts. or renewed or refunded
debts, or new debts contracted to pay OLD
to contract by reason of the continued de-
cline in prices. The owners of products
must now give up twice e as ss1a much propsrsy
thousand bushels of wheat would have paid
the Presidents salary of 5000 s25 600 in lsIs and
bushels of wheat to pay your annual sal
1--WE have constantly pointed out to the
people the ever-increasing interchangeable
value of the creditors dollar, and the rea-
son why " It h was redTeasng an 1ee @
your administration. and you insist on such
a currency they nave established as
Of the property of the people BY the sale
of property. under mortgages, judgments
incomes nna Secusa4hS WiIl wipe means out s the in
terest of stockholders in our
fsnas IS an Injustice to restore % prices so that
people can exchange their property for a
sufficient number Of dollars to pay their
to our land again, it was a greater in
justice to destroy the value of a property
citation of silver and the establishment OF
a single gold standard SO tsat when YOU
call the attention of the farmer and wags
Garner to the fact that rising prices Will
make him pay more for what he buys You
should at the same time call his attention
pay his debt, free him from bondage in
which he has been unjustly placed and
again make him the owner OF a home % and
say further to him that rising prices
causes money to seek investment. ana
merce and trade and give employment to
millions now idle. 1t is not more money
We yns' owe WEE The m more we borrow w the the more
we must pay, and the annual interest or
all our public and private debt. is now more
than the annual profits OF business ana
"Our forefathers fled from Europe and es.
tablished government here that they mignV
be free from the class legislation of those
nations where the masses are hewerS on
wood and drawers Ct 4 water q ~ ior ,, the ss rlon
countries we justly term plutocracies; and
yet it is now being seriously insisted on
most pernicious class legislation that the
monarchies of Europe have ever fastene6
on their. helpless people BY adoptnn
mand for gold and it's exchangeable values
and all money based thereon. with all other
".
ton of a single metal for primary money
that they can control and corner-th&c
they have cornered-and forced you to go
to them to get it at their own price, TO
sustain the credit of this great and re-
sourceful naion. We submit that this policy
should be abandoned and our mints agaful
thrown open to silver (as they are now
to gold) and our stock of primary money
increased thereby
s~rhe gentlemen who visited you and who
pettioned you represent only one class OF
our people; we respectfully submit that II
was safer that all the people should DO
the thinking for it, than that any one class
should do 1t for them. Selfish interests
predominate to promote selfish interest
when one class does the thinking for all
Broad views to justly promote the COM
mon welfare can best be secured Dy
census of the views of all the people.
1--WE agree with you that 1t is time for
the people to reason together and TO. thar
end we respectfully ask that you make
ii possible for them to get printed copies OF
the act 1872. on which our fore1atners
based our financial system and all subse-
quent acts, together with the act or 1913.
that reversed the former policy ana acts
subsequent thereto, as well as all statis-
tical and other information OF an equat
nature that washington bears thereon we
but express your own opinion as President
of the people when we say that all the
peopIe should have the opportunity to inves-
figate and inteIigently pass upon this ques~
tion.