The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1895-02-13

totalpopulation Money docs not con-
stitute nations wealth; it consists of
It's lands, its farms, its factories, its i'll
ternal Improvements, its Industries,
| its busines activities; money is merely
the instrument that measures this
wealth and effects its interchange. To
secure the wholesome discharge OF
these functions, power was given to
+ Congress by the Constitution tocontrol
it; but unfortunately for the public
our Congress has shows itself 20 be ut
terly ignorant Of the true laws OF lin
ance, and in its ignorance has adopted
the theory of Judge Brawley, to apply
for information to the very parties
whose interest. Mr.. Calhoun tells US,
is directly antagonistic to the interest
of the public. Indoctrinated with the
English idea of finance, the leaders OF
the American branch of the gold trust
thoroughly understand the science OF
money, and using this knowledge,
which they seem to monopolize in this
country, for their own selfish purposes
have realized fortunes, blythe ruin of
their country, beyond previous imag-
nations.
If it were not so ruinous it would be
comical to observe the conditions of
our public officials as they dounder in
their ignorance over the perplexities
presented by the monkeyings of the
gold trustwith the treasury reserve The
gold trust has made them regard the
| 400, 900, 900 of gold in this country as
fetch which should be retained at
all hazards. Our great industries are
being strangled. our property confis-
Gated, honest men by thousands
forced into bankruptcy, our people de-
MED honest employment and grinding
poverty staring rs per cent. of them
in the face, yet the gold standard. the
European money standard, must be
maintained, despite the fact that the
leading European advocates of the sys-
tenn openly avow that, it's object is to
make money monopoly and reduce
the producing masses to industrial
servitude. Owning or holding a mort
gage over every species of property
| that promises q safe investment, they
arc now running a kind of confidence
game with the Federal treasury to
force unlimited issues of gold bonds
which, in the shape of liens on the en-
ergy and industry or future genera
tons, shall furnish them safe invest
ments for their constantly accruingin-
terest. Verify, it has been said Of these
men that ''they care nothing for their
country or the public, that they have
no politics but plunder and no princi-
Piles but the spoliation of the human
race"
Ishall close this article with a quo
tation from Mr. Webster: 'Sir, let
the system (of the gold trust) go on,
and we shall soon not know our coun-
try. Weshall see a new America. On
the map where these United States
have stood we shall soOa behold a
country that will be s:rangeto to us. We
shall see class of idle rich and class
of idle poor, the former handful, the
latter host. We shall no longer be-
hold community of men with spirits
all active and stirring, contributing,
all of them, to the public welfare while
they partake in it, pushing Oh their
fortunes and bettcring their own con-
dition and helping to swell, at the
same time, the cup of the general pro-
spcrity to overhowing. We shall see
no more of that credit which reaches
Quits hand to honest enterprise of that
certainty of reward which cheers on
labor to the utmost stretch of its sin.
ews; of that personal and individual
independence which enables every
man to say that no man is his master.
s. * * The ruin of occupation; distress
for present means; the prostration of
credit and confidence; and all this
without hope of improvement or
change is q state Of things which no
intelligent PEOPLE can long endure.
In my next article | shall deal with
the Populist and Alliance theory of
coniining our paper issues entirely to
Federal treasury notes:
l.. w. YoUMANs.
Fairfax, S. c., Feb. 9.