The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1895-07-23
DEFENDS SILVER.
Senator COckrell Champions It's
Cause to Missouri Editors.
Protests Against the Unfair
Treatment of the Metal.
WE MUST HAVE IT.
World Cannot Get Along With
Gold Money Alone.
Only Its RECOMMENDATION Will
Settle Our Troubles.

SEDAL1A, No, July 23.-The attend
ance at the Democratic Free Silver Editors
State convention has met the most san
guine expectations of those who promoted
it. Editors are here today from every
section of the state, stretching from Mis-
sissippi county to st Joseph.
At 10 o'clock this morning a business
meeting was held. Col. VIM. Switzer of
Boone, presided as chairman, and H. S
Groves of Lexington was secretary.
At II o'clock R P Bland delivered an
address at Association park. In the aft
ernoon Senator F. NJ. Cockrell spoke.
Senator CockrelI spoke as follows, be-
ginning by asking the question:
"What is the pending financial issue?
It is simply" he said, "whether the sim
gle standard of gold shall be continued,
or the true bimetallic system shall be re-
stored.
Livery possible effort will be made to
conceal, compIicate and mystify this vi
tai issue Let us not be mistaken nor de-
ceived nor mis-led. The Forty-second
congress, with a two-thirds majority of
Republicans in each house, passed the
coinage law of February 10, 1878, which
was approved by a Republican president
and established the single standard of
gold, made the gold dollar the unit of
value, denied any coinage to the standard
dollar of 3T1N grains pure silver, and
41219 grains nine parts fine, limited the
legal tender value of all silver coins to
five dollars and thus destroyed the BIZ
metallic system which had existed by
Ourilaws from April 2, 1879, to that date.
"The law of November 1, 1898, uncon-
ditionally repeating the purchasing
clause of the Sherman law of July IA.
1890, left the coinage law of February
IL, 1873, in full force and effect Today
our laws authorize the free and unlimi-
ted coinage of gold at our mints into our
full legal tender money, and thus endow
and clOthe the gold metal with the func-
tions of money, and make the metal
equal in value to the coin, but they do
not authorize or permit the coinage of
any standard silver dollars except the
bullion in the treasury, purchased under
the Sherman law, thus denying to the
silver metal any functions of money"
Replying to the cry of the gold adher-
ents to stop agitation on the monetary
question he said that if the gold standard
cannot stand the ordeal of fullest discus
sion and severest criticism and sustain
itself in the fullest confidence of the peo-
pie, it is only because there is not suffi-
cient gold in the world to supply all
demand for its use.
Gold, Mr.. Cockerell stated. creatas a
class distinction among the people based
upon the amount in dollars of the busi-
ness transactions, sales and purchases,
gold for the rich able to buy and sell in
single transactions to large amount and
silver and currency for those whose bus
iness in single transactions amounts to
comparatively ssmall sum which is the
case in ninety per cent of the separate
transa tions of all the people
"If the gold standard is the best metal
lie monetary system why should not all
the nations be invited to join us and
adopt it?" he asked. "You will not find
any gold advocate anywhere who openly
advocates its universal adoption in the
world as the only metallic money. The
gold standard has been tried, weighed in
the balance and found wanting, costly
and dis astroua"
The senator then advocated a restor-
alton of bimetallism, as a remedy for ex-
isting evils. He ridiculed the idea that
the agitation of the silver question will
divide the Democratic party.
"The idea that the free coinage of sill
YER would drive gold out of circulation
was also ridiculed The gold standard
nations on account of the insufficiencv
OF gold for all monetary uses and its ut
ter unhtness for money of dollars or 9th
er smaller coins, cannot do without sill
yer. No gold standard nation has ever
been able to dispense with the use of
RnQ coinage OF silver.
"The continuance of the gold stand
ard will enrich the gold miners and i'm
pOverish the people," said Mr.. CockrelL
''It is certainly no crime to enact u law
which will tend to increase the CONNER
cial value of any one of the staple pro-
ducts of our country in the foreign mar
kets and our country produces more sill
YER than any other.
"1n the Brussels conference of 1892
Mr., Alfred de Rothschild, a delegate
from England, said: 'Gentlemen, need
hardly remind you that the stock of sill
Ner IN the world Is estimated at some
thousands of millions, and if this confer
ence were to break up without arriving
at any definite result there would be a
depreciation insthe value of that COM
modify which it would be fearful to con-
template, and out of which monetary
panic would ensue, the far spreading ef-
fects of which it would be hard to fore
tell
"Ihis conference did adjourn without
any definite results and on June 26. 1899
India closed her mints to the free coin,
age OF silver, and the commercial value
of silver measured in gold at once fell
about 10 per cent Our law of Nov. ].
1898, repealed the purchasing clause of
the Sherman law and silver fell still
lower By the undisputed testimony of
the historic record Mr.. Carlisle was RIGHT
in 1878 in his denunciation of the sct of
1873 as, the most gigantic crime of this
or any ether age
"Most clearly the laws demonetizino
silver, aud they alone, have caused thu
taA IN its commercial value and the rise