The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1896-10-30
'.Our Medicine is Coed.

me ITlDuu0 IN q recent editorial,
presumably in answer to an article oil
mine in the JOURNAL, makes some
comments and statements to which !
wish to call attention.
In the first place, as treasurer and a
member of the Republican Co. Central
Committee, | will use my influence
with the executive committee of that
body to pay the editor OF the Tribune
the usual advertising rates if he will
continue to print the plank referred
to, first removing the equiyocal and
misleading paragraph OF the papers
own production which heads it. We
still regard it as good SOUND money
doctrine and like Banquo's ghost we
hope it will continue to reappear. till
It's mission is accomplished,
we admit that we do not see the
connection between England and free
silver, the name of that nation was
not mentioned directly or indirectly
in my article. I have never said in
public or private that the U. S. and
England, by adopting free silver could
raise the price of that article to ST 30
per or. and what is more, | do not be-
lieve it. They could undo what they
have done in reducing the price of sill
yer. They could not undo what
France, Germany, Austria, Holland,
Belgium and every other country in
Europe have helped to do. We cant
go it alone" for the same reason that
the U. S. and Great Britain can't. be-
cause we are only two out of many
nations.
Why the Tribune calls me "gold
bug" after what | have said about that
silver plank it would take a sphinx to
answer. We made no reference to
anarchy, no reference to reputation
these must he the workings of a
guilty conscience.
ave do not want cheap dollar"
No? Bryan says he is going to cut the
value of the dollar in two by free and
unlimited coinage of silver. Will he
also give us new rule in arithmetic
by which we may prove that ] plus ]
equals 2? or in other words that so
cents plus 80 cents equals $500? Will
the writer tell ME where in the U. S.
the silver dollar is not worth as much
as gold dollar today? We did not
say that the silver dollar was "redeem-
able" IN anything, neither do the pop
nllsts intend to make them redeemable
IF free silver should carry In the
Sept number of the Arena, magazine
published in Boston, Bryan says:
"After he is elected IAN easy assump-
tlon) and free and unlimited coinage
of silver is established and the rest of
the world has been forced by our ac-
ton into adopting free silver (another
easy assumption) we can turn our at
tention to our own financial affairs
(havIng regulated those of all the
other nations0 and issue sufficient
PAPER MONEY for our needs. This
money, he says, will be put into cir
culation by paying the running ex-
penses Ct the government. 1t takes
$500 100000 dollars per year to run
this Govt. At that rate we should
soon have plenty OF money. Would
the populists make this redeemable?
Oh, mol How long will this free and
unlimited coinage of silver and paper
go on-how Ing will they be worth
their face value? Read the financial
history of all nations and find out for
yourself
Blame was bi-metallist,-not sill
yer bug. Ir one of his speeches be
uses these words: "To remonetize it
(silver) now, Cn 1879 as though the
facts and circumstances of that day
(l673) were surrou ding us, is to will
fully and blindly deceive ourselves. Ii
our demonetization were the only
cause for the decline in the value OF
silver, then reconciliation would be
its proper and effectual cure. But
other causes, quite beyond our control,
have been far more potentially opera
tive than the simple fact that Congress
prohibited its further coinage. AS
legislators, We are bound to take cog
nizance of these causes. The demon
etization of silver in the great German
Empire and the consequent partial or
well nigh complete, suspension of coin
age in the governments Of the Latin
Union, have been the leading domin-
ant causes for the rapid decline in the
value of silver" Is this good enough
argument in favor of the international
bi-metallism of the Republican party?
The writer further says, "That with a
free coinage of silver every dollar coin
ed is worth dollar" Where is this
true? In no nation on earth, neither
has II it ever been true for any great
length of time for OF all metals used as
money silver has been most liable to
f1uctuate and this when demonetiza-
ton was unknown.
What | mean by sound money is a
dollar worth 100 cts. {or exchangeable
for one worth 100 cts.) any where in
the world. Fiatism can never accom-
plish this at home or abroad. When
the writer accuses me and the rank
and file of the Republican party of
.sbeing grovelling slaves to bloated
leaders" he is making a statement
which. as the French say, is conspic-
ously incorrect.
an conclusion" we don't doubt but
that the Tribune will stick to all it
saws and we do believe it has made
votes by misstatements. Whether or
not the editor is responsible for these
misstatements we cannot say. But
for these deyiations from the truth we
should not have the voters of Mason
County to the article mentioned. |
can honestly say that have never