Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1896-01-24
HAS JOINEDTHEGANG.
O'FERRALL OF VIRGINIA WITH
THE BENEDICT ARNOLOS.


a COuNtTl 10 SOuHu MONEY. lie Is re-
ported as saying:
Il am for sound dollar, and what
/ mean by sound dollar is one that
will pass for 100 cents and be as good as
any other dollar. anywhere within the
limits of the civilized world. Gold is
that dollar now. Silver may also be
If kept on parity with gold. But this
can only be done by international
agreement What | mean by sound
dollar is one that the farmer, the me-
chanic and the laboring man can use
with a purchasing power of 100 cents
and buy as much with ii as any other
dollar. What | mean by a sound dollar
is one that its holder may lay away to
buy home, save for rainy day or pro-
vide for himself in Old age with abso-
lutte certainty that il will be as good as
any other dollar when he wants TO use
it. Gold is that dollar. Silver cannot
be unless by international agreement it
is made equivalent to a gold dollar.
Il am for a sound dollar for the poor
man as well as for the rich man.
shall never consent to monetary sys-
TEN which will place it in the power of
the rich man TO hoard his gold and pay
his poor creditor in a deprecated dol
lar"
So the governor really wants sound
dollar'-one that is worth 100 cents
anywhere in the civilized world. Well.
that is good enough as far as 1t goes.
1t is eminently proper that a dollar
should be worth 100 cents. That is "a
dollar" should be worth dollar" We
are quite agreed with the governor on
that point. But IL scarcely reaches the
essence OF the question. The chief use
of a dollar is not TO exchange 1t for 100
cents" or some other kind Of doll?r-
it is to purchase commodities and pay
debts.
How much purchasing power does the
governor think sound dollar should
have? How much wheat or cotton or
corn or tobacco should it buy in order
to make it sound? He says it should
buy as much as any other dollar.
Well, suppose a particular kind of dol
lars became so scarce that one OF them
does the governor think that dollar
which will buy less than five bushels is
an "unsound" dollar? Does he think
that if one dollar, call ii the gold dollar
if you please, doubles in purchasing
power, while another dollar continues
to purchase the same quantity as be-
fore, the one which doubles is sound"
;,A linz ha
is 'unsound"?
He wants one that a man can lay
away for the future, and be as good as
any other dollar" when he wants TO use
it. But why as good as any other dol
lar? If it be as good as it was when
laid away is not that enough? If not.
pray tell us why not II there Is any
reason why a dollar laid idly away for
future use should double in purchasing
power in the course of few years, we
would really like TO know what the
reason is. The governor would prob
ably answer If some other dollar has
doubled in purchasing power, the one
laid away should do the same because
one dollar should be as good as any
other dollar. This, however, is not
only reasoning in a circle, but it in
wolves the moral obliquity of assuming
that 1.-TWO wrongs make a right"
The germ of this whole question lies
in the fact that within the last twenty
two years, dollars" have nearly dou-
bled in purchasing power, thus enrich
ing the ones who own or control the dol
lars, and injuring those who produce
the commodities, and those who are in
debt.
The governor dexteriously skips
away from this great fundamental
proposition, and disposes OF the whole
matter by declaring that zone dollar
must be as good as any other dollar"
The governor deXterously skips
cidedly unique.
He will never consent to a monetary
system that will enable a rich man TO
hoard his gold, and pay his poor credi-
tor in deprecated dollars.
Now the mystery is solved We have
learned why the great bankers and
money lenders are opposed to the res
toration Of silver. They are afraid it
would give them an advantage. 1t
would place it in their power to hoard
their gold and pay the poor creditor"
with cheap money.
Their pious souls revolt at such an
idea. and at the same time they doubt
their ability to resist the temptation
so they entrench themselves behind.
their golden ramparts and bid defiance
to the tempter.
True. some of them seemed to have no
qualms of conscience when they pock
eted their $40 600 900 profit on the bond
deal, but that was different. They
were plucking the treasury goose at
that time, and of course it didn't hurt
the people any.
But when it comes to the poor cred
itor" that is another thing. The banker
wouldn't hurt him for the world.
We are afraid that the governor OF
the old dominion has been sitting at
the feet of Cleveland IL has been said