The daily morning journal and courier., 1896-08-13


 property except those investments which yield fixed return In money. These would be enormously enhanced tionate and unfair advantage over every species of property
 "Is it strange that the holders of in- Vestments which yield fixed return in money, can regard the destruction of silver with complacency? May we not expect the holders of other forms of property to protect against giving to money a disproportionate and unfair advantage over every other species of property?' If the relatively few whose wealth consists largely in fixed invest ments have right to use the ballots to enhance the value of their Investments, have not the rest of the people the right to use the ballot to protect themselves from the disastrous consequences of rising standard? The people who must purchase money with the products of toll stand Tn a position entirely differ ent from the position of those who own money or receive fixed income. The well being of the nation-aye, of civili- zation itself-depends upon the pros DoTlty Ol tnG IlldStS. w ioN ShuAi it profit us to have dollar which grows more valuable every day if such dollar lowers the standard of civiliza- ton and brings distress to the people?
 What shall 1t profit us if, In trying to raise our credit by increasing the purchasing power of our dollar, we de- stroy our ability to pay the debts al- ready contracted by lowering the pur- chasing power of the products With which those debts must be paid? If 1t is asserted, as it constantly is asserted, that the gold standard will enable us to borrow more money from abroad reply that the restoration of bimetal- lism will restore the parity between money and property, and thus permit an era of prosperity which will enable the American people to become loaners of money instead of perpetual borrow CTS. Even if we desire to borrow, how long can we continue borrowing under system which by lowering the value of property weakens the foundation upon which credit rests?
 Even the holders of fixed invest ments, though they gain an advantage from the appreciation of the dollar cer- tainly see the injustice of the legisla- tion which gives this advantage over those whose incomes depend upon the value of property and products. If the holders of fixed investments will not listen to arguments based upon jus tice and equity appeal to them to con- sider the interests of posterty. We do not live for ourselves alone. Our labor, our self-denial and our anxiety. care-all these are for those who are to come after us as much as for our selves, but we cannot protect our chill dren beyond the period of our lives.
 Let those who are now reaping ad- vantage from a vicious financial sys- tenn remember that in the years to come their own children and their childrens s children may, through the operations of this same system be made to pay tribute to the descendants who are wronged to-day. As against the main- tenance of a gold standard, either per- manently or until other nations can be united for it's overthrow the Chicago platform presents q clear and emphatic demand for the immediate restoration of the free and unlimited coinage of silver and gold at the present legal ratio of 16 to 1, without waiting for the aid or consent of any other nation We are not asking that new experiment be tried; we are insisting upon return to financial policy approved by the experience of history and supported by all the prominent statesmen of our na- tion from the days of the first presi- dent down to 1873.
 When We ask that our hints be opened to the free and unlimited coin age of silver into full legal tender money we are simply asking that the same mint privileges be accorded to sil- yer that are now accorded to gold When we ask that this coinage be at the ratio of 16 to we simply ask that our gold coins and the standard silver dollar, which, be it remembered contains the same amount of pure sil- yer as the first silver dollar coined at out mints-retain their present weight and fineness. The theoretical advan- tage of the bimetallic system is best stated by a European writer on politi- cal economy, who suggests the follow ing illustrations: A river fed from two sources is moCe uniform in volume than river fed from one source-the reason being that when one of the feeders is swollen the other may be low; whereas, river which has but one feeder must rise or fall with the feeder So in the case of bimetallism: :: the volume of metallic money receives contributions from both the gold mines and the silver mines, and, therefore, varies less, and the dollar, resting upon two metals is less changeable in it's purchasing power than the dollar which rests on one metal only.
 If there are two kinds of money the option must rest with the debtor or creditor. Assuming that their rights are equal we must look to the interests of society In general in order to deter mine to which side the option should be given. Under the bimetallic sys- tenn gold and silver are linked together by law at a fixed ratio, and any person or persons owning any quantity of either metal can have the same con- verted into full legal tender money. If the creditor has the right to choose the metal in which payment shall be made it is reasonable to suppose that he will require the debtor to pay in the dearer metal if there is any perceptible differ ence between the bullion value of the metals.
 This new demand created for the dearer metal will make that metal dearcr still, while the decreased de- mand for the cheaper metal will make tN1 oI,a