Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1896-09-26

wood. If we build no more houses OF
wood. or IL we destroy the old ones,
| think you the poor man can ge- BRICK
house more easily?
When Lee gObbled our cattle, did we
/ get more pork, or less meat?
/ When we refuse TO coin silver, do we
| have more gold, or less money?
When horses, or houses, or clothes be-
come scarce, we must pay more for them.
/ Why 5 not the same rule good as 10
/ d0liars? And is it not wrong 10 make
us Jay more for dollars than We agreed
| or expected to pay?
There is another reason why gold dol
/ lars are growing in price. New nations
are constantly adopting the gold stand
ard. Japan comes next. China and In
dia are being forced that way. This
new demand IS going to make the sold
dollar more and more valuable and
harder TO get. unless this nation averts
the danger by changing our system TO
bimeJallSm.
You ask if I would debase our coinage.
I say not. Let US go back 10 the system
we had It was sound then and is
sound now. BY juggling laws they have
made the dollar worth too much. The
eagle on a sold dollar is a shy bird.
Wall street traps have made such birds
scary. You and | are not as agile as
We were thirty years ago. We can't
fill our game bag as We could, when half
the birds are driven away, and the other
half fly twice as high.
You have been shown lately that
American dollars are worth twice as
much as Mexican dollars, and are asked
IL you would reduce our dollars TO the
Mexican standard. I was in Mexico
thirty years ago. and looking over late
Mexican papers I find prices there now
much the same as they were in 1866
The Mexican dollar has neither gained
nor lost in purchasing power. The
farmers bushel of wheat would about
buy a Mexican dollar thirty years ago,
and 1t will about buy one now. But the
American farmer must have two bushels
OF wheat 10 buy an American dollar to
pay the bond holder who loaned our
government paper dollars then worth
OILY about halg a bushel of wheat. The
American dollar seems to me
LIKE A WATERED STOCK.
It is really worth no more than it used
to be, bu, you musI pay twice as much
as it IS worth to &c. it, I would like to
see the American dollar made as steady
and as honest as the Mexican dollar.
You have been told that free coinage
o. silver WI help The American mine
owner. Thank God for something
which viii he'p some American pro-
ducer. This country produces less than
oDe-f0ur,A Of the gold of the world. All
gold owners have free access TO our
minis This country can produce half
the silver Of the world. Give American
silver mine owners at least as fair a
chance as the foreign gold miner.
We have been told again and again
that the cause of distress IS Over-produc-
ton. Let farmers raise less wheat and
then viii get higher prices. Let plant
ers be thankful for the drought in Mis-
sissipi and Louisiana. for those who are
not ruined will get bs-ter prices for
their cotton. This is deyiIsh doctrine.
But how are we 10 stop the Over-produc-
ton of men which drives down wages?
And where has been the oyerproductiOn
of land which has reduced the value Of
your farm?
If over-productiOn brings down values
let us try an Over-DrOducton Of money,
to bring that down within the reach Of
the common people. Lst lbs try such a
production of dollars as will bring their
worth to the par OF coin at the time we
incurred our debt. We can then pay our
debt in dollars better tnan those we re-
csived. and as good as we agreed.
You have been ,Old that no dollar IS
too good to pay cur pensions. l say any
dollar is too bad TO pay our pensions
which IS wrung from the suffering Of our
fellow citizens. Make our common peO-
Ule prosperous. comrade. and YOU and |
nav trust them not to forget us in cur
old age. Let them be ground down
much more by poverty, and they will MOI
have the ability to pay pensions. how
ever willing they may be. And If You
1eDend on the milronaires for your pen
sions. YOU will fare as YOU did in the
war. You got paper promises.
You ask if we did not have prosperous
lines under Harrison, for whom YOU and
7 voted. I say yes, we did During
most of HarrisOn's administration this
nation coined mere than five millions
OF NEW SILVER DOLLARS
every month: and the paper representa-
tons of those dollars have been about
an the money you and have seen since.
II our delegates at ST. Louis had had
sense enough 70 insist on something as
good as he Sherman law, we might see
some hope ahead under Republican rule.
But II seemed as if the big moneyed men
mad that convention in their breeches
pocket. They made a platform for mil
-Jn@res, and left the common people
out. The few milionaires not already
on the Republican platform are climb
ing on IL now. We have ssen something
g the tenderness of the millionaires for
the common people and especially for
the soldier. / remember that paper was
good enough for YOU and me when We
were IN The fed; gold was kept for he
bCndhOlder
The old Republican ship has been sur
pr.Sed by pirates. They control the en-
gines and the rudder. They can drive
her where they please. While they
may deceive some OF the old crew as to
their character for a while, they will
make YOU walk the plank when they get
ready.
Three months ago these same pirates
were abusing Major Mckinley like /
I p.ckpocket Now how they love him
Ill didn't think they had captured the
Major Is we'll as the ship. l might still
vC,e for The Major, for l esteem him as
"a man. But these shyiocks always get
their pound of flesh. If they haven't
got the Major in irons he is in bonds 10
their platform They always control