Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1896-08-13


the two-dollar dollar of Wall street and
Lombard street. [Applause1
About 1873 Germany demonetized silver,
and the years preceding 1873 were .he years
of Germ any's greatest glory AMI her great
est power. Following upon that France
demonetized it; following upon that some
other European nation. and then America.
demonetiZed it In turn. Why was Il done?
Were the people of this country ever ap-
pealed to to strike down tbs silver money:
Was 1t because of the producer. the owner
of the factory. the tiller of the soil. the
laborer in the shop? No, it was done In
obedience to that same power which IN
dermined the foundations of ltome which
has destroyed every civilization of the
past: which is seeking to destroy this
civilization for its own personal end-tiat
power which knows no law, no religion. no
politics. no policy excepting to accumulate
the dollars. 1t was done by the great
creditor classes of the world who had
gained control of all the older nations of
the earth and saw in this .cherne way to
obtain two dollars worth for every dol
lars worth of indebtedness that the toll
ing masses of the earth were bound to
pay. lApplause.1
Law of 1873 Discussed.
Following close upon the legislation OF
these European nations came the leGisla-
ton OF Amsrics-not legislation ever sub
mitted 70 the American people, not a Jaw
which was provided in the open light OF
day, not law that silver should not be
taken. but an act of some so or 20 sections.
hereafter gold was to be the legal money
of the United States. But it was not strick-
en- down then alone. 1t was a long time
before the American people knew it; and
in 1878 a republican congress and senate
alike passed by majority and then passed
by a tWo-thirds majority over the presi-
dents veto. an act providing that from
81, 900 to 100000 per month should be
coined. Neither was that the end. In 1890
another act was passed which provided
that silver should be taken and silver GER
tiicateS issued in their place.
FIuctuation in Values.
I'm one breath Senator Thurston told
you that the reconciliation of silver would
not raise the price of wheat and in the
next that 1T would make so cents dollar.
and do not see how the two statements
can go together. Let us look at those
two statements together as matter OF
philosophy. 1t has been presumed over
and over again that dollar means a gold
dollar. This is not true. dollar has
meant gold dollar silver dollar alike.
1t is claimed that a dollar should be worth
only dollar; that you cannot measure
everything in dollar, but should measure
it in a gold and silver dollar. They assume
that gold has huctuated, and that there
fore the silver dollar is worth only 90 cents
to-day. Now, let US see. How will you de-
| terrnine whether gold fluctuates or not?
If you say % grains of gold is a dollar, then
| it does not fluctuate. But you can tell
whether % grains Of gold fuctuates by
measuring that % grains of gold in wheat
! in oats, in cheese. in labor, in land, in sill
yer in other commodities of the earth
| That is the only way in which to tell
! whether it fluctuateS or not.
1.-THE history of the world. not only dur
| ing the last ten years, but during the last
hundred years, shows that silver has Huc-
tuated little and probably less in value
than gold. The production of gold in the
| last 90 years has been as much or more
than the production OF silver, in dollars
measured at sixteen to one, all over the
| world. The production of silver in the past
has never outrun the production of gold,
and when silver was stricken down and
| when one-half the worlds money was
| bound to do all the worlds work, there
| could be no other result than that one
half should greatly increase in value, and
| that is what it did. In striking down Sill
! yer and compelling gold to do the WORK
alone you nearly doubled the purcha SING
power of gold, and 20 provided by an I'M
| righteous and unholy contract. conceived
by men with interested motives. you con-
| tracted that every man who owes dollar 8
| worth of debts bring two dollars 10 pay
] them with.
| I'VE are not here asking you to repudiate.
| We say to you that the dollars IN when
| the obligations were made are good enough
| for the creditor to take. We say TO you
| that at this price these bonds and mort
ages and debts were purchased; we Will
paw that price. You may take your pound
! of flesh. but in the name of American in
dependence and manhood you must nos
| shed a drop of blood
Mexican Dollars Worth.
| eve have hearQ some tdlk OI the AleAlCdIi
| dollar The Mexican dollar Is worth less
than the American dollar and 1t does con-
| tain more silver, and that is the iniquity of
it. Now let us meet this thing Just eX-
| actIv as it is The value of a thing depends
| on its use If corn were a fixed quantity
| IKE silver, and the people would resolve
| not to feed corn to horses, but only to cat
| tle it would be worth less because the
| market would be less. Money being fixed
| quantity silver being fixed quantity, when
| the nations of the C.lrth conspire to debase
| it 1t could not help being worth less and
| is worth less than gold to-day. But the
| difference has come about in two ways;
| by the depreciation o. silver and tho appre-
| citation of gold both alike. Our silver dol
| lars to-day are payable in gold, and that Is
| the reason they are worth 100 cents. lap
| pIause cheers and 1aughter.1 The biipdeSt
| person is he who sees half a truth or one
| side of it. iLaughter.l. That is all you peo-
ple have seen on that question.
J Now 1 will say it again, and Will not
say It, but will explain it in kindergarten
| way If 1 can. Laughter and applause.
! The reason an American silver dollar Is
worth a dollar in gold is because 1t Is re-
| deemable in gold. Now the silver man who
| knows his business admits that the same
] as gold man. But that is not all he knows
/ that is the difference. The reason a Next
| can silver dollar is not worth as much as
| an American gold dollar is because 1t Is
redeemab BILE in gold. The demonetiza tior
| of silver made gold bullion worth more: il
made silver bullion worth less. There is
| no question about that The remonetizG-
| ton of silver would make silver bullion
| worth more and gold bullion worth less