New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-09-21
MR. BRYiN'S TRICKS UPON SILVER.

Mr. BRYAN Is still talking as II entirely UNA
ware that his ceascless emission OF speeches.
which contain nothing new and nothing calcu-
lated 10 convince anybody has been doing him
harm every day for months Governor Mchin-
lev is gaining every day. as other candidates
have gained. by frank exposition OF their opn-
ions on pending topics. and no one has achieved
greater success in winning the convictions OF
men bv his strong and terse arguments than
Mckinley himself Apparently Bryan hopes 10
keep up by much talking but there are speeches.
and speeches.
The only attempt he has made at argument Tor
some weeks dscloses again the tricky dishonesty
of his whole reasoning on the silver question
To a Southern audience he says that II the Sill
vcr-mine owner gets only fifty;three-cent dollars
for his bullion he will gain no more than he does
now: but If he gets one hundred-cent dollars for
his bullion the people will get no worse dollars
than they do now This shuffling Is discrediiable
in n candidate for any high office Mr.. Bryan
knows that the standard silver dollar Is today
worth 100 cents merely because a pledge
of Government to maintain the parity OF It's
coins. embodied in the Republican act OF 1870
insures the acceptance of silver dollars as the
representatives of gold. He knows that free
coinage would take away instantly the POSSIBLE
ity of keeping that pledge. and his declarations
show that he If President. would not try to
keen II. What would then be the value of the
silver dollar?
Mr. Bryan Is so tricky and has so little intel
lectnal self-respect that he stOops TO represent
the paper note as the dollar which it promises
to paw Silver bullion would undoubtedly be
worth 100 cents per ounce, and standard dollars
would be worth 100 cents, in the legatender
paper. which is now, but then would not be-
equivalent to the gold It promises. But Mr.
BRYAN knows perfectly well that the paper would
then be redeemable in standard silver dollars
and that gold would command premium, so
that the paper and the silver dollars would be
worth less than 100 cents in gold That Is ex-
actly what he has been promising his Populist
friends at the West-a cheaper dollar, no longer
having the alleged inflated buying power put
into It by the disuse of silver. Then if the bull
ion holders could get legal-tender dollars for
silver. Mr. Bryan pretends at the East that they
would get dollars worth 100 cents. but at the
same time he promises his Western adherents
that those dollars shall not have as much pur-
chasing power as a gold dollar or the legal tender
has now The paper and the standard silver
dollar would inevitably fall in value together,
and no man can say how much.
If the PAPER and silver dollar should retain
the same buying power which the gold ana the
legal-tender dollar now have. the silver miner
would plumber the people to the extent OF about
81 cents actual value on every ounce. or on G',-
800 900 ounces, the quantity produced in a re-
cent wear. over S3S0O00OO a year. But If the
paper and silver dollar should come 10 have no
greater purchasing power than the standard dot
lar containing 81 1-34 grains of silver would now
have without the Government pledge. the NINE
owner would gain nothing. as The Tribune has
tried TO make him understand. but would really
lose because the mistaken rotion that the legal
tender paper obtainable for bullion would retain
It's purchasing power would certainly stimulate
greater increase in production Of silver, and
thus would probably depress the price much
further. Mr. Bryan is not candid enough 10 tell
anybody which he thinks would happen. But
his arguments at the East imply that he thinks
silver bullion would rise 10 par in gold. so that
every ounce would be worth 81 294 in gold which
would rob the people for the benefit of mine
owners At the same time his arguments at the
West imply that he believes the paper would
fall TO the bullion value of the silver dollar,
thereby robbing every laborer Of part Of his
wages and every deposltOr or other investor Of
part OF his savings If he were in the least
worthy Of high honor or fit to hold the powers
of a high office he would realize that he could
not he respected by anybody without declaring
| which Of the two results he expects and intends
TO reach by free coinage Of silver