The Forrest City times. [volume] (Forrest City, Ark.) 1871-1919, 1896-08-21
60 who deny tne ability of the Un,,ed

sizes to maintain the parity between gold
silver at AID h pot te Me egs ratio WITH
VT the opening of our minis will reduce
ne TO a silver basis and raise gold TO a
usnSi,Im 1t is no reflection upon our sis
p republic to remind our people that the
fYeTnited States is much greater than Mexico
in area in p absTrd I To asseT bs
sftriie1 States is not able to do anything
1bich Mexico has failed TO accomplish.
Tbe one thing necessary in order 10
r,aintain the parity is to furnish demand
nreat enough to utilize all the silver which
I'M come to the minis That Mexico failed
W 40 this is not proof that the United
States would also fail. In response to the
srSument that improved machinery has
Ie sSan said it sufficed to say that the same
- ;rue of the production of gold, and not
withstanding that gold has risen in value
.rguments Against silver Answered
He replied in detail to numerous argu-
,ants against silver. If 1t is asserted he
said. that the free coinage of silver is in
Tended only for the benefit of the mine
euners II must be remembered that FREQ
Coinage cannot restore to the mine owners
any more than decentralization took away;
and n must also be remembered that the
iaee which the characterization of silver has
brought to the mine owners Is insignif-
cant compared to the loss which this poll
~ has brought to the rest of the people
Tbe restoration of silver will bring to the
,5ople generally many times as much adj
frsntage as the mine owners can obtain
rom t. While it is not the purpose of free
aoinage to specially aid any particular class
vet those who believe that the restoration
IF silver is needed by the whole people
should not be deferred because an incl
dental benefit will come to the mine owner
The erection Of forts the deepening of
barbors the improvement of rivers, the
erection of public buildings-all these con-
fer Incidental benefits upon individuals and
Communities. and yet these incidental benz
efits do not deter us from making appropri-
atoms for these purposes whenever such
appropriations are necessary for the public
good.
Debtor Should Have the Option.
If there are two kinds of money ehe op-
ton must rest either with the debtor or
rights are equal, we must look at the inter-
ests of society in general In order to de-
given. Under the bimetall1c system gold
and silver are linked together by law at a
fixed ratio, and any person or persons own
The same converted into full legal tender.
II the creditor has the right to choose
the metal in which payment shall be made
il is reasonable to suppose that he will
require the debtor to pay in the dearer
betWeen the bullion values of the metals
This new demand created for the dearer
metal VIII make that metal dearer still.
metal will make that metal cheaper still
If on the other hand, the debtor exercises
he will pay In the cheaper metal If one may
be perceptibly, cheaper than the other. but
" at the ratio fixed by law provided The
metal will raise its price, while the lessened
demand for the dearer metal will lower its
In other words. when the creditor has
the option, the metals are drawn apart:
whereas, when the debtor has the option.
the metals are held together approximate
demand created Is sufficient to absorb all
ciety is, therefore, Interested In having
the option exercised by the debtor
The right of the debtor TO choose the
coin in which payment shall be made ex-
lends to obligations due from the govern
ment as well as to contracts between in
dividuals. A government obligation is
simply a debt due from all the people to
justify policy which makes the interests
ton superior to the rights OF the many
who must be taxed TO pay 1t. When, prior
never ' contended that national rsu honor M re
ateas Il silvsr and the S&Efh@sa! Ss
pressiy ASSORTED the right Of the I'll Tnited
States, to redeem coin obligations in stand
Upon this subject the Chicago platform
reads reads We are opposed to the policy and
the obligations OF the United States the
Pt0n reseryed by law to the
silver coin or gold COIN"
Cause of the Drain on the Reserve.
1t is constantly assumed by some that
the United States notes. commonly called
greeenba backs and the , treasury notes is
for the recent drain upon the gold re-
serve, but this assumption is entirely with
ton Mr. EVAN auoeaP Pp 9 Of shs Of
Secretary Carlisle before the committee
on on h appropriations. January q. 1895. in
reserving to the government at the be-
ginning OF resumption the. option Of re-
had BEEN or adopted sysF he Its hoSg it
would have worked beneficially. But the
secretaries Of the treasury. from the be-
ginning Of resumption, had pursued poll
cy OF redeeming In gold or silver, at the
option OF the holder of the paper and II
any secretary had afterward attempted
10 change the policy and force silver upon
man who wanted gold and gold upon a
man who wanted silver his Judgment was
mat Il would have been very disastrous.
This, Mr. Bryan argued, showed that the
FAULT does not lie with the greenbacks
and treasury notes. but rather with the
rshs which sSoed se1e bee 10
exercised for the protection of the inter
ests OF the people. If the government
banks the necessity of furnishing coin re-
demption the banks would exercise the
o 6igbnt to furnish either gold or silver In
ercise II now
The argument that a silver dollar Is
lore, silver is less convenient to carry in
large quantities, is. he said, completely an
sWered by the silver certificate, which is as
easily carried as the gold certificate, or
any other kind of paper money. There
was much elaboration and illustration in
The points presented in this part of MIR.
Bryan's speech.
When Gold Goes Abroad
In answer to the charge that gold win
go abroad it must be remembered that no
goid can leave this country until the owner
OF the gold receives something In return
FOR it which he would rather have. In
t 1ther words, when gold leaves the country
Ihose who formerly owned II will be bene-
nted. There is no process by which we
can be compelled to part with our gold