Kansas City daily journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1892-1897, 1896-08-28
thoughtless it may have been in some
measure misleading.
Bryan .ArRumeDt" RiddIed.


Bryan ..Argument" Riddled.
"Then the repeated declaration Of Mr..
Bryan that everybody admitted that bimet-
allism was a good thing: that there Is no
debate on that subject. and that the debate
OF the campaign has come down TO TINS
fine point: The Republicans say that We
cannot have this good thing without the
consent of England. and We say we can
have II ourselves and he has endea'oreu
to pivot this great campaign with It's ire
mendous issues upon that pirhole. zap
plause) 1900.
We hear a great deal about the great
resources and wealth and power OF TINS
country. and l do not allow anybody to go
beyond my appreciation of them; but what
is the use of talking about all thaI "heH
you do not propose to put this wealth ana
power and Influence behind the silver dol
lar at all? (Applause.l
LAS things are now, the silver dollars
that we have are supported by the govern
ment. and the government that Supports pn L.
this silver bullion has issued these dol!ars
on its own account-not for the mine oM
er-and it has pledged its sacred noIoi -
would make every one of these silver dol
lars as good a gold dollar. (Great ap-
piause). And that is a powerful suppor1t.
Without ii, disparity between these HetalS
would at once show itself in the markets,
and there would be some sense in the taik
which our Populistic friends induiss III
when they speak of the power of this gov
ernment if they propose to put thls power
behind their free coinage. But they 90 not. not
They propose that the man VINO utS .Ss
silver out of the mines may bring IL 10 the
mint and have ii stamped and handed oack
to him dollar, the government havihs
no responsibility about it. Ihese ;,ie,, men
would reject with contempt the proposition
that free coinage was to come Win d
pledge behalf of the government 10
maintain the parity of the two doiiafs.
(Applause)
What Uncle Sam Can't Do.
This feeling is well adapted to touch
that prejudice against England which We
people have, but can we do this thing our,
selves? 1t is not question whether we VIII
do 1t or ask somebody's consent Whether
We may. or ask the cooperation OF some
body. Not at all. l will tell you what this
money unit. 1t can declare by law what
shall be the relative value of an ounce OF
gold and an ounce of silver. but IL cannot
/ make that last declaration good. Gap
plause)
1T is unquestionably fully within the
power of this government to bring TINS
country to silver basis by coming silver
dollars and making them legal tender. We
can do that. This government says you
shall take one of those dollars. in discharge
of any debt owing to you, for dollar;
notwithstanding you may have loaned gold
dollars, but it cannot say, and enforce its
decree, even if you should call out the
regular army and navy and muster all our
great modern ships. and add the militia:
and put William ]. Bryan in command OF
them-it cannot enforce the decree that one
ounce of gold is the equivalent of sixteen
cheers) Not only that, not France and
England and Germany can do that unless
the markets respond. Applause) Why?
! You may make me take a silver dollar
! 1or debt; but If have bought my goods
| at gold prices you cannot make me give
as many yards of cloth for silver dol
! lar as have been in the habit of giving
, for a gold one. Applause and cheers) If
! have gold dollar in this hand and a
silver silver one in in the other and you declare
! dollar to bullion broker and get two
silver dollars for it. know it is a lie.
! Great applause and cheers) If I have
I nothing but a gold dollar and sugar is
| twenty pounds for dollar. I will not give
that gold dollar for twenty pounds OF
sugar. will take it around to broker
and get two silver dollars for il. and get
the twenty pounds of sugar and have one
silver dollar left. Gaughter1
| Trade Fixes the Ratio.
T. $50 it is, my friends. We can of our.
! selves. of our own wisdom, declare the unit
cannot make sixteen ounces of silver equal
| to one ounce of gold unless it is. Gap
plause) And it is not unless the merchants
take it at that rate That is where all this
merchant: it is the man who exchanges
deals in these s + hngs h that xes
value he fixes the gold dollar will go back
to the gold vault and the gold will go out
n this h these sent
men say, Why. did not we win the battle
| at Bunker HIP Naughtero Did not We
| The, logic -f ahese gentlemen-if may
| use such a term in connection with such
| these things and establish it's political in
| dependence can also be financially anG
| commercially free. 1t cannot be free of the
| laws Of trade. Applause.) They can say tha
ten muskrat skins are equal to one beaver
| skin but that doesn't make 1t so; the ful
trader fixes that question. applause ant
laughter)
| friends, in the case of free silver, what is
| the financial and moral equivalent of dec
laration that 80 cent pieces are dollars
| They might just as we'll pass a law that 81
cents is a dollar. That would not make i
so would It? But 1t would be legal dol
lar. But 1t would not buy a dollars worth
what is the effect Of that? The mer
chant would take care of himself; A mar
keeps a store down here on Broadway ane
the law Is going into operation Tonight
He summons all his clerks and buys 2
cents worth of pencils, and before he open:
his store in the morning. he has marked w
his goods to the new scale. He can do al
that. but there are great numbers OF peo
pie, numberless people, who enlist our in
terest. and some OF them enklndie ou'
sympathies, who cannot use the pencil.
Whom Free Silver Would Injure.
"Take the workingman. He cannot 81
to the payroll with pencil and mark j
| up He has to consult somebody. He ha:
| to enter into an agreement. He has go
| to get some other mans consent pe1ore m
| can mark up his wages.
"Then there is the pensioner, those VIII
are receiving pensions from this government
for gallant deeds done in war. and other
for the loss of loved ones. He cannot ia X
his pension certificate and when 1t read
IS, make 1t read SIG. He must wait for a.
| appeal to congress, and a congress that
Populistic in character would be unsympa
thetic. (Applause) He must make a
appeal to congress to have his pensiol
made equal. What can the depositors Il
our savings banks, this great company o
widows and orphans. the people of sma
means who are putting by few pennie
against hard time in life, what can the
do when this change comes? Can they TAX
their bank pass book and where it says 81
write 500. Not at all.
''Take the men who have life insurance
A man has providently taken out polio.
that his widow and children might no
come to want when the bread winnin
hand was stricken in death-can they. whe
the policy reads 5000, make 1t $4,000? Ca
the managers of these institutions make
erces integrity. (Applause) Howeve
honest the president of a savings ban
may be. however full of sympathy presi
dent of life association may be. he
| this company are scaled down to 50-cen
dollars We loaned dollars that were wort
| 100 cents. but we are now being paid i
the reduced dollars. Although the integrit
revolts against it. our honesty is coerce
and we must pay the widow half (Ar
plause)
: Debnsed Currency and Labor.
my friends. these men surely do no
; contemplate the irretrievable and extensiv
character of the disaster and disturbanc
! and disruption which they are propOsin
for all of us in all our business affair: