The midland journal., 1896-07-03
Wheat and Silver.

a bountiful wheat crop harvested the
present season, and the spectators have
already commenced pounding down the
price. There is no division in sentiment
among farmers in their desire to market
their wheat at paying price, something
they have not done for several years.
1t is among the possibilities that farmers
may get dollar bushel for the present
crop Of wheat. Much depends on how
they vote at the coming election. Ifthey
are beguiled to cast enough votes for
Mckinley to elect him, there is not any
thing surer in the future than that the
present low range of prices for farm pro-
ducts will continue, with prospect of
still further drop. If, on the other hand,
the silver cause triunphs, there is the
brightest prospect that wheat will touch
the dollar mark next spring.
The defeat of the republican party at
the polls in November carries with it
President and both houses of congress in
favor of the reconciliation of silver.
Such a result would be followed by an
extra session of congress, to assemble i'll
April or May next, with the passage of a
free coinage bill Before that result could
take place it would have been anticipated
and the price of bullion silver would reach
the coin value of the metal. The whole
world, as soon as the defeat of Mckinley
was flashed under the ocean, would know
that it meant the reconciliation of silver,
and an immediate rise would take place
throughout the world in the price of that
metal. When silver could not be pur-
chased in this country for less than its
coin value, not one bushel of wheat could
be laid down in Liverpool for less than
the cost of an ounce of silver in gold.
A bushel of wheat costs an ounce of
silver in India, Russia, Argentina, less the
cost of transportation to Liverpool, and
competition with those countries would
be cut off at a price less than the price of
silver in America.
The United States produces forty per
cent or more of the silver product of the
world, and the American continent pro-
duces more than three e-fourths of the sill
yer of the entire world, the continents of
Europe, Asia and Africa producing less
than fifty millions all told, which is not
nearly sufficient to supply the demand for
silver in those countries, hence they are
compelled to seek supply of the white
metal on the American continent.
These are the reasons why silver must
go up to coin price when the mints of the
United States are opened to free coinage,
and the election of silver President and
congress means reconciliation. and the
whole world knows that fact, and with
the opening of our mints wheat will fol-
low mp the price of silver as it has fallen
with it in the last twenty years. The
tables show the two, wheat and silver,
have kept together-an ounce of silver
and bushe1 of wheat have been very
nearly the same price in gold through all
these years, falling and rising together as
the price varied, The triumph of the
silver ticket this fall means much more
than the rise in the price of wheat. 1t
would mean a general rise i'll values all
along the line and the revival of business
among the laboring producing classes,
the farmers, mechanics, manufacturers,
merchants, miners, but blow to the
gold ring class-the stock gamblers and
money exploiters generally. This class
of non producers who add not one cent to
the wealth of the country are styled the
business" (?) class by their plutocratic,
subsidized press.
Working men, these are facts; logical,
unrefutable facts. If you want the same
weary, heart breaking distress to con-
tinue voting for and electing Mckinley,
Mark Hanna's man, the universal gold
bugs man, will be certain to insure their
continuance. But if silver candidate is
elected all that we have foreshadowed is
sure to be realized. More money is what
is wanted to start business and make
brighter homes in this broad land, and
nothing else will do it. Tariffs will not,
because tariffs will not add one cent more
to the amount of currency in the country.
Business dropped down under the
Mckinley tariff and has continued to fail
under the present tariff. The Mckinley
tariff averaged AZ per cent duty. The
present Wilson tariff averages al per cent,
the average difference between them is
per cent, and they are the two highest
tariffs i'll the history of the United
States. Does any sensible man need
stronger evidence that tariffs cannot help
the present conditions to become better
Higher tariff means higher prices and
people haven't money to buy at the
present low prices.