People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1896-09-17

DeIlocIduc Ndhuludte Tor Chief Justice OF
the restoration Of silver coinage For
tunately there were enough patriotic men.
or perhaps more correctly speaking, fright
ehed men, IN the Republican party 10 pass
the bill with the assistance OF Democratic
members Of Congress over the Presidents
veto. This law continued In force until
l6B when IL was superseded by the silver
purchase law about which so much has In
recent years been said.
:. When the Bland law OF 1873 was under
discussion In Congress the arguments OF
Over-production and disaster, which are
now made, in the event OF the restoration
OF silver coinage. were then made.
. We are in this year Of 1896, but repeating
the discussions OF 1876 and lS1s we are
threshing over old straw, as Il were. II
was then said that silver coinage would
Drive gold out OF circulation. Ii was then
said mat SILVER could not be maintained at
a parity OF money value with gold because
the money masters Of the world would not
recognize us value except for commodity
purposes. IL was then said that its first
e1ect.Ve mission would be to 20 out in
the country and cheat the laborers Of the
land. In short, then, as now, every epithet
OF incorporate speech, every sophistry Of
iilOglcal reason, every Misrepresentation Of
lne Nenal newspaper press were directed
against the champions Of silver coinage and
those who demanded that the peoples
rights should be taken into account.
IN nose days as now every one who
would pnlloSophize about the Just relations
Oh men IN the social state was denounced
a. communist; every one who would nit
lgate the hardships OF the debtor condition
was mathematical as a repudationst. and
every one who disputed the divine right OF
capital to rule was indicted as an Anarch-
ISL, while every pin-headed mortgage fore
closure lawyer and every pumpkin-brained
newspaper editor in the land We'd with all
the others In stigmatizing the mere advo-
Gates OF fiscal reform and old-time bimetal-
Tic theory In terms OF blackguardism and
reproach. What followed?
assert that which every man
and woman OF older age well re-
members as fact that an I'M
eXampled period of unremunerative
prices for labor and labor products,
OF general contentment and prosperity pre-
vailed, until the money masters Of the
world became able by arts and practices
only partially supported by the legislation
OF this country, more largely supported by
the legislation Of other countries, to bring
on, as they did during the closing years OF
the last decade, conditions of distress among
the people.
An Argument for BimetaIllsm.
ut would seem like a burden upon the
patience and almost an insult TO the in
telligence az the people TO go again over
the old arguments In favor OF bimetallism
which were adduced so fully and forcibly
In the latter '1Os. to reply to the misstate-
ments and expose the fallacies Of the gold
monometallists Of that period. 1t seems,
however, 10 be required by some and In
Difference to them l will take up the old
time thread OF discussion anew.
1T Is claimed that the reason for silver
decentralization and the reasons against its
reconciliation are the vast over-production
Of the white metal. which began 10 occur
concurrently with or slightly preceding the
year Of the decentralization act Of 1873. and
which over-production, It is claimed has
in the years since, reached the aggregate
OF an enormous sum.
There has been no such over-productlon
OF silver. and none was threatened In 1873.
In that year silver dollars were at an aver
age premium over gold dollars in the mar
kets OF the world Of nearly one-half a
cent. In the years Immediately preceding
they commanded a still greater premium
over gold. But yielding TO the effect Of the
decentralization act Of Germany In 1871 they
began TO decline in money value There
Is no such oyer-production, and that there
Is not Is evidenced by the fact that not a
nation on the globe but what supplements
its circulating and reserve stock and silver
by issue OF paper m0ney-paper money not
resting upon coin as a base Of equal value
and amount, but paper money that does not
represent a like amount OF money 8, bred
In vaults. Until this universal practice OF
Issuing paper money In excess OF coin, not
as a representative of coin, but in excess
OF 1t and in addition TO II, has ceased there
can be said to be no over-production OF
either OF the precious metals for coinage
purposes.
How much Of silver and of gold per
capita DO you suppose we have in this
country? The statistics give the per capita
circulation for the year Of gold at a little
over 50 and Of silver at little over 50.
That Is not the production OF recent years,
but Il Is the production distributed per
capita to the people Of the United States Of
all the ages from the beginning OF time
down 10 the year named-a little more than
y OF silver for money purposes per head.
In other words the labor Of the countless
millions who have delved in the mines and
brought the precious metals to the light Of
day and coined them into instruments for
the use and happiness OF mankind during
the entire history OF the world has given TO
each man, woman and child in this country
only ~ OF silver for money purposes. MIL
lions upon millions, billions, ! might better
say. OF the precious metals that have been
mined and coined have been lost In the
bottom OF the sea, along the highways and
In the forests: have been hid by misers,
stored away In secluded places and for
gotten; used In the making OF jewelry and
plate, consumed in dentistry and in null
titudinous arts, and there has been left TO
US with which to carry on the business OF
this country and our share OF the business
OF the world vnly - per head.
Gold Product Compared with Silver.
But the silver Of the world relatively 10
gold was not increasing and has not in
creased, except in the United States. II is
true that II has Increased in the United
States during the past few years relatively
TO the gold product OF the United States,
but elsewhere in the world II has decreased,
so that the relative proportions OF produc-
ton have not changed except to change
slightly in the direction of a gold increase
In recent years. II reality gold has been
for nearly 100 years increasing in production
relatively TO silver. The table OF the worlds
production Of gold and silver since the dis
covery Of America down to 1879, which you
will find In the report Of the director Of
the mint for 1896. and which also have
hafora In ~ ard Cvr1n