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

I
mate the coin In the United States includ-
! ing bullion In the Treasury. In the wear
ISIS, when the Bland silver act was passed.
at Ne2oo,oo. II increased In 1879 10 $751;
eoVoO. In 1850 to 1894, 10000. and from that
on to 1884. about the time that the raid upon
the peoples treasury OF which | spoke. was
begun II had increased to s., 81, 10000. This
state. was the coin that was in circulation
and In existence In this country. To as
certain how much Of this was gold we have
only to subtract the total silver coinage
up 10 the last mentioned date-lS94-whlch
according TO Republican authority. the sta
tistics OF which do not have at hand. was
little over 800. 900 0o0 from the last men
TONED aggregate OF N,252.cOO0o0 and we
have as the remainder over 500, 90 OF
gold in the United States in 1885, as COM
pared TO tlO2 10000 OF both gold and silver
In lsS when the silver reconciliation law
was enacted.
Instead OF driving gold away, II can with
equal truth be said TO have invited gold
Certainly gold has come and has abided
with US through all these years OF silver
coinage. IL you account is as nothing as a
simple coincident. It disproves effectually
the claim that silver has driven II away.
But suppose II should go away? Something
OF equal value would have TO be surrendered
for IT, Some Indebtedness due from us TO
Europe would have TO be given up by them
or something Of theirs which we needed
]
when they get our gold what would they do
with IL? Put II out OF circulation? Hide II
away or send II back TO US In purchase OF
something OF ours which they would need
to buy? PROFESSIONALLY the last.
We are the greatest producing and ex-
porting nation on the globe The countries
OF Europe largely depend upon our agricul-
tural products for their daily bread.
a Few Words on the Tariff.
Il have heard the claim made that under
the operation OF the Wilson tariff law as
compared with the preceding Mckinley law
the balance OF trade was running largely
against US and in favor Of the other coun-
tries. This is another bare-faced and i'm
pudent falsehood. II Is not my purpose TO
discuss the question Of tariff. but | simply
remark that the statistics published yearly
by the government In the form Of what Is
called the statistical abstract, and which
are also published monthly In the Bankers
| Magazine, show that with the close OF the
! fiscal year July /, 1896, the balance OF trade
| in our favor aggregated for the three years
I past the amount OF nearly 100000 and
Of this enormous aggregate the United
Kingdom OF England, Ireland, Scotland and
| Wales were our debtors 10 the extent Of
more than one-half. The States OF the
| Upper Mississippi valley. including its
| great tributaries Of the Ohio and Missouri,
| comprise nearly the entire area OF corn
| producing country of the globe. and this
means meat-producing countries as well. III
| Europe ever gets our gold she will speedily
| be compelled to return II In payment for the
very necessities OF her daily life.
But Ii Is stated that silver can not be
maintained at parity with gold except by
| estimating the money value OF silver al It's
| commodity price. OF all the SOO,WO,0O OF
silver money In the United States not one
but is now and always has been at parity
OF money value with gold. II will buy as
| much as any gold dollar will. What has
| put II and maintains II upon this parity or
| equality with gold in money value and pur-
chasing ability? II is the sustaining power
OF its legal tender quality, and absolutely
nothing else There is no law making silver
| redeemable in gold There is no law which
rests the silver circulation upon a golden
base. But there Is a law that every dollar
Of this vast volume Of silver money shall
be received at its face value in payment OF
obligations due TO the government. due TO
the various States and TO the various cities
Counties and other municipalities thereof
and there is law that every dollar OF II
can be used by individuals In the discharge
Of any obligation they may owe to other
individuals, except where private contract
between such individuals directs to the con-
trary. That law maintains silver upon
parity with gold, maintains II fully, and
always WILL
silver Dollars Good Mt Home,
"But you say you want a dollar that Is
good in Europe. and that our silver dollars
are only good In Europe at their commodity
and not at their money value. ] answer
you by asking you what use you have for
dollar that is good in Europe? My dear
sir, you are one OF the plain, common,
| every day American citizens. You never
will be In Europe TO use dollar OF money
there. Your widest dreams Of future
wealth and ease have never carried you
across the briny deep TO the shady summer
81 H.. An..t..
German watering spas. Neither do you
have any exchanges with the people OF
Europe, nor are any effected by others in
your interest.
you consume nothing that comes from
Europe, and which, therefore. has to be
paid in dollars that are good In Europe.
You wear the wool OF American sheep and
the cotton OF the plantations Of the South.
You consume bread that is harvested and
meat that Is fattened I'm this great Missouri
valley. Your farming utensils and all the
machinery or appliances Of whatsoever kind
they may be, necessary TO you in your daily
labor, are Of American manufacture and
always will be. You have no more use for
dollar that is good In Europe than has
the man In the moon.
1T Is estimated that OF the entire volume
Of commercial transactions carried on by
the people of this country more than g5
per cent are entirely among themselves,
OF foreign nations. Is 1t necessary, then,
for you TO adjust your financial system TO
suit the caprice and humOr the sel6shness
Of the people with whom you transact only
per cent OF your business? / make this
! assertion without the fear of being contra
dicted by any merchant or other business
man VINO hears me, that of the entire
amount OF goods exposed for retail sale in
| this city, and you may include them all.
clothing, hats, caps, boots and shoes, hard
ware, dry goods, and wet goods too, gro
ceries and drugs, not per cent Of them in
value are Of foreign importation. will
| state the proportion as even less than that
II there be on the shelves OF the merchants
OF this city other than the wholesale mer-
chants, a million dollars OF goods-there
may be more than that. but use those
| figures for the purpose of the statement.
not 10 exceed $25,OO OF them came from
| foreign countries, and II $500 from for
eign countries, not $1,000 came from the
gold standard countries Of Europe but the
| greater proportion came from countries
using not even bimetallic, but a single
| silver standard. Your tea comes from
emma and Japan, silver standard countries.
| your coffee comes from Mexico, Brazil
venezuela, the Central and South American
| States. every one Of them silver Standard
| countries, until recently. as / have read
the little republics Of Chill and Costa Rica
under the pressure, no doubt. OF their En-
/ NiDNANpAst hdht duoultu the gold
standard.
We Need No Dollar Good in Europe.
ut is not extravaganza to say that Eu-
rope might be sunk In the bottom OF the
sea, blOtted from the face OF the globe. ana
| the effect Of its loss upon the daily lives
/ OF the American people would not be felt.
| We could build around us and our sister
/ republic OF Mexico and the Central Ameri-
can states and the West Indies an !nsur-
mOuntable wall-isolate ourselves from the
balance Of the world-and live SO far al
| clothing. food and all OF the luxuries and
dellcacies OF life are concerned, absolutely
| 70 ourselves. We need no dollar good in
7 Europe, or good any place else than the
| United States Of America.
THE only use which We have for a dol
| lar good In Europe Is In discharge Of such
/ Of our obligations held by European cred
| itors as are payable in gold. How much
| these may amount TO. and what their pro-
| portion may be TO debts payable in legal
| tender money generally, can not be told:
perhaps large sum, but by no means great
when compared TO the aggregate, because
until IN recent years II did not become fash
| ionable TO demand and execute such oblI-
| cations. But Of late years the creditors OF
| our railroads and other large institutions.
/ after first wrecking them 10 squeeze out
! the holders OF small interests and reorgan-
\ izing them with an additional amount OF
water In their stock and fiction In the con-
sideratiOn OF their bonds. have made their
I NWfF ill., II l..