The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1896-07-17

- - ~ tsAArus OF tdSv.s LuIOWln9 away the OlSs
guises, the British gold standard Do not ask
rs, tten. to join them in any OF their PROPOSE
lions Leastof q l ask us tn join then upon
Sae money question aud fight a sham battle
ovsr settled tariff. for the mo icy question is
the paramount issue before the Americ IN p5o-
pls AMI 1T involves true Americanism. more
than any economic issue that ever was pre-.
sented at a Presidential election.
Inc existing gold standard. whence como
Tue IDEA that we ne upon it? In the Demo-
cratic platform OF 1892 the promise to hold both
gold and silver was held forth. 1t has been not
from the last enactment of Congress on the
subject which in repeating the Sherman law
pledged the whole country to the continuance
OF the double Standard; not from any statute
whatsoever now in fore in the United States.
NO We are not upon any gold standard, but
we havc'a disordered and miscellaneous curren-
cics OF nine varieties. three metals and six
paper. the product for the most part Of Repub-
llcan legislation, rendered worse by the treas uTy
practices begun by Republican secretaries and
unfortunate " copied by their Democratic sue,
cessors. tApplausc.)
Present Status of silver.
Then consider tn, Sc facts gentle men: Tho
Federal, State and municipal taxes in this
country are assessed aud paid by the standard
OF The whole mass of money in circulation.
NO authority has ever been conferred by Con-
gress Tor the issue of any bonds payable in
gold, but distinctly refused. The specie ro-
sumption of 1875 gave the surplus revenue in
the treasury, not gold only. as the money Of
redemption. Provision was mado by the
Bland-Allison act of 1875 to add to our circu-
latlon some $50 900. 0J0 of standard sill yer
money, or paper based upon it; and all that
mass OF silver money is sustained ct parity
with gold by nothing whatever on earth but
thu silver in it. aud the legal tender functions
impaired to it b. law, (Applaus We have
NJ outstanding obligation in the United
States except the small sum Of ST., J 1000 of
gold certihca ties. which are specifically paya-
bic i'll gold, and they. of cour.e. should be so
PAID. All OF our specie obligations are paya.
bic IN coin. which means silver or gold at the
government option. or in silver spe :itically
and only.
There is more silver aud paper bascd upon
silver In circulation to.daythan there is of gold
or paper based on gold. and that TIE gold dol
lar is not the unit Of value is demonstrated by
the fact th 1t no gold dollar pieces can now,
under our la VS.. be min.cd. If we should so
upon the gold standard. we must change the
existing bimetalli: standard of payment of all
public debts, taxes and appropriations. saving
alone those specially payable in gold. AS we
have twenty billions Of public and private
debt it would take mora than thrce times all
the gold In this country to pay even one years
interest upon it. We should be compelled here
after t, contract the currency by pa ing off
S3y.0O .0)j of groenbacks and Sherman notes in
gold which would nearly exhaust the entire
American s toe < in and out OF the tt easury, and
the same polio; would reQn re the S}t',0 900, 0CO
OF silver certificates should be paid in gold
also. as foreshadoS ed by the present draft upon
the country's stock of gold.
Free Coinage the Remedy.
"Tlis means an increase of the public debt by
a0o,DU.U0J, with the prospect of $344. O)0,0U
more. The disastrous consequences of such a
nnijr orn q rrnlli,ulr "A. -,-l ,@.l rrl 4io
only alternative suggested is the free coinage
OF silver at the r tic of l6 to ! (applausc} ana
the compete restoration OF our hereditary and
constitutional system Of American money. We
pray you. no more makeshifts and stra ldlcs.
Vex not the country with your prophcsies OF
smooth things to com, from the British Re-
publican propaganda. applause Tho fact
that the European nations are going to the
standard renders it al the more impractical
that we should do 50, for the limited stock of
gold in the world would have a LONGER division
and a smaller SHIRE for each section.
Previous predic ions have been punctually
refuted when prosperity was prophesied to
come upon the unconstitutional repeal of the
Sherman law. Instead Of pr otecting the tro as
ury ras1rve. as was pcophesi led it would do, an
unprecedented raid was promptly made on it
and The !6J,D0),0U OF b proved gold have been
insufficient for its security Instead of causing
foreign cola to flow to us it has slim ulatea
>AS w SNNs w NtS III SICSIutCks
and the Sherman notes, which are just as
much payabl, i'll liver as in gold. have been
used to DIP tn. gold out of the Treasury Ct tho
United Stats and to store it in the strong
boxes of the Lords of Europe Instead of re-.
viving business this folly has further depressed
it Instead OF Increasing wages. this policy
has further decreased them. Instead Of multi
plying opportunities for employment. this Dol
icy has multiplied idlers Instead of increas.
ing the prizes OF our products, this policy has
lowered them it is estimated, about Der
co'nt IN three years Instead of restoring conf.
dence, this policy has banished confidence. In
stead OF bringing relief it has brought years of
misery and for this reason it has contracted
the currency of tho United States "a a head for
every man. woman and child, since November
1, 1898 and with this vast aggregate contraction
the prise OF land and of manufactured goods
and of all kinds of agricultural and mechanical
products has fallen
United States Self Sufficient.
ITO pretend that this, ,ha foremost, richest
and most powerful nation in the worlj. can
not coin its own money without suing for an
interuati nal agreement at TIC courts Of En-
ropean autoc:ats. who have nole but primary
intarcsts to su5scrve, have for many years been
held ont at cvc-y Presidential election. Thcv
nave madc use OF sucA an acraamant and have
foilcd it afterward. We have never in all orr
history had an international agreement upon a
monetary SyStam. and none OF the founders CT
this republic ever dreamed that such an agree.
mont wa essential. We have had ia rec int r..
national conferences in orda r to obtain il. and
TO wait longer npoa them is to. ignore tho inter
esss OF our own people aud degrade o ur national
dignity. and to advertise to all mankind our
impotence and our folly
III concession hat cones from the gold
standard men of all Europe for the restoration
OF the donhlo standard ia the only solution Of
the financial difficu tics that W. can find in the
Quito k bsf ,re us Tho dec! III alton of til, Eng
fish rralnier and tn, Francl, min sters and the
liussian . government, which hays gently been
expire scd, SHOWS that if it snccccds at all it