The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1896-09-27
Ee Says There Ts No Truth i'm the CO.
ercion Stories, and Points Out the
Evils of Free silver.
TWO SOUND MONEY RALLIES
AT WHICH THE BRYANITES MADE
THEMSELVES OBNOXIOUS.
Palmer and Buckner interrupted at
COwen Bothered at Baltimore.

CHICAGO Sept. 26-M. E. ingalls,, presi-
dent of the Big Four and the Chesapeake, &
Ohio railroad systems, spoke tonight in
the Auditorium on the issues of the political
campaign. The address primarily for
the railroad men of Chicago, the seats in
the body of the house being reserved for
them. Despite the weather, which was
rainy and with a strong northeast gale
blowing off Lake Michigan, the railroad
men were out in full force and took UP
many more seats than had been set apart
for their use. The rest of the hall was
filled and Mr.. Ingalls, was greeted by an
audience of fully 1850 people who cheered
and applauded him in an enthusiastic man
uer.
In opening his address Mr.. ingalls, pro-
ceeded to make an argument to show that
Mr.. Bryans scheme cannot raise the price
of silver, but will drive gold out of circula-
ton; that it will contract the currency and
produce a panic; that the present hard
times are not caused by the gold standard;
that the greatest development in the past
was when the country was on that stand
ard and that the only hope for future de-
yeopment was by continuing it.
1.-THE talk about raising the price of silver
has been abandoned he said, land now
the Populists talk about the large sum due
there mu4 be a cheap dollar with which
20 pay these debts. Who are the great
creditors of this country? Not the East
arn bondholders that Mr. Bryan abuses.
The great creditor is the wage Garner. The
country owes him more each month many
fold than it does the bondholders. The
railroads. for example, pay out each year
nearly 100000 to their employees In
wages. If you adopt the scheme of the
Populists and debase your currency, you
take from these men more than 100000, 600.
For twenty-five years you have tolled
and worked in order to get your wages
advanced to where they are now, and, in
one day, If this scheme succeeds on the
Sd of November, you reduce your wages
anywhere from 80 TO % per cent. 1ou may
ask how this is to be done. The result in
any country the debasement of the
standard is a rise in the cost of the neces-
saries of life. The history of the world
proves conclusivey, and no one knows 1t
better than the workngmen, that the last
thing to rise is wages. In reference TO the
railway wages. it would be Impossible to
get them increased. The same hand which
proposes to debase the coinage proposes to
reduce the railway rates. If 1T did not,
competition alone would fix them. The rail-
ways can earn no more, ana would pc
paid in silver, worth one-half the present
prices. Most of esbonds of the railways
are payable in gold, and silver would nave
to be reduced to a gold basis, and many
of the railways, even with the greatest
economy would be forced into bank
ruptcy under free coinage; at any event 1t
would involve less work and greater econ
omy which means less men and lower
wages. There is another objection to this
scheme from a point higher than dollars
and cents; it is that the whole plan is dis
honest-an appeal to the Ignorant and dis
honest side of humanity.
IT have heard much talk about the coer-
cicn of railway employees by railway cor
porations. | do not believe that there is a
particle of truth in it. So long as | have
the power every man connected with me,
high or low shall have the right on cleo
dow "a danoSit his ba Hot for whoever he
sees fit. This, l believe, to be the sentiment
of every railway manager in this country
All that we say to our employees js that we
believe that this proposition of Bfyans Is
fatal to the prosperity of the country; the
prosperity of the railways, and fatal to
to carefully read and consider, so that on
election day you may vote as your Judg-
ment and conscience dictates.
"There is something higher in this cam
raign than the mere cheating CT your cred
itors; it is a question of the honor of your
country, which is of more consequence than
the few dollars which you might make by
beating the bondholder. ThiAk of what 1t
is for a Nation like ours to live without
honor to have the finger of scorn pointed
at us by the civilized world as the one
great Nation of seventy million people who
bondholders. This Nation is the last nope
of man. Here has been the experiment OF
free government. So far We have Kept our
honor as we received 1t from our fathers,
pure and untarnished, and the question
%, escnted TO each and all to-day is whether
we shall heed the call of duty, ana, regard
less of party, crush this attempt to dlshon-
or the Nation and hand it down to our
children unsulied and fair as 1t was When
we received It.