Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-09-07
BRYAN ON BOND ISSUES
BE Denounces the Transactions of the Treas
ury Department.
Remarks Made to the Crowd Tha,
Greeted the Candidate Mt
Milwaukee.

| In his speech at Milwaukee Saturday
evening Mr. Bryan. the democratic presi-
Dental candidate discussed the recent bond
| issues by the government to replenish the
| gold reserve. He said:
| I'VE have seen that when the govern
| ment sold bonds at home that the officials
| in charge of the treasury saw that peo-
| PIE went to the treasury and drew out
| of it part of the gold to pay for the
| bonds: therefore, the treasury people
| thought that they would try to sell their
bonds abroad to see If they could not
| avoid the necessity of furnishing the gold
| that these people were trying TO draw out
| for that is what can be done under the
| present law. 1 believe if our people I'M
dcrstood what was possible-what is not
| only possible, but what is the actual fact
under the present financial system as
practiced by the present administration
| that they would rise in q unanimous re-
| volt against that policy.
Governments Gold for Bonds.
| Let me show you what has been done
The government decides to issue fifty mill
| ion dollars of bonds to buy gold. Now,
| suppose you want to buy bonds; you go to
| the Secretary of the Treasury and he says
| ne has some bonds to sell, and you hand
| him a thousand dollars of greenbacks
| or treasury notes. He says: L cannot
| accept these notes. you say, Why not,
| are not these greenbacks and treasury
| notes good? He says: They are good for
| most things but those bonds sold to
| get gold, therefore We must demand gold
| for the bonds You say TO him: All right,
| Mr.. Secretary, if you won't give me the
| bonds for these greenbacks and treasury
| notes, l will just deposit them and demand
| their redemption in gold The Secretary
| says: That is all right, that is what We are
here for and he hands it out. daughter
| and applause) Then he hands out thou
| sand dollars in gold, and then you say to
| / understand HAY
| bonds for sale for which you want gold?
| and he says Yes, and you hand him the
gold, and you say to him, Here, Mr.. Secre-
| tary, is your gold, now give me the bonds
| daughter and cheers)
DO you believe that is possible? 1t is
| under the present law. Do you believe
| anybody IN this country has done Ii? 1t
| has been done under the present admins
| tration OF the treasury. And SO it has
gone on, and when the treasurer has is
| sued fifty millions of dollars of bonds
| the amount of gold drawn out during the
| time between the publication of the no
| ace and the issue of the bonds was some
Ihing like eighty millions. In other
| words, to the extent of the money with
| dfaWn for the purpose of buying DO Ids
| The government simply allowed the gold
| to pass out of the treasury, and then they
| sold the bonds that We're Issued for this
| very gold they were going to purchase.
Wien they issued the next nifty million an
other large amount of gold was with
| Drawn to pay for the bonds Then they
| made the Rothschilds' contract. They sim
pay enlarged the circle a little, and that
| was all, ANA before the time was uo N
which the syndicate agreed to protect the
| tTeasury-before that time was up, bonds
| which had been sent to Europe and sold al
| lo412 had been brought back from Europe
| and sold in the New York market for more
| tran 12O, and that gold was then taken
back to Europe again. (AppIause) This
Is financiering, as she is taught in New
| York. (Cneers and laughter)
bid Nas Raised.
Now, my friends, We issued the next
| hundred million, and / want to call your
| attention to that issue. 1t was first sug-
| sested trat they We're going to issue the
| bonds at private sale, and syndicate was
| formed for the purpose of purchasing these
bonds. Ii was stated in the papers at the
| lime that that syndicate would give about
| 40 for the bonds. Finally il was decided
| 10 issue the bonds at public auction, and
the head o. tie syndicate which started out
| 10 buy the bonds at 1Uo within few min
utes of the time for the opening of the
bids handed in another bid for 10 and
| fraction, raising the bid they had formerly
| made by about five millions of dollars on
| the purchase of hundred millions of dol
| lars of bonds. What does that mean, my
friends? 1t means that these fnanciers
when they thought that they had the gov
! eminent at their mercy were going TO let
| Il have gold at 105 but when others came
| iii and offered bid they raised their bid
more than five millions OF dollars.
What does that mean? 1t means that
| those people who possess guardianship of
the treasury-those people who are the self
| appointed custodians of the public credit
| and national honor, would have hled the
| taxpayers of this country to the extent of
| five millions of dollars on a single transac-
| ton If they had been permitted to do So
| loud cheeringJ But then, that did not
| excite the Indignation of those who were
| standing in official positions. Not only did
| it not excite their Indignation, but the very
| man who stood at the head of the syndi-
| cate to beat the people of the United States
| out of five millions of dollars, was an hon
| cred guest at banquet, in which the Sec
rotary of the Treasury was the chief guest
| loud cheering.)
Now my friends. if we believe in the
| principles upon which this government is
! founded, If We believe in equality before the
| law, then / assert that we cannot treat a
man who wants to beat the people out of
five million dollars with more consideration
than we do the man who tries to beat the
| PEOPLE out of their hundred dollars or out
| of five dollars. Applause)
The Honor of the Country.
Now, when is this going to end? They
| tell us that it is necessary to maintain the
honor of the country. My friends. may be
in error, but believe that the honor of this
| nation can be better maintained by intrust-
| ing it's affairs to the seventy millions of
| people who constitute our nation than by
| bargaining credit to a handful of million
aires. (ApplauseD
The republican party does not protest
| against this kind of administration of the
| Treasury Department. The democratic par
| ty does protest against it, and what is the
| result? Every man who has been protiting
| out of the eXtremitieS of the government
| and using the necessities of the government
| for public plumber has left our party to
| find coneenial party elsewhere. loud
| cheeringD 1 say they have left our party
| to find congenial party which offers them
| a continuation of that sort of policy. When
| will this policy end? Thee is only one
| way to stop this constant issue of bonds,
| and that is to return to the principles of BIZ
| metalsm, and allow the government to
use the option of redemption of its coin in
| either gold or silver" cloud cheeringD