Birmingham state herald., 1896-07-23
AFTERNOON SESSION.

Most of the delegates were m tneir seats promptly at 4:So and quite sprink- ling of visitors were in the galleries.
 At 4:25 Chairman Newlands dropped his gavel. MT. Williams, delegate from Nebraska, moved that committee ol three be appointed to invite the delegates to the populist convention to take seats in the galleries for the afternoon, the populists not being in session. It was unanimously adopted
 The committee on rules made It's re- port, recommending that the rules of the present congress be used m the conduct of the conventions business.
 The committee on credentials reported no contests and suggested that any DOT tion of a state delegation present in the convention could cast the full vote of the delegation. The report was adopted.
 The committee on permanent organH zation reported the officers as nameu above and the report was accepted with cheers.
 While a committee was escorting MT. St John to the chair MT Newlands an- nounced that MT. Towne would address the convention tomorrow The delegates appeared delighted to know that the bus mess of the convention was not to De rushed through and final adjournment reached tonight, as had been reported.
 MT. Newlands then introduced MT. St John as permanent chairman. MT. St John prefaced his remarks by saying
  would be asked to preside over the con vention he had put his remarks In writ ing so that what he had to say might De in a shape which he would not regret having said. (Cheers) He therefore asked the indulgence of the convention while he read rather than trust to the eloouence of the occasion. At the outset Mir. St. John captured the delegates by interpolating a statement that he shouid speak from bankers standpoint, and that if he were addressing gathering of bankers he would use no different terms.
 Mr. St. Johns Speech
 Gentlemen of the Convention: The skill and efficacy of your labors in the past have been rewarded by the adoption of your demand for legislation<by two great organizations of the people, name lv. The democracy and the peoples par tv. If now you are able to induce coa- lition of these two organizations for the one purpose the desired achievement on behalf of the people will ensue... .,
 Assuming. then, that you will prevail upon these patriots, calling themselves the people's party, to indorse the nomina- tion of Bryan and Sewall, 1t Is advisable to warrant the desirability of the end in view.
 It is among the first principles of finance that the value of each dollar, ex- pressed in prices, depends upon the to- tai number of dollars in circulation. The plane of prices is high when the number of dollars in circulation Is great ip pro- nortion to the number of things to be ex- changed by means of dollars, and low when the dollars are proportlonately few. The plane of prices at present, and for some time past, is and has been ruin ously low. The increase of our popula- tion at about 100000 year, scattered over our immense territory, calls for in- creasing exchanges and thereby demands
 An Increasing Number of Dollars in circulation. The increase in the num- ber of dollars when dollars are confined to gold is not sufficiently rapid to meet the growth of our exchanges. The con sequence is a growing value of dollars or a diminishing value of everything else expressed in dollars, which is to say a tendency toward constantly declining prices.
 The fountain head of our prosperity has run dry. Our farmers all over the country have endured the depression in prices until they get $S to $9 an acre for an expenditure of $10 per acre and the like. Their credit Is exhausted at their country stores. The country store ceases to order from the city merchant, and the city merchant reduces his demand upon the manufacturer. Manufactures are curtailed The consequence is that em- ployes and all clements of labQg are be- ing discharged and wages are lowered to those who continue in employment. The sufferings of the farmers, who con stitute nearly one-half of our popula- tion is thus enforced upon the city mer- chant, the manufacturer and all forms
 tContinued on Second Page.)