The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1896-08-30
SUNDAY,
PREACHERS AND THE GOLD
STANDARD.

We regretted to see that Rev. Mr..
McBee was at the gold fiasco in Green's
ooro last week. And yet it was not
altogether unexpected as he has re-
Gently returned from a three-monthS'
trip in England where he has been
hobnobbing with English gold-bugs,
and has returned fully inoeulated
with the idea that America ought to
follow England in church and State.
But. though regretting to learn of his
presence at hat gathering, we should
not refer to it but for remarks made
by him which shock all reverential
minds. He is reported as saying: II
decline to 60 to the Devil by either
road; if / have to go to the Devil |
should rather itewould be by Mckinley
than under the abanner of Democ-
racx.
The reverend gentleman win no
,dollbtgfind that the Mckinley road is
broad thoroughfare and leads to
death and damnation. The Devil is
represented by Dore as an accomplish
ed gentleman, no doubt a Wall street
gambler, whose charms allure and en-
tice the unwary. This year he is going
about among Anglicized preachers and
preaching the beauties of the honest
dollar" which same ''honest dollar" is
reducing the price of all COM
modities, reducing farmers to serfs
and laborores to vassals. 1t is true
that some preachers, who do not stop
to study the decline of prices under
the narrow standard, are deceived
.earough this pretended honesty into
advocating dollar that is dishonest to
everybody except theidle holders of idle
wealth. Those who go to England or re-
gard England as the model country are
more apt to be carried away by the
selfish talk of "sound money" than
those preachers who come in daily con-
: tact with the people, know the hard
conditions that eviron them, try
TO help them in the struggle for exis-
tence which grows harder with every
passing year, and themselves feel the
lack of comforts that follow in the
wake of the gold standard. Preachers
who come in contact with the farmers
and working people, who see that
sound money" means hardship and
want of work, who labor for the up
building of Zion in the suburbs and in
the country-these men are not found
advocating a standard that depreciates
, products and labor, and makes this a
government by bond syndicates, of
bond syndieates, and for bond syndi-
sscates.
In his speech at Albany last week,
MIR. Bryan gave a rebuke to those
preachers, headed by Bishop New
man. who has always been more poll
tician than preacher, who are opposed
tt fee coinage because it would de-
crease the purchasing power of their
salaries, in these words:
Our opponents, at least some of
them, have been appealing to the
ministry. | have noticed some of these
advocates of the gold standard have
said that the preachers, that the teach
ers III religion, should favor the gold
standard because their salaries were So
small that they did not want them re-
.duced. Uaughter.) Well, now, | am
willing to concede everything that is
right to our opponents, but | must
accnfess that there is one argument
(which they might make that would
appeal to some ministers, if there were
any ministers who were in the bust
ness of ministry merely for the dollars
and cents there were in it. (Laugh-
teri | say there is one argument-it is
an argument that | cannot answer
and give it to YOU for all that
1T is worth. The gold standard makes
1hard times. Hard times drives men
out of employment. Idling is con
duciye to crime. Therefore, the gold
standard, by increasing the amount
of crime, increases the demand for
ministers to put down immortality
lAppiause.)
eff there is any other reason why a
minister should favor the gold stand
ard have not heard it, and even the
most astute of our opponents have
so far as / know. never urged the
reasons which / have suggested to
you