Smyrna times., 1896-08-26
Mr.. COCKRAN'S SPEECH.


The meeting of the sound-money
Democrats of New York city, last week
was a remarkable gathering. About
twelve thousand persons crOwed into
Madison Square Garden and for nearly
two hours listened to a masterly ad-
dress by Mr.. Bourke Cochran who,
like General Sickles, does not believe
in firing blank cartridges at this time.
His remarks, which were interrupted
by frequent applause, were devoted
mainly to the relation of labor to
sound monetary system, and in the
course of his speech said:
'The basis of sound trade is sound
money; money which is intrinsically
valuble, money which, like the gold
coinage of this country, the govern
ment cannot effect if it tried to- 1 can
take a ten-dollar gold piece and 1 can
defy all the power of all governments
of this earth to take five cents of value
from it. Having earned it by the
sweat of my brow, having earned it by
the exercise of my brain, having earn
ed by the exchange of my commodities
can go to the uttermost ends of the
earth, and wherever l present it its
value will be unquestioned and un-
challenged. That gold dollar, this
,naa4iDO 4ba nop,OoroAio ,oor4ry tho
honest masses. of the country with
out distinction of party divisions, de-
mand shall be paid to the laborer
when he earns it and that no power
on earth shall cheat him of the sweat
of his brow.
"When any man can show me Ia
borer who has been paid in advance for
days work, will show him laborer
who is a debtor. But every iabOrer
that 1 have known in my experience,
every laborer of whom 1 have heard of
in my examination of the condition of
men, must, by the very law of his
being, be creditor for one days work,
and is generally a creditor for week s
work or two weeks work. Every
great industrial enterprise has for its
chief creditors its own labOrers. The
heaviest account in every department
of industry, whatever it may be, is al
ways the wages account. Here is an
abstract which will show you just how
the earnings of a great corporation are
distributed. The New York Central
Railroad Company handles every year
about $45, 100000. OF that sum $40,
900, 900 is paid for interest on bonds
and for rental of leased railroads; "a,
900, 900 is paid for dividends, $1S, 900,
600 is paid for equipments and repairs
$15, 500, 900 is paid in wages.
''The railway employees of the Uni
ted States alone draw $4OO, 1000, 900 {
year in wages. If the New York Cen
tral railroad went into the hands of {
receiver tomorrow, if it became totally
and hOpelessly bankrupt. its dividends
could be passed and its shareholder
could not complain. The interest OF
its bonds might be in default, and tn,
bondholders would be without redress
but the wages of the laborer would al
ways be paid, for they are the first liel
upon any industrial enterprise. No
my friends, not because they love tn,
more, but because it is absolutely ne
cessary to the existence of the enter
prise.
"Here we have the figures from tn
United States Bureau of Statistics
showing the amount of wages pai'
every year in the United States, an,
we find that it was over 81, 1888, 225, ,00O
Talk of the interest on the nationa
debt! Talk of the principal of the Ma
tional debt! Talk of any other deb
that exists throughout the civilize
world, and it forms but small percen
tage of the debt that is due the lahore
wherever man works and tolls, whel
ever things of value are being created
wherever means of transportation ar
in activity, wherever the forces of civ
ilization are at work.
"Now a farm is an industrial enter
prise. The pretense that the farme
of Nebraska is suffering under til
weight of a mortgage contracted unde
a metal that has steadily increased i
value is but Populistic metaphor
Two-thirds of the farmers have n
mortgage debt whatever I do not b,
lieve there is per cent. of them thi
owe a mortgage over three years olC
during which time there has been 4
change in the value of the metal, bl
every single farmer has creditors in IL
shape of his own laborers. This propos
. Of the Populists is an attempt to enli
the farmers in conspiracy to redu,
the wages paid this labor, that he ms
have a larger proportion of his oN
products, and they are willing to c.
down the wages of every man wi
works in the cities, who tolls at Il
bench, who digs in the mines, WI
manages the train, in the hope th
they can ride into power on wave
cupidity, and greed awakened in Il
breast of the voter.
''But, my friends, it is a triumpha
: vindication sof American citizensh