Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1896-05-29
ARRAlGNS CARLISLE.
Gov. Altgeld Writes an Open Letter
To the Secretary Of The
Treasury.
In Which he Tears to Pieces the Re.
cent Address by Carlisle on the
Money Situation Character
izlng That Speech as filled
With Sophistry.

Secretary Carlisle has been answer
ed by Gov. Altgeld. In u pointed
open letter the governor replies to
the address on the money question
which Secretary Carlisle recently de-
livered ut the auditorium in Chicago.
Gov. Altgeld's letter is as follows:
A teacher should be willing to an
swer questions. AT the close of Mr..
Carlisle speech, number of gentle
men arose and asked for further in
formation, but he turned his back
and slipped off the stage, and, by di-
rection of his managers, the question:
ers were hustled out by policemen.
He could have made himself very in
teresting 'on number CT points
which he persistently ignored. In
1878, when discussing the money
question in congress, he expressed his
convictions in the following Ian
guage:
shall not enter into an examina-
ton of the causes which have COM
bined to depreciate the relative value
of silver and to appreciate the value
of gold since 1878, but l am one of
those who believe that they are tran
sient and temporary in their nature,
and when they have passed away or
been removed by the separate or un-
tied efforts OF the nations most deep
ly interested in the subject the old
ratio of actual and rela tive value will
be reesta blished on a firmer basis
than ever. l know that the worlds
stock of precious metals is none too
large and l see no reason to appre-
bend that it will ever become SO.
Mankind will be fortunate indeed, if
the annual production of gold and
silver coin shall keep pace with the
annual Increase of population, COM
merce and industry. According to
my view of the subject, the conspir-
acy which seems to have been formed
here and in Europe to destroy, by
legislation and otherwise, from three
seventies to one-half of the metallic
money of the world is the most gil
gantic crime of this or any other age.
The contamination of such scheme
would ultimately entail more misery
upon the human race than all the
wars, pestilence and famines that
ever occurred in the history Of the
world. 1t means instanteous destruc.
ton of half the movable property OF
the world, including horses, ships,
railroads and all other appliances for
carrying on commerce while it would
be felt more sensibly at the moment,
} would not produce anything like the
prolonged distress and disorganiza
ton of society that must inevitably
result from the permanent annihila
ton of one-half of the metallic mon
ey of the world.
CHANGE OF HEART.
1t will be seen that this language is
clear and emphatic and has none Of
', the sophistry and pettyfogging about
, it that are found in his Chicago
. speech. His awful prediction made
in 1878, came to pass. He not only
saw his own prophecy fulfilled, but
: he saw the misery of his country be-
' come even greater than he had pre-
dicted. Finding that his views ha
been correct, he continued to hol,
them until he entered Mr.. Cleveland
cabinet, when in some mysterious
S manner, there was change of heart
e but for some reason he seems unwil
S ling to talk about it. There are two
Il other members of the cabinet, Hok
|. Smith of Georgia, and Herbert Q
II Alabama, who like Carlisle, had mad
II their voices heard for nearly a life
A. time in demanding the restoration {
d silver, and in denouncing the grea
e conspiracy that struck it down; an
it strange to say, when these two me
a entered Cleveland's cabinet, they ur
n derwent change of heart, and lik
g Carlisle, they avoid talking about ii
g When Saul of Tarsus, saw grea
l. light and changed his views, he we
l. anxious to tell all the world about i
lie but these three statesmen seem to b
lie ashamed to discuss the manner {
r their conversion. Why did not Ca
d Isle throw a little light on this que
2. ton?
ic second-All of these men now d,
,e nounce those people who are oppose
is to the single gold standard as ben
lie scoundrels and lunatics, yet they al
I'd only following the doctrines whic
=. Carlisle and company preached Al
we then to infer that Mr.. Carlisle ar
his two cabinet associates we
,e s;oundrels and lunatics until they e
S. to be old men, aud that then tt
r. tinsel of a cabinet position not onl
is made them honest, but gave the
II, brains? If not then how are we
is know which end of their career WI
lie honest, intelli gent and patriotic? Fl
in in the absence of any explanatic
" some of us may think that they we
he honest and patriotic when in II
le- vigor of their manhood they we
IN standing by a wronged people, al
is that it is the latter end of their ca
es eer that is destitute of honesty, int,
lie ligence or patriotism. Carlisle shou
by have told u.s.
or Third-Mr. Carlisle should have e
be plained why it was that for 200 yea
: gold and silver held the market rat
of about Is! to /. The ratio fixed
law was Is to /, in some countries |
NJ to l, in most countries and for VIII
lily 16 to in our country. In 9th
an words, the market ratio, as shown
m the tables, remained practically t
to same as the statutory ratio during
de that time IF tho + yuo rnota1c oopp