The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-09-12
MIR. OWEN SPEAKS.
He Addresses the Eighth Ward Free
silver Club.

of the members of the Eighth Ward
Free Silver club at Frylinger's hall,
University and Harrington avenues, last
evening upon the subject of free coinage
or silver. Mr.. Owen confined himself
almost wholly to an argumentative form
OF address, ignoring oratorical flights,
and expressing his sentiments in plain
comprehensive language which at times
won the enthusiastic applause of his
auditors.
In his Introductory remarks the
speaker went into the history Of econo-
mics and governmental science to show
that the United States had been APP
preaching a crisis in it's affairs which
he believed had at last come upon the
people. He had long feared for the
safety Of the republic in the rapid
march of events, and as he looked into
the future, the only ray of light which
the eye had been able to catch ema-
mated from the hope that at some time
the material interests of the people
might be so invaded that they would
reuse themselves from the apathy into
which they had fallen and fly to the
recall and protection of their vanishing
rights. This time had come sooner
than he had expected, and an argu-
ment would now be begun whose po-
tency could not be resisted It's elo-
qrence would be poverty; it's logic rags !;
and its rhetoric hunger
The Capitalization Of wealth had
brought about the result for which the
speaker had hoped, and it needed but
the realization on the part of the PEG
pie that one-twentieth Of one per cent
OF the population controlled one-half Of
the wealth of the nation to rouse them
from their lethargy. The time when the
old parties could be relied upon to bring
about the desired reform had passed.
1t needed a new party and the members
of the old Democratic party had gone
to Chicago, and there washed the party
in the blood which flowed from the
altar upon which the gold bugs had been
sacrificed
Speaking directly upon the subject Of
free silver Mr.. Owen said that within
the last hundred years the country had
made great progress in everything
but the science of money. Even when
the reconciliation Of silver was ac-
complshed there would be only a re-
in the past The underlying principle
of custom, the speaker said, was the
only justification for the use of gold
and silver as measures Of value.
They were precious metals, and in the
times when governments were unsta BILE
1T was necessary that the value for
things which were exchanged should
When England had demonetized sill
yer 1t had been of small consequence
because other nations continued to &C
cord it a place side by side with gold,
but in 1873, all of the great nations
demonetized silver and it was no longer
the metal of ultimate redemption. Then
there was left in use but half Of the
metal supply for the measure Of values
with no decrease in the prevailing
demand. Naturally the value Of gold
had risen, and as a result we now had
standard of value which could be
raised or lowered. Less goods could
now be purchased for the same amount,
but the goods had not gone up 1t was
the money which had risen in value
in the face Of half of the available
amount with no decrease in the de-
mand.
The increasing of the measure of
value, the speaker declared, in a coun-
try like the United States, where the
people are so much in debt, was the
greatest crime of the age, and so long
as the present system continued, just
so long would the condition continue
to grow worse. The reason for this
was that when the two metals were
used together the debtor was given
the option of paying in either gold or
silver. Naturally he would pay in the
cheaper metal, which fact Immediately
increased the demand for that metal,
and it would forthwith raise in value
Then the other metal, be it gold or sill
yer, would commence to be used as it
would be the cheaper, and soon it
would rise to a level with the other
thus establishing a natural parity be-
tween gold and silver which constant
ly regulated itself.
A few years ago, said Mr. Owen
this system had been changed and the
creditor had been given the choice Of
the metal in which he would be paid.
The creditor at once demands payment
in the highest metal and 1t immedi-
ately rises to still higher value than
in the old system, but when it had
risen the creditor did not then de-
mand payment in the other metal. He
kept on demanding the higher one,
wholly destroying the parity and fore
ing it higher and higher by his in
creased demands. This system had
been called the sound money system.
In the opinion Of the speaker, 1t was
the sound Of the clods on the coffin
of dead prosperity. 1t was said that
the free coinage of silver would result
in a financial panic, but the speaker
declared there could be no surplus of
silver. The people were hungry for
silver and all the other nations of the
world needed it too much themselves
to bring 1t to our minis. 1t was said
in 53-cent dollars. The speaker af-
firmed this to be untrue. The govern
ment had no obligations in gold. It's
obligations are payable in coin, and
when congress was asked to allow an
issue Of bonds payable in gold it re-
fused to consent. The result had been
that with the possibility in view Of
immediate free coinage Of silver, the
purchasers Of these bonds had simply
charged one-haf Of one percent of adj
ditional interest to insure themselves
against the panic which was predicted
to follow the reconciliation Of silver
Several years ago one of the political
parties had said to the working man
''vote for high tariff, which will raise
prices, and your wages will be raised. =
Now that same party was saying do
not vote for free silver, for, if you do,
prices will be raised and your wages
will not" Gold today measured the
value Of labor, and if silver possessed
the same power which 1t did before it
was demonetized, all would be well.
It mattered not what was the money,
but it was of vital Importance what
constituted the measure of value.
Previous to the address of Mr.. Owen,
Francis H. Clark spoke briefly upon
the industrial phase of the silver ques-
ton, maintaining that the Western
silver producing country was tributary
| to Minnesota and that it's prosperity
meant prosperity for this section Of
the country.