Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1896-10-08
HON. !. ). REED
CONTINUED from page ~

16 to 1, but as the silver in a dollar wa.
worth $1.03. the only use of the RICH
of mintage was to get the silve
stamped by the government, and thel
1t went its way, and that way was no
the way Of circulation in this country
This was not an accident. 1t wal
on purpose. The committee of tn,
House Of Representatives, which hat
charge of the bill of 1884, said in it's re
port:
The committee thinks that the de
sideratum in the monetary system Is
a standard of uniform value; and they
cannot ascertain that both metals have
ever circulated simultaneously. con-
currently and Unfortunately in any
country where there banks or money
dealers, and they entertain the con-
viction that the nearest approach to an
invariable standard is it's establish
ment in one metal, which metal shall
compose exclusively currency for large
payments
1.-The committee did not mean gold,
it meant silver as the next, page DIS
closed. Nor did the committee's Dill
which made silver the standard pass.
The House, after full discussion. sub
stituted for the committees bill bill
for 16 to 1, which, as silver at It's then
price was undervalued. made the
standard gold. The Senate concurred
with the House and the bill passed
with a silver dollar worth $l.03. while
the gold multipleS of dollar were at
the rate of 100 cents per dollar, a ratio
which made gold the standard and
banished silver from the country. Be
fore that time at the ratio of Is to l it
had been the standard.
who do you suppose We're the men
who made this change from silver to
gold standard? The vote was in both
Houses more than three to one-nve to
one l think. Singularly enough, that
list of votes in the House will be found
to contain in rare combination three
Presidents of the United States
Franklin Pierce. James K. Polk and
John Quincy Adams of Massachusetts.
Do you not wonder that the fathers of
that year, 1884, in whose number We're
included not only Daniel Webster and
John Quincy Adams. but Thomas Fl.
Benton, Franklin Pierce, James X.
Polk and Andrew Jackson. would have
said could they have dreamed that
their system would be adjudged a
foreign monetary system by a candi-
date of Democratic convention,
which hurrahs for Jackson and despises
his work?
put aside all this talk. about the rise of
value of silver under free coinage to meet
the value of gold and the ill harmony
is absolutely no foundation for that faith
in ether history or experience The
statement of the committee of 1884. re-
mains absolutely uncontradicted by. any
thing In those 62 years of human history
and experience. Remember that this
does not touch the question whether the
whole world could circulate gold and sill
yer together at a ratio agreed upon by
all. for that the world has never yet tried.
1t ought to be added to this that the pro-
duction of silver has so increased in late
years that the problem is even more diff
ficult than it ever was before. 1t seems
then very clear that. if we coin silver
16 to l, when its market value is 80 to l.
we SHOULD certainly go to silver stand
ard will be below our present one.
suppose We admit that the increased
use of silver will raise its pr.ce: even
then no man in his senses would dare to
coinage of 5000. 900, 900. where there was
none before, lowered the price. what right
have we to think that the increased man
ufacture of silver would not lower its
price instead of raising it? The demand
was suddenly lifted S2.00000O month in
1871. and 4,500,000 ounces in 1890. yet the
supply overlook. and passed the demand
I'VE may safely argue this question up
on the facts that what the Chicago con-
vention and its follows ask us to do is
to leave the gold standard not for a
double standard but 0for another single |
standard and that a lower one. Corporate
cooperation has been born into the world |
and united poor and rich into one chain
of destiny from which there is no separa-
h.a
clumsy sledge hammer of free coinage.
rich and poor alike will be in one red
burial blent.
Take the great life insurance institu-
tions. born of the most holy desire which
can possess the soul of man. a desire to
provide for the continued happiness of
those he loves after he mouderS in the
grave. Eight millions and a half of men
are insured in So companies alone. Nearly
2,OOO,0oO more are insured in small benefit
associations. This beautiful business of
reducing debts one half will here strike
10,OO00O0 men. Worse than that in time
it will strike 80. 900 900 of women and chill
dren; Nor is this all. 1t is not the North
and East that will be injured alone. The
South and West have 81 500, 900. 900 of life
insurance. the North and East have 81
3OoOOo,0O0. This disaster would spread all
over the country. ] am quite well aware
these are corporations, but they are mu-
tual ones. and made up of nothing but
human beings They may not have souls
but the policy holders have. So also have
they votes.
Fire insurance policies also must suf-
fer. This time also it is not the rich cor
porations, but the insured. If your house
doubles in the dollar price the insurance
will keep stationary and your two-story
house will thrust two more stories unin-
sured through the policy. A house worth
1000 gold dollars will be marked $4,000 in
silver, but the policy will stay at $1,000
You must have another policy which you
will pay half price for. and that half
price is added to the whole price already
paid.
Il will not comment on the savings
banks, as they are so clearly open to the
plain view of everybody and sensible men
will not forget them. What others pay
them they pay the depositors. They are
what they get. and il you. a depositor
help pass law which gives them only 50
per cent, that same law will give you the
same 50 per cent, and no more.
1T is not necessary to pose as a friend
of the wage Garner in order to point out
to him what this means for him. 1t means
lower wages nothing less than that
From 1861 to 1865 gold was at prem
ium During these four years the aver
age price of commodities rose 1872 per
cent while the wages rose only as per
cent about one-third of the rise of COM
modities. The purchasing power of labor
went down SO per cent. OF course wages
finally reached par, but meantime wages
and wage-earners suffered a loss never
repaired. Such has been the experience
Of all time. Today labor has already per
ished when tomorrow comes. A days
labor must be sold where it is. Commodi-
ties can be sold anywhere. When reason
and fact cOrrohOratp each other truth is.