Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1896-04-10

Ntol VI lie Allcsucuy mouuIdiho, eho'
dared talk to their constituents in Their
electioneering campaigns as they voted
in the house. Everybody knows, who
knows anything, that nine-tenths OF
all the intelligent citizens of Ohio are at
heart bi-metallists. And we have the
scoundrelism Of modern politics well
represented in the vote referred to,
showing that fidelity to a public trust
is no logger the rule of conduct with a
majority of our public men. In fact,
representative government has ceased
to be representative and the boodler
in the primaries expects his servant,
whom his corruption money elects, to
become the tool Of the Shylocks when
elected, and the record of this house OF
representatives to date proves that
whom the boodler buys the Shyiock
holds securely in his grip.
when we witness the humiliating
cowardice of the present house of rep
resentatives in refusing to even make
one move to relieve the financial stress
of the people, it is no wonder so many
business men are giving up in despair.
Let us suppose that the silver men had
had their way in 1899, as the gold men
had theirs. and suppose we should
have had the result we witness today
of the increase Of the bonded debt of
over $26O,O00,0 900; with falling prices of
all products of labor, and of the farm
and mine, and with the appalling list
Of business failures, suicides, want and
woe, and crime, that has followed as
the inevitable result of the gold stand
ard. Why, 1t would not be safe for one
Of the silver leaders to venture out up
on the streets of any city, or hamlet in
the country on account of mob violence.
Surely, there would be no newspapers
in the land with enough of the gall Of
brutality to have advocated a contin-
uance of the policy.
And now that We have had the
terrible experience Of the last two
years and half, with policy that
every democrat Of intelligence and
patriotism predicted at the outset
would result only in disaster, it seems
incomprehensible how any we'll mean
ing citizen who loves his country and
his kind should exhibit a disposition
to further exploit the field of disaster
Certainly no true democrat is in favor
of it. My observation is, and l am
looking at the situation only from a
business standpoint, that business men
CT both parties are thoroughly con-
WINGED that the present fiscal policy
must be changed before we can have
any substantial prosperity, and I be-
lieve that a majority Of sagacious bust
ness men understand that the present
effort Of the republican leaders to try
and avoid the only live issue (the mon
ey question: by switching off on the
tariff is scheme of humbug and fraud,
as transparent as 1t is insincere and
dishonest.
"The people are about ripe for lead
er who is sound on the money question
for the peoples honest dollars and not
the scarce gold of the Shylocks that
has never been seen by the common
people, has never been the money Of
circulation and never will be. There
is no civilized country anywhere that
has ever adopted or ever will adopt
our present financial policy of fiat mon
ey for the people and gold for the Shy
locks. There is no civilized country
in the world that would discard silver
as money metal If that country was
as rich in silver mines as the United
States. The worlds record today is
that all the silver using countries are
prosperous and all the exclusive gold
countries are not. This ought to dissi-
pate the miserable rot of the gold stand
ard organs that silver standard for