The Dalles times-mountaineer. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1882-1904, 1896-10-17
AN ABLE ARGUMENT.
The Financial Question Clearly Presented
by Mr. Butler.

by MT. Butler.
The most logical argument yet pre-
sented to the people of The Dalles or
the financial question during The
campaign was contained in Hon. N
L. Buffers speech at the Baldwin
opera house Wednesday. Mr.. Butler
is by no means a sensational speaker,
but presents facts in PLAIN. cool and
deliberate manner that carries convlc'
tiou.
In his opening remarks, Mr.. Butler
dwelt at some length upon the re-
spousibility of the voter in determining
questions of national policy, holding
that each individual was q sovereign
in himself, and whether government
was good or bad depended upon the in
telligent, honest or patriotic exercise
of the right of suffrage by the indi-
vidual voter. Commenting on the ar
guments adduced by the supporters of
| Mr.. Mckinley. the speaker said they
were appeals to the prejudice and
| greed of classes, not patriotic appeal
to the masses. or promise of legisla-
tion that would be beneficial to the
whole people.
Entering into discussion of the
money question, by clear and con-
vincing source of reasoning he proved
that the prices of the products of labor
| were governed by the volumn of basic
money in circulation, as this is
contracted, prices must necessarily
fall, and as it increases prices will rise.
That the volume of basic money was
contracted by the demonetiZation of
silver, he thought there could be no
question, and that silver was demone-
uixed he showed from the wording of
the coinage law which says the ''stand.
ard silver dollar shall be legal tender
for all debts public and private except
when otherwise specified" which
gives the creditor the right to desig-
nate the class of money in which his
security shall be paid. Thus to the
creditor is extended power that the
constitution delegates exclusively to
congress to "coin money and regulate
the value thereof" Extending to the
creditor the right of specific contract.
whereby he could refuse the tender of
any class of money issued by the gov
ernment is, he said, destruction of
the legal tender powers of that money,
makes it only a token, removes from it
its powers as measure of value, and
sends it out to circulate and perform
functions which it does not possess,
therefore this ban placed upon all of
our silver and paper issue left gold
alone the bassic money of the country
and contracted the money of Ultimate
redemption down to the actual supply
of gold in stock. Therefore the only
real money there is in the United
States today or at any time since 1873
Is the gold coin, hence it is that the
supply of real money has been dimin- !
lshed, the demand for it has become
great, consequently the price of all
other commodities measured in the
metal that is both scarce and in great |
demand, has fallen and will continue
to fall as the demand for gold increases.
This contraction of primary money,
the speaker held was the cause of the |
depressed state of business today, and |
not the changes that have been made |
in the tariff by recent legislation.
Were this not true there should have |
been no increase of business failures |
in 1892 over those of the two succeed
ing years. Were this not true the
wooden mills of America should all be
running on full time today instead of |
lying idle, for They are given free raw !
and protection on their
finishen goods of from 20 to 40 per cent,
thus giving to them the markets of
the worldas field i'll which to sell their
products. The reason they are not
running today is that they have been
deprived to great extent of the home
market, by the producers of the country
not being able to buy their products.
Because of the fall in prices of the
products of labor through contrac-
tion off the currency, the real pro-
ducers, the farmers and labors, are no
longer able to buy. This Mr.. Butler
held was the cause of present depres-
sions, and could only be remedied by
an increase in the real money of the
country. and since the production of
gold was inadequate to the demand,
In order to effect this increase we must
look to silver
In answer to the contention that sill
YER will not be accepted, the speaker
insisted that any money to which the
government had given full legal tender
powers in the past had been accepted,
and in the light of history there was
no foundation for the claim that it
would not be accepted today. /
MIR. Buffers speech was attentively |
listened to by the large audience that
was present, and the telling argu-
ments Reproduced had marked effect
upon those who heard him. A Chica-
go sheep buyer who was among the |
audience, said after the meeting had
that it was the fairest and |
ablest presentation of the silver ques-
tion he had ever heard, being stripped
of all superauity and confined to real
and undisputable facts.