Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1896-10-20


benefcont functions bp fiat failure. For
what Is the inventive genius Of the age that
devotes itself 10 practical objects engaged in
what else than IN dayising and developing
means and methods by which the things re-
auirc,l by mankind for the sustenance and
comfort Of life be made better and more easily
attainabls-that IL. cheaperf
The farmer in the United States welcomed
the agricultural machinery which helps him
In planting. raising and harvesting his crop.
He welcomed the railroad the steamboat, the
low freights, the telegraph. which shortened
the distance between hts farm and the market,
and the banking arrangements required for
moving and selling his product But as near
" all our farmers hal the same encourage
ment so IL followed quite naturally that the
wheat crop OF this country increased from an
annual average Of 3i2.0O00CO bushels between
1870 and iSs0 10 an annual average Of AS, CO.,
OO bushels between 1880 and 1896. But also
foreign countries had the encouraging benefit:
new whcathelds were opened In Russia and
tho Argentine Republic and elsewhere, and.
according 20 Bradstre.t's, very competent
authority. the wheat product of the world
grow from 1859 30 1894 no less thar t9.0O,Oco
bushels while the worlds consumption Is es-
timatcd 10 inur,ase only i2.Oc0OCo 90 100000
bushels annually. When the increase OF the
worlds supply thus gain, upon the increase
OF the worlds domaDd, Is 10 u wonder that In
the worlds market. which rules the price for
all exporting countries, that price should have
dcclincdi j. not this an infinitely more ra-
tional explanation Of the decline In prices than
to ascribc that decline % the 10 called de-
monet eiisation Law Of io33. which practically do
munctizcd nothing. but was actually followed
by an incroas. # oar currency. nearly trob.ing
it, volume and making the per capita far. far
higher than IL over had hCen before, and high
or than II l. IN any other country except onss
Won ayhf ~ Nssll IN IA
grcat comet ~ leli.
Our Recent silver Laws
Cowed hy the upruar!ous outcry which was
started by the silver miner, and taken Up by
the 'chsap muley' mon, congress passed two
laws ono In lssS the other In lSSc, in pursu-
anco of which over ts.uJD.so of silver dollars
woro added 10 our currency, more than ~
TINES as many dollars a. had over bcon coined
before, besides a large addition 10 our sub
sidiary silver coins Our paper monoy was
largely increased. that while In 1913, the
year In which tho American people were aid
to have been robbed Of half their money-whIlo
In ls71 -iy, We had t5540o.0co of money In
the United States. We had s.. 2l5 ,UOCU In issS,
nearly thrrc times much, and while in
ISIS the circulation was SIS 0s per capita. 10
was So VI prr capita In lSo-iifty times rs
many silver dollars and many times more
money ~ all kinds than this country had ever
price ~ silver In the market kept on falling.
and the prices %. many commodities, agricul'
tural staples included. continued IN their de-
clining tendency Now analyGs this case.
Upon what ground DO thc silver advocates as-
srrt that tho 30 called dymonotikatiOn Of silver
drprcs-ed pricosi According ~ their own
reasoning. b-causc thoru has not BEEN sufficient
money 10 sustain prizes. Sustain what pricos'
Thoza prevailing butore ls.3 But there Is
har .Sns
In 1913 and much higher pr capita ciruula'
ton We'll, what becomes 10 their argumcntf
Some of the silver philosophers have invented
u m0ru mysterious phrase-thAt prices have
gone down because by the act Oi ls13 the "mon'
ey % ultimate redemption had bvon curtail.
cd. only goll being available for this purpose.
But. according 20 the treasury statistics, W.
had in ls13 only S1iUoU10 of coin. including
subsidiary SILVER. IN the country. and now We
have much over s6Oooo,ooO of gold alone. or
more than - times a. much money % ultimate
rodolnp ption a. In iSs3 And yet prices are
low The man whom such facts do not con
vince that She decline of prices cannot have
bOyn CAUSED 10y any effect produced upon our
currency by tbc act ot ls.d must have a skull
so thick that atrip hammer would not drive
sound conclusion through H.
How the Act Was Passed.
But hear myself asked. II this y 50, why
was this act OF l,,S passed secretly, surrep- |
titiously, stoalthilyf For silver orators have
been persistcnily dinning into the popular ear
for many YEAR, until millions believed H. the
story that the silver dollar was ''asSassnated''
through the law q 1858 Wy some dark, corrupt
plot This fable has been No often aud 80 au'
thoritativoly disproved that am unwilling 10
taka IL up again In detail senator sherman |
did that recently In ~ most conclusive manner. |
will only add that was member uf tho |
senate at the time and know whereof Affirm |
and cmphatically pronounce all tho stories |
about the act ~ 1873 .ing passed -urreptitious
ly; about senators and members being some |
how hypnotizod. 80 that they did not know |
what they weru doing; about some English |
man being ON the ground with much money 10 |
promote the dcmonc tiL1tion II silver. and 80 |
on. as wholly and unqu.,lincdly false. wish |
10 be ssrapulously courteous q my opponents /
But ~ a conscientious student of contempora- |
neous hist ~ al bound to say that In the W
years during which have been an attentive !
observer o; public Affairs ! have mover wit |
Messed nor heard of such unscrupuous, shame |
le-- perSi-tent, aUGaCiUuS, cumulative, gisnn- |
tic lying a. has been and 1, nov done with ro' |
gard 10 the net oi lS7a, it, origin, It's nnturc |
and it, consequences
What Would Follow iiryan's Election.
Consider now what the Immediate cons.
Quenocs would b, II Mr.. Bryan were elected
president with "a congress % match. Mr !
his free coinage law enacted, but that could
not be. even " he called an extra session OF
congress. until some time In April or May, |
five or six months after the day Of election |
But AZ .oon on the ith Of November "a the re- |
suit IL the election was announced every body |
would know that the parity Of gold and silver |
would not bc maintained.
IL having bccn ma le certain by Mr. Bryan
election that the parity ot gold and silver /
would no, b. maintained, there would b.
rush upon the treasury for the gold IN II ey |
persons holding grcenhacks entitled 10 re- /
demption. and the gold reserve would DO e1 |
hausted In n twinkling. Gold will instantly /
disappear from circulation TO bc boarded or 4
exported. Why viii IL disappearf Because 4
every sensible person when making payment 4
will prefer 10 make IL In the lrss valuable dol 4
lar and hold the more valuable gold dollar 1
back for more profitable use. Gold will there 4
fore quickly rise 20 premium. and we shall 4
be on the silver basis long before free coin l
age law can be enacted. What does II mean 10 I
be on the silver blsisy The word coin, wher- 4
ever IL appears in the law, will no longer mean I
gold, as 10 was far understood, but silver
alone. The greenback Jr treasury note re- |
deemble in 'cuin" will no longer bc redeemed I
In gold. as heretofore, but only in silver. The
United States bond payable in coin, no matter /
whether gold was paid for il or whether it had
beon sold for the very purpose Of buying gold
for the treasury, will be paid, principal and
interest in silyer-repudiation a. fragrant as
the world ever witnessed Our daily trans /
actions in buying and selling. in paying d
receiving wages. will no longer be carried on |
upon the basis of the gold dollar worth lUo
cents, but OF the silver dollar worth ~ cents 1
OF thereabout, for the government will no
longer hold MP the silver dollar 70 the value OF
the gold dollar. That Is what the silver basis /
means. You can study in Mexico how 1t
works.
The quantity OF gold vanishing from circuls
ton will amount 10 about sGUOOUO,OOO, the dis 1
appearances OF which will make tremendous
hole in the volume of our currency. Nearly |
one-third OF il will be gone, and what remains |
will be reduced nearly oue-half in purchasing /
power. Bat, says the silver man. there Will be |
free silver coinage to MI the gap promptly |
with coined silver or silver certificates. Oh, |
no. my fellow sufferers. The disappearance OF
gold will happen promptly aftcr the election |
OF Mr.. Bryan and there VIII not possibly De /
any free coinage Of silver for at least six
months and it will require "a great many more |
months To NIL IA gap of sdDOoU,Vn
The Free Coinage Panic.
What will happen meanwhilef The st. Louis |
Globe Democrat reports Mr.. Bryan to have |
said some time ago: II think it, " meaning the |
victory Of the free coinage movement, "will |
cause a panic But the country Is in a deplor- |
able condition, and IL will take extreme meas
ures TO restore 1t to condition Of prosperity"
whereupon the st. Louis paper pointedly re- |
marks, Evidently Mr.. Bryan has heard OF the |
doctor who always threw his patient into fits |
before administering any curative medicine"
Just 80.
How, then. would Mr.. Bryan's "ft' work.
The sudden disappearance of our gold from
circulation would produce the most stringent
contraction Of the currency on record. Busi- |
ness men who owe money and at the same |
time have money due them will be forced to |