Daily capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1896-1899, 1896-07-29
MUST BE LET ALONE,
lCoatlnued foa ~ page !

atively more and more every year
He knows that the gold standard will
parpetuate thesecoDditions. while he
adoption Of free coinage would destroy
them. IL requires ~ great brAin
power to see this. Then let that class
work and vote for the gold standard.
bat. in the name of all the gods at
once. let the rest of us work for our
o yn interests and the interests of
p1sterity. The workingman, the far
mer, the merchant, the prOfessiona ]
man. who votes for the single gold
standard. is simply a sucker. He may
wear tailor-made clothes, and be as
wise in his own colceit as the Jay who
bites at the shell game. but he is only
poor deluded sucker just the same.
And IL they succeed in fastening the
gold standard on this country. 1t will
b. an other case Of "the gambler wins
and the sucker loses"
They tell US that conservative bus
iness interests must not be disturbed;"
that we must sheathe our swords and
allow ourselves to be dragged at the
chariot wheels Of the money power,
and perhaps.they will allow US sufiici-
ency Of good coarse, wholesome food
and enough clothing TO fairly cover
our nakedness; otherwise there will
be panic, and we will be crushed at
once. For the special privileges OF
property are superior to the real rights
OF humanity-of common humanity
"the herd;" 20 conservative business
interests must not be disturbed, and
the man who proposes TO bring silver
into competition with gold, as stand
ard money, is, among numerous other
things,a theft and an anarchist. Bah!
Are the American people such fools
as the goldites cleary think they are?
Are the majority Of voters to be ca
joled or frightened by Job lot Of
high-sounding phrases which mean
absolutely nothing?
There is just one poor argument
used by the goldbugs which has rea-
son behind IT, That is that the adop-
tion Of free coinage would undoubted-
ly cause more or less OF temporary
panic. BY all means let us give them
the full benefit Of this one lonesome
truth, but what then? IL the only
road to Dimetallism and real prosper
ity lies by way OF panic, then the
sooner we pass over the road the sooner
we reach the promised land. We have
lived through more than one panic,a and
we can live through another for the
sake OF the results. II IL takes dis
agreeable medicine to cure fatal dis
ease, is that a reason why we should
let the disease have its course? Fur
ther, IL is certain that our present
system renders us peculiarly liable TO
panics; for, when we try TO float over
900 millions OF credit currency with
a reserve OF only 100 millions of stand
ard money the pyramid Is standing on
its apex, and II takes but little TO up
set IL. So why should we surrender to
avoid something which we must face
anyway?
There has been time when Amerl-
cans were not a race Of towards. Our
forefathers did not hesitate TO enter
on an unequal struggle and lay down
their fortunes and their lives for civil
and political llberety. Shall we be a
set OF poltroons where financial and
industrial liberty is inyolyedY Are we
afraid OF being called "discontented
agitatorsY Do we not know that every
great reform since the foundation OF
the world has been brought about
through agitationY Jesus Christ was
crucified as a pernicious agitator.
Had He contented Himself with
preaching the old Mosaic law He
would have been forgotten eighteen
hundred years ago,and the world
would stil be pagan. China ran in
the same groove for three thousand
years because her people were "con-
tented Shall we fail 10 support our
principles because We shave always
been republicans, and the republican
platform declares for the single gold
standardg The writer has "always