The Portland daily press., 1896-10-08
AwoRKlNoMAN's QUESTIONS.
An Omen Letter TO some Free Silver Poll
ticians of Acknowledgements In Every
Part Of the United States.

(From the Mobile Register.)
Gentlemen: Noticing the ADVERTISE
ment of the fact that You will address
the great Bryan and Sewall ratinoatlon
meeting ON Saturday night. hope IL
may not be treated as presumption Ior
one who learns his daily bread py DIS
daily toll, and who IL, therefore, vitality
interested In the paramount issue OF tnls
campaign, to approach you who are lead
ers of your party for information. 1t is
to me matter of no concern whether
the position of ex-Gov. Jones and other
Alabama gold Democrats is consistent
or inconsistent. do not care whether
Bryan Is a bolter OF mot. The recon-
struction Of Alabama by the Republican
party twenty-five years ago belongs to
the dead past. The issue OF the cam
paign for the gubernatorial nomination
between Capt. johnson and the Hon. b.
Il. Clarke may concern some people,
but it possesses no interest for me.
want to know how I will be affected by
having the finanonial plank Of the Chi
cago platform made the law of this
country. With this purpose in view re-
speottully request that ono or all of you
answer the following question:
First Will the free coinage Of silver at
a ratio of 16 to ! increase the rate CT
| wages now paid the workinsmen In the
United States. II you say 1t will please
name ms some free coinage country IN
which the worktngmen are paid wages
as high as they now receive IN the
United States.
Sec0nd-We are not only interested in
the rate OF wages, but also In the pur-
chasing power Of the money In which
wages are paid. IL there free coinage
country IN the world where working
man can buy as much for a dollar as he
can now in the United States
| Third-Mr. Bryan and other advocates
Of free coinage claim that 1t will increase
the price of all commodities. II 1t
should increase the price OF the things
which the workingman has to buy and
does not oorrespondingly increase his
| wages, will he not be most seriously
affected by the changer
| Fourth-Is it true that between 1860
and 1866, when the currency was inflated
with paper, that..the price of all oommod
tiles rose 116 per cent. while wages only
rose 43 per cent.
.HFifth-If wages only increased about
one-third az much as the price OF things
for which wages had to be exchange be-
tween 1860 and 1865. when hundreds Of
thousands Of laborers were In the field
as soldiers, do you believe wages would
increase SO much under conditions that
would follow Mr.. Bryan's electionP
6ixth-The railroads of the country
derive their incomes exclusively from
freight and passenger Tariffs that are
practically fixed by laws enforced by
State and inter State commissions. II
free coinage increases the price of all the
commodities necessary to the operation
of railroads, and their income Is kept
down by law, can the large body OF men
employed in tho service hope for an in
crease of wagesp AS o matter of fact,
would not a cut In wages be about the
only way in which the railroads could
meet the increased cost of opoT ntionp
Seventh-The street railway systems of
| this city are operated under municipal
cents per passenger carried. 1t Mr.. Bry-
an is right in saying free coinsge will in
crease prices OF all commodities used by
| street railways, can you advise the con-
duotors, motormen, and other street rail-
road employees of this city to vote for
free coinage with the hope of improving
| their condition?
| Eighth-As / understand 1t, your party
has for years made war on a protective
tariff because it increased the cost Of the
| necessaries Of life. !: Mr.. Bryan Is right,
| will not free coinage in this respect be
| just as bad? Will 1t not also create
gigantic trust and make a market by
law for the property of the silvermine
owner at double Its value?
| Ninth-Is IL true that on the Santa Fs
railroad, operated partly in the United
States and partly In Mexico. the laborer
| on the American side receives an AmeIi-
can silver dollar, while just across The
imaginary line. on the Mexican side the
paymaater with the American silver DOL
lar buys two Mexican silver dollars. with
which he pays for two days work.
Tenth-W6y is 1t that s7lA grains Of
silver with the stamp of gold STANDARD
America on 1t Will buy 754 grains of sill
eyr with the stamp OF silver stan lard
Mexico on itf
Eleventh-It you say 1t is because the
silver dollar In America is maintained
at par with gold by the government
when the credit of the governments Is
removed by free coinage and silver
stands on its merits Will not the Ameri-
can silver dollar sink to the value of the
Mexican dollar and will not the Ameri-
can workingman who receives 1t be put
upon the low lsvel Of the Mexican labor
err?
i Twelfth-Mr. Bryan says that gold has
appreciated. That under the gold stand
from 100 to 200 cents. Wages in this
country are paid In gold or it's equiva-
lent The rate of wages has risen since
1878. If the American workingman re-
ceives as many dollars tor days work
now as he did prior to 1878 and these dol
lars have grown in value from 100 to 200
cents, do you not think he would be un-
wise to swap it for dollar that Mr.
Bryan frankly tells him would be
| worth only half as much2
Thirteenth Will the workingman IN
der free coinage have to work as hard
and as many hours for dollar as he
does now?
Upon your answers to the foregoing
questions depends the vote of myself and
a large number of workinRInen OF this
community. who have made up their
minds that the interest of themselves
and their families is superior to any
question of allegiance to party.
Very respectfully,
W. L. TlMBERLAKE.
~