Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1896-08-21
SILVER AND PENSIONS.


Ep1roRs NATIONAL TRIBUNE: How would the free
coinage of silver affect pensioners Would we
not get Just the bullion value of silver for pen
sions? It seems it is sly way to repudiate
Just debts. Our government ought to be too just
and patriotic to adopt such IA plan. If you think
this money question is Of Importance enough, give
us your views through your valuable columns.
LARS E. JOHNSON, Wiota. Wis.
If the free coinage of silver reduces the value
of the dollar to so cents, then, of course, a
man who gets $12 month pension would not
buys for &c. In other words, his pension, while
ostensibly remaining the same, would practic
ally be cut in two, and reduced one-half
If free silver means anything, it means this,
and can mean nothing else. The free silverites
claim that the dollar has been enhanced in
value; that it is worth, they say, 200 cents.
They attempt to prove that it will buy twice as
much of the necessaries of life as it would
some years ago. Therefore, they would cut it
in two, and substitute for it dollar only worth
half as much.
This would mean that all pensioners, all peo-
pie with money in savings banks, all who have
life and fire insurance, all who work for wages,
salaries or fees, all who have money coming to
them in any shape, would only get half as
much as they now do. They would get just as
many dollars, it is true, but each dollar would
only buy as much as so cents does now-The
National Tribune.
There are liars of many and various degrees,
but for one of the lowest depth and viciousness
we would commend the writer of the above. 1t
would be difficult, indeed, to make statement
more misleading than, "The free silverites
claim that the dollar has been enhanced in
value; that it is worth, they say, 200 cents, :"
and so on The reader will note that the writer
has been careful to avoid naming the kind Of
dollar the people claim has been increased in
value, but he plainly insinuates that it is the
silver dollar, when in fact, the people mean the
gold dollar and that the purchasing power of
the gold dollar has been increased, and that,
too, gradually during the past twenty years, no
unprejudced person will dispute.
A careful reading of the clipping discloses
the authors intention to mislead the pensioners
In doing So he betrays gross ignorance of the
character of the majority of pensioners, or
purpose to mislead, and is an indirect appeal to
them to vote against the interest of the great
mass of the people, that they, the pensioners,
might be paid in 1oo-cent dollars. They are
SO paid now Every dollar the government
puts its fiat on is worth one hundred cents, the
objectionable falsehood of the gold gamblers
and their apologists to the contrary, and the
2oo-cent dollar-the gold dollar-is the dollar
against which the people have revolted. False
hood, direct or by insinuation, can no longer
win The old soldiers are no bokes. The
majority do not need to look to the National
Tribune or any other gold-dominated paper for
honest education OH the money question, for
they will not get it. Twenty years experience
in the school of experience has taught both
the wise and foolish some useful lessons.
We would call the attention of the old SOL
diers to the fact the money power has its eye
their pensions, and, should the gold-bugs win
the coming election, the pensioners are sure to
suffer- and many of them will lose their pen
sions altogether. At the late monetary confer
ence in Brussels Rothschid said: "rhe pen
sions are altogether too large. They must be
revised and cut down." This should be an in
teresting item for the gold-standard fellows who
lately issued call for the Union veterans to
organize Union Veteran Patriotic Leagues to
help kill the "silver craze" If the old SOL
diers of this country wish to end their days in
the poor-house, or have their pensions ''revised
and cut down." they cannot more easily bring
it about than by organizing to help the gold
standard fellows rob the country little longer.
THE greatest trouble with the antBryan