The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-10-20
ISSUES Of The DAY
Bryan's FIippant Fa1lacies
Exposed and
Answered.
SELECTIONS FROM BIS SPEECHES
Silver Coinage Considered with
Refere nee to the Stand
ard Of Value.
DEBTOR VERSUS CREDITOR
Limited Money supply-Etfect on
Commerce--The p~opocrat's
aHonest Dollar"
DEBTOR VERSUS CREDITOR.


The quotations in this article are all
taken from the speeches of William J..
Bryan, now a candidate for the Presi-
dency, when he was a member of Con-
gress from the State Of Nebraska. The
date Of each speech has been placed in
front Of the citation from it. Each ex-
tract from his speeches is accompanied
by These extracts and com
ments, read in connection with each other,
will enable intelligent voters TO decide
whether they believe Mr.. Bryan to be a
man Of the knowledge. experience and
judgment required to qualify him for the
high office to which he aspires.
BTMETALLISM AND MONOMETAL-
LSM.
February q, 1S94.-sMr. Bryan said
I'VE must choose between bimetallisrn
and gold monometallism'
Not at all. We are equally at liberty to
choose between birnetailism and silver
Recommendation. Mr.. Bryan and his sup
pofters would deprive us of our freedom,
to make a choice between gold and sid
yer recommendation. and compel us to ac-
cept silver recommendation. They leave no
room, in their scheme Of free and unlim-
tied coinage, for true bimetallism; since
true bimetallism implies equality of value
in silver and gold coins of the same de-
nomination, while free coinage at is to /
means a wide divergence in value between
them. Bimetallism in which the unit of
value is expressed in terms of gold is no
less really bimetallism than if the unit of
value were expressed in terms of silver.
Bimetallists nave the right to choose
which of the two metals shall be the
standard, Mr.. Bryan to the contrary not
-withstanding.
BLMETALLIsM AND STANDARD.
February q. 1Se4.-"The gentleman from
New York (Mr. Hendrix) said the other
day that he believed In bimetallism, but
standard II. sir, that ie the idea of
some of those who advocate bimetallism.
if they want 1t on a gold basis, / desire
to say that there are bimetallists here
VINO do not understand the meaning of
the term that way"
There can be no bimetallism in which
there is no standard. IL the gold dollar
and the silver dollar are of the same in
trinsic value, it matters not which Of the
two is called the standard. But it rarely
happens that both are Of the same in
trinsic value. II not of the same intrin-
sic value, one or the other must be the
standard. The only reason for directing
to a gold standard is a preference for a
silver standard. The reasons why a silver
standard is preferable to a gold stand
ard require statement.
BATTLE OF THE STANDARDS
August 16, 1S9S.-l1f a single standar ri
were really more desirable than a double
standard. we are not free to choose gold,
and would be compelled to choose silver
> Silver as a promise to paw gold
IS little II any better than a paper prom
ise to pay. If bimetallEm is impossible
then we must make up our minds to 3
SILVER or to the abandonment OF
both gold end silver"
There Is no such thing as a double
standard of value, and there cannot be,
Fl We have two standards which are capa-
BILE Of Identical conversion into each
other. they together constitute a single
standard; but If we have two standards
which are not capable Of Identical con.
version, or Of mutual reduction to a com.
mon basis, one of the two will be in USE
and the other abandoned. The experience
of the United States, under the attemnt
to maintain a double standard, has de-
monstrated that gold at one time and al
another silver has been the practical
standard Of value-but always the cheape,
metal, whichever for the time thai
happened to be.
Bimetalism without the concurrence q,
a sufficient number of the great CONNER.
cial nations of the world is Impossible
Whether il o be possible with thei,
concurrence Is a. matter of speculative
opinion; but that question does not enter
into the present controversy.
Why we are not free toy choose gold a.
the standard is not apparent. Free coin,
g of silver would undoubtedly compe
us to choose silver.
AT present the silver dollar is. in tn,
words Of Mr.. Bryan, q virtual promise t.
pay gold; and in that light he must re
gard it as little, If any, better than pa
per-" Paper Is good. so long as the credi
of the Government is good, and SO is sill
yer. If neither paper nor silver is redeem
able in gold, silver, at the present mar
ket price Of bullion, is So cents bette
than paper.
Bimetallism without waiting for tn,
consent Of any other nation upon earth
being an impossibility, Mr.. Bryan admit
his preference for the silver standard
but In the words s'or to the abandonment
of both gold and silver he clearly implie
that he would be willing to try the expert
ment of an irredeemable paper currency
That trademarks treasury notes ar
capable Of fulfilling both functions @
money, as a standard of value and as
medium of exchange, is the explode
greenback heresy. The necessary infer
ence is that Mr.. Bryan is at heart
greenbaeker-
THE DEBTORS OPTION.
August IL, 1883 option is Away
given to the debtor in a double standard
To give the debtor the option to pay i
gold or silver. when gold n silver ar
al par with each other. IL honest. But /
give the debtor this option when a silve
dollar is worth little mere than half a
much as a gold dollar. lie an obvious frau
upon the creditor.
PAYMENT or DEBTS.
February q, 1se4-"There is no bimeta]
ism which gives the option to the note
holder Bimetalism always gives the or
ton to the debtor"
In a sense this is true. But the bimetal
lie theory proceeds upon the hypothesl