Birmingham state herald. (Birmingham, Ala.) 1895-1897, 1896-07-05
SOUND MONEY! MASS MEETING.
Governor Flower and Others Make
Speeches on Their Side.

Speeches on Their Side.
Chicago, July A public meeting of
the friends of Sound money" was held
this evening in the auditorium, theater
connected with the hotel of that name
and capable of seating some 5000 or 1000
spectators. There was not vacant seat
to be had when the serious business of
the evening began-the hour between
and 8 having been filled up by select
pieces of music given to the band of the
First regiment soas
On the platform were seated Senator
Gray of Delaware, John r. Fellows of
New York, Franklin McVeagh of Chi
cago and many other prominent support
ers of the sound money cause and a large
number of ladies' while Mr.. William G.
Whitney of New York occupied a seat
in one of the boxes.
The meeting was called to order by
Ex-Governor Flower, who said: I'VE
are just emerging from the panic of 1898.
In that year the banker, the capitalist,
the manufacturer, the merchant, were
all cut in the middle financially. 1t
gradually paralyzed the country, until
the year 1896 it began to knock down
the last brick in the row, and that was
the agricultural community. All
through 1893 and 1894 the farmer was
getting good prices for everything he
raised from the soil, and 1t would seem
as though he had escaped the ravages or
the panic, but like all panics it did not
end until it reached him. The farmer has
had a sad lot for the past twenty years,
but no sadder than other industries, as
will show. He is suffering from over
stimulation by the governments OF the
world of his particular line of industry.
In 1861 the congress of the United States
gave land grants to the Union racine
railroad. 1t was found necessary to con-
meet California with the rest Of the union
in order 10 save California to the
rest of the union. Then followed
the building of the Southern Pacific and
Northern Pacific, the Rock Island and the
various other branches of commerce that
reach out from this great city of Chicago.
The railroad companies received alter
nate sections of land from the govern
ment free of charge. The building OF
those railroads induced settlers all along
their lines~to purchase what the railroad
did not own and open up the territory.
Then the railroad companies advertised
their land in Europe as homes for the
poor and sold them and brought into TINS
country another large body of people TO
compete with the farmers of the east.
The farming lands of the east were worth
on an average of $50 per acre. The inter-
est on one acre of land twenty years ago
would be $3.50. A farm IN Iowa. Illinois
or Minnesota or Nebraska worth 70 an
acre. the interest on that land per annum
would pc 80 CENTS. NOW, Aor lIilS uiihSi
ence on an acre of land-S315-the farmer
of the west l5s
Gould Raise Double.
what he could on the eastern lana, ana
send all the products of one acre 10 Liver
pool for the difference in the cost OF in
terest on his lands per annum. what
wonder that land values in the eastern
sta tes went down until the western land
commenced to raise in value. These
cheap rates of transportation by rail and
water from the east had 1eveled the and
In the eastern states and raised the value
in the west, SO that if there had been no
other causes at work the farmer in both
the eastern and the western states would
be sure to do business on rising value
of his farm. ~ Hi,r
But the British government loaned the
money to Canadians to build the Cana
dian Pacific, opening the vast pralries
like our own, and their wheat when mar
vested was sent directly to Liverpool.
Then English capital also bought 1000
miles of railroad in India, opening up
vast wheat fields and cotton fields in COM
petition with our own
"You all remember the Barring failure
of $780, The money that firm expended
went to develop the Argentine republic,
opening those vast and prolific fields with
railroad systems and water ways so that
she produces 40,000,000 or s50000.00O bush
els of wheat annually. Not only that,
frontier with railroads over as beautiful
and productive prairies as our own wheat
fields. Do you wonder that the farmer
is unhappy, with all the governments of
the world stimulating the farming indus
try and opening up their unused lands
to the farmer? Do you wonder that the
farmer has hard lot? Do you wonder
at the low price of wheat and corn when
you. in these United States have more
than doubled the acreage in the crops
between 1871 and 1891? Do you wonder
that cotton was low in 1895 when in 1894
the cotton planter raised 80 per cent more
cotton than he had ever raised before?
Is this not the rational reason why the
farmers products are low? Is not this
the proper and only safe reason why the
supply is always SIX
Greater 1han the Demand of the World.
"There is no manufactured article but
what has met the same fate as the farm
ers' products All have been reduced
from one-half to tWo-thirds-the steel
rail from $l20 to $23 per. ton; iron ore. of
which you have such vast. fields in Min
nesota, greater than any country in the
world, is produced today at one-half the
cost of seven years ago. You know all
about this iron business here, because In
this city of Chicago you manufacture
5000 tons per day, and the full output of
your iron industry here is equal to the
whole of the output of Great Britain.
Lead is produced and sold at one-half
the price 1t was seven years ago. Cop
per, through the inventive genius of
Americans, meets the same fate. Silver,
through new appliances, Is mined at one
half the cost 1t was twenty years ago.
And gold is produced in greater guam
titles this year than gold and silver were
together in 1873. The silver and gold
production of that year was $17S,000.000,
and in 1895 OF gold alone s199, ,5O0,O00 You,
my farmer friend, you are not alone in
the depreciative prices of your products
and 1 challenge any silver man to give
a reason 80 clear and cogent why corn
and wheat and other crops of the farmer
have fallen because silver has fallen.
"But. ladies and gentlemen. l leave
these questions of the hour in other
hands. 1t is now my pleasant duty to
present to you a gentleman high In stand
ingSin this city as merchant and a
dnancier, 49,
The Hon. Franklin MacVeagh.
Mr.. Macveagh addressed the meeting.
He said that this great assemblage had
gathered because the nation and the
Son,ocro ffc marty were brought face to