Greenbrier independent. [volume] (Lewisburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1980, 1896-07-09
An embellishments OpiniOn.

DER Oh faTilanent, WHICH we lHluh
men Of all parties will peruse with
interest. We have believed for
some time that Mr.. Cleveland had
gone over, heart and soul, TO the sim
gle gold standard, basing our conclu.
sion upon the fact that though there
is and has been tor years strong
sentiment all over Europe in favor
ola return to the bimetalic standard,
there was no evidence that he had in
any way eXerted his influence as
President of the United States to
hasten action in the matter. We
are satisfied also that Secretary Car
Isle stands with the President for
the single gold standard, to which
the Republican party is now COM
mitted, contrary, as we believe, to
the honest views and convictions of
very large proportion, if not ma
jority, ofthe voters of that organiza-
ton. AS to Mr.. Carlisle, our con-
clusion is based on the speeches de-
livered by him in Kentucky and
Tennessee last year and on his more
recent speech at Chicago, in all Of
which he denounced the double
standard idea as an absurdity.
The letter Is also of great interest
in the opinion it expresses that indie
pendent action on the part of the
United States will insure prompt ac-
ton on the part of European ma
lions. Here is the letter which
speaks for itself:
LONDON, June 18th, 1896.
Dear Mr.. Merrick Thank you for
your letter and for your book, which
/ shall read with interest. You in
the States have at last arrived at that
currency crisis which every intelli-
gent student has seen so inevitably
advancing.
affirm with strong conviction
that the way would have been pre-
pared during the past three years for
an International settlement of this
great difficulty had it not been for
the fortitude of just one man-your
President. Mr.. Cleveland is paying
the penalty for the obstinate determi-
nation he has evinced throughout to
thrust your country into not merely
the gold standard, but the straitest
gold monometalism.
Those of us who have been ardent
workers here for international hi
metalism have found ourselves at all
points crossed and defeated by Mr..
Cleveland's actions and Mr.. Cleve-
lands emissaries. He has sent Mr..
Atkinson over here on a special mis-
sion to try and persuade those in the
present Cabinet--such men as Mr..
Chaplain and Mr.. Balfour-that they
were " cranks"-that the concurrent
legal tender of the two metals was
impracticable. Mr.. Balfour's diff
culties within Lord Salisbury's Cabi-
net were in any case very great
They were made infinitely greater
by the ridicule poured on the whole
project of currency reform by Mr..
Cleveland, Mr.. j. Sterling Morton,
Mr.. HOke Smith and others. The
speeches and absurd letters of these
gentlemen were six months ago TO
be found in many of our daily papers.
So impossible had become the po-
sition land in this connection know
OF what | am writing) of those
members Of our government who
were pledged to currency reform be-
cause Of the attitude of the govern.
ment at Washington, that last year
we for the time gave up the struggle.
l rejoice, then, in the revolt of the
Democratic party, and ! venture to
say, also, that should that party be
successful in electing a free-silver
President and Congress before Mr..
Cleveland goes out of the White
House an international arrangement
will have been secured.
The Rothschilds here-the wealthy
investors in every capital in Europe
could not afford to sit still and see
your country ago it alone" Eu-
rope will respond to your spirited
Initiative. If the United States
pledges itself to immediate free
coinage / emphatically believe that
M. Meline, on behalf of France, will
offer free mintage. We here are
pledged to reopen the Indian minis,
while the delegates to the recent con-
ference at Brussels, which l att
tended, gave US every encourage
ment to hope that Germany, Austria
and Russia would, in the event of
free coinage in the United States and
France, agree to purchase large
quantity of silver annually to swell
their legal. tender money. To pur-
chase il, / may add, if they can get
hold of the metal at all. Believe
me, with much regard, yours very
faithfully,
(Signed) MORETON FREwEN.
To Hon. G.. q. Merrick,
Denver, Col.
MISLEADING" With the gold
standard we use silver literally and
more than we used it before We
! have bimetalism, that is to say the