Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1896-09-25
Blair Lee on the Money Question.

The camp aign in Frederick county was
formally opened on the 18th instant under
the auspices of the Democratic county CEN
trail committee by an all day picnic and
tournament in the Manor woods, near Buck
eystown, which was attended by several
thousand people.
Addresses on the political issues of the
day were made by Gen. Eppa Hunton, Of
Va, Hon. Blair Lee, Of this county, Messrs.
William 2. Maulsby and H. Dorsey Etchi.
son, of Frederick, and others.
Mr.. Blair Lee, the Democratic candidate
LOT Congress, said there was but one issue in
this campaign-the money question; that
In respect to the tariff, the Republicans had
endeavored to make it the issue, but had
been already driven from that position. The
Wilson bill was looked upon by the major
ity OF conservative people as fair settle
meht OF the tariff question, as there was but
little difference in effect between 1t and the
Mckinley bill--simply declaration of the
principle that the tariff should not go on
increasing more and more the taxes, but
that all taxes should be reduced little by
little. The difference between the last years
income from the Mckinley bill and the first
years income to the government from the
Wilson bill was very small, only $50, 900 900,
or 30 cents q head for the people of the
United States. 1t will be safer and wiser, he
thought, for those interested in keeping up
the protective tariff system to accept the
Wilson bill rather than to insist upon higher
and different duties, involving and disar-
ranging the tariff system by reopening that
struggle, jeopardizing to certain extent
the whole present arrangement and the help
that is now extended by 1t to many local in
dustries
The American people, he thought, are get
ting restless under plans OF taxation that dis
tribute the burden of taxes per capita, or
upon the individual, rather than upon
wealth, and if the attempt to make the
tariff the issue had been success it would,
he thought, have worked to the disadvan-
tage of that system in the near future. To
let the tariff alone, therefore, is the best
policy for all concerned, especially as the
nation has a greater question now In hand.
He said that he did not denounce any class
OF the American people when dealing with
this question of money. These financial dis
cussions are inevitably dry, but the people
have been driven by necessity to the study
OF the money question.
Mr. Lee said he favors the use OF the money
metals, both silver and gold, as the safest
basis OF money and credit in the United
Stales. The Democratic party, he said, has
always favored the use OF bullion, the pre-
cious metals, as money in this country. Gold
was produced in values much greater than
silver in 1878. There was no reason, such as
overproducton, for the decentralization of
silver then. The Paris conference declared
for the decentralization of silver in "a.
Senator Sherman imported the idea from
abroad and the agents of silver demonetiza-
ton here were employed from abroad.
There is no reason now for decentralization
in the nature OF an overproduction, as the
metals are being produced in values not
per cent apart ut ratio OF l6to l. The treat
ment accorded to silver at the hands of our
own and other governments was practically
the destruction of its money value, not only
by taking away its principal use as money
OF final settlements and by making it as We
now have it in circulation, merely token
redeemable in gold and oil no more money
value than if it were paper. That: silver
should retain a commercial value of 80 cents
under such circumstances, when its main
use, namely, as money, has been destroyed,
conciusively proves its high value and how
costly it must be to produce II from the
mines and in what small amounts 1t is sup
piled by nature. Silver fell Immediately
upon the closing of the Indian minis by the
British government 90 per cent. in few
hours or days. 1t fell again on the repeal
of the purchasing clause OF the Sherman
act, both OF these causes Of depreciation be-
ing clearly from the decrease OF its use as
money. Those who talk to US about the
so cent dollar if we open our minis TO free
coinage at ratio OF is to have glued their
eyes exclusively upon the present market
value of silver and refuse to consider the
past history of gold and silver and their
probable future. Not only has silver fallen
as its use as money has been limited, but we
have in the past the most marked illustration
OF the operation of free coinage in respect to
keeping up the relative value OF gold, when
in 1851 and 1855 and for a period running
up almost to 1870, it was mined in quantities
of greater value than silver has ever been
prod uced or is likely ever 10 be produced,
there being between these years annually
three times as much gold produced as there
was silver, yet the ratio of gold to silver was
held steady at 154 to then, and this can be
attributed to no other cause than that the
minis of France were open to the coinage OF
both metals at that ratio during said period.
The present capacity of the United States
TO create a market for silver, as compared
with the then capacity of France TO create
market for gold, presents 80 great prepon.
derance of power in favor of the United
States and silver that the result of our effort
to adopt free coinage is not open to doubt.
The interests of European nations will then
become the same as our own and the pros
pect of having the many billions of debts
they own in this country paid In silver will
make them our agents to increase the value
of silver. We can dominate the world upon
this question and restore honest dollars, or
we can, If we choose, let the world dominate
oil Aal,t tn dio-
honest extortlon.
The appreciation of q gold standard in
value or of any single standard OF money Is
inevitable. Gold, by means OF its small bulk
and easy transportation, is already cornered,
and we produce but little of it whereby to
break the present corner. If our money is
bullion, silver and gold, our credit based
upon it will be sounder, and when specu-
lators squeeze our markets they will meet
solid metal resistance and will find 1t many
times harder TO corner both gold and silver
than they have found it already TO get con-
troll Of gold.
I3y the use silver we can now free the
gold, 1t Is not only free silver which should
be our cry, but to Tree the gold and the PEG
pie also BY the leverage of silver. The bonds
of the United States sold for paper money or
coin are payable on their face In coin OF
either metal If we surrender the right TO
pay them with the cheaper metal, land they
appr0acb billion dollars in amountO we
voluntarily break our contract TO our own
disadvantage, and, worse than that, destroy
the great law of bimetallism, as, instead Of
Increasing the demand for the cheaper metal
the uncornered metal-and keeping up
its value, we permit our creditors to choose
for themselves the dearer metal, thus aban.
doning the other metal, our only means OF
safety. There is no lack of confidence on
the part of Europe in America They are
confident of getting all we owe them ana
they have hopes of getting twice as mucn
by the destruction OF silver. Inc return OF
American securities from abroad would, II
we could accomplish 1t, save between two
and three hundred millions of interest going
out of this country every year, and would be