People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1896-10-08

htant Industry Mack:
something more than mere protection
against European competition. He
needs, above all, a market for his pro-
ducts, and a profitable market our
manufacturers cannot find, so long as
our farmers are impoverished by 30
cent wheat and our planters by cent
cotton. So, high tariff or low tariff,
our manufacturers, under the gold
standard, will not prosper, for until
our farmers get better prices for their
products, they cannot buy, and better
prices they can not get while forced
to sell their surplus products IN the
European markets il competition
with She producers Of the silver using
countries, who are now favored by
bounty on exports in the shape of a
premium on gold, equivalent to nearly
100 per cent. This bounty, which is
fostering this unequal and ruinOuS
competition, we must take away
before prosperity will return to our
producing classes. And take it away,
how can we? 1t is the result of the
divergence in the value of gold and
silver caused by demOnetizing silver,
and as this bounty on exports from
silver using countries, this premium
on gold as measured by silver, has
been caused by the discarding silver,
it follows that we have but to remove
this cause, that is to restore silver to
its place as money. and this bounty,
this premium on gold will disappear.
Why? Because the increased demand
for silver resulting from the throwing
Of our minis open TO silver and the
decreased demand for gold, cOnse-
quent on the traDSferenCe to silver of
share of that demand for money now
falling solely on gold. would cause
silver to rise and gold to fall, and just
as gold fell and silver rose, the diver
gence in value between the two
metals, and hence the pemium on
gold as measused by silver. would dis
appear.
The opening Of our minis to silver,
and this alone, can free our farmers
and planters from the disastrous COM
petition with the producers OF silver
using countries that has been fOstered
by the premium on gold. SO, to our
farmers, Mr.. Bryan's election holds
out a prospect OF relief, while the
election Of Mr.. Mckinley, pledged to
a policy OF inactiOn and the mainte-
nance Of the gold standard, would
bring no relief. And as the election
Of Mr.. Mckinley, and the imposition
Of higher tariff duties could not bring
prosperity to our farmers, aud could
not bring them better prices, the
market for manufactured goods would
be, as now, sadly restricted through
the impOverishment Of those whose
needs are crying, but who cannot
purchase. Consequently, manufact-
urers would not profit from higher
tariff duties, even granting that such
duties could be made high enough to
protect our manufacturers against
foreign competition. But high
enough they could not Le made, for
the premium on gold in Asiatic coun-
tries acts as so much bounty on eX-
ports from such countries, and, being
equal at this time to almost 100 per
cent, must enable the Chinese and
japanese, who are becoming threaten
ing competitors for our markets, to
override, in competition with our
manufacturers, a tariff of even 100 per
cent, and still be on the same level
with our producers, In short, in the
face of this bounty Of 100 per cent, a
tariff of equal height would be no
protection at allagainst cheap Asiatic
labor. And it is this bounty that the
Republicans are content to have built
higher, while at the same time hold
ing forth the promise Of higher tariff
duties. We will build tariff duties
higher, but by adhering to the gold
standard We will give permanence to
that premium on gold and bounty on
exports from silver using countries
that pull them down. Such in effect,
are the irreconcilable declarations OF
the Republican party for higher tariff
and the gold standard.
The manufacturer can hope for
better times only as the result Of the
election Of Mr.. Bryan and the
restoration of silver to its place as
money. Such action will enable the