The evening herald. [volume] (Shenandoah, Pa.) 1891-1966, 1896-08-27

I
current law of nations to reinstate and
sustain it.
The Republican party has not been, and
Is not now, opposed to the use of silver
money, as its record abundantly shows
1t has done all that could be done for its
| increased use, with safety and honor TO
the United States, acting apart from other
| governments. There are those who think
that it has already gone beyond the limit
Of financial prudence. Surely we can 20
no further, and we must not permit false
| lights to lure us across the danger line
We have much more silver in use than
any country in the world except India or
| Chiua-S5OO, OOO, 900 more than Great Brit
ain $3.50 600 900 more than France; $780,
| OOO,OOO more than Germany; s325, 900
| less than India and 1925 100000 less than
China. The Republican party has de-
| clarod in favor Of an international agree
ment, and If elected president 1t will DO
my duty TO employ all proper mea1.s TO
| promote II.
what It Means.
! The free coinage of silver in this coun-
| try would defer, If not defeat, interna-
tional bimetallisln, aud until an interna-
| tional agreement can be had every inter
est requires us TO maintain our present
standard. Independent free coinage of
! silver at ratio of 10 ounces of silver
| to 1 ounce of gold would insure the
| speedy contraction Of the volume Of our
currency. 1t would drive at least SOC, ,O0O,-
| 600 gold dollars which we now have, per
manently from the trade of our country,
and greatly decrease our per capita circu-
lation
1t Is not proposed by the Republican
party to take from the circulating medium
of the country any of the silver we now
| nave. On the contrary, 1t is proposed to
! keep all of the silver money now in circu-
lation on parity with gold by maintain
ing the pledge of the government that all
of 1t shall be equal to gold. This has been
the unbroken policy of the Republican
party since 1873. 1t has inaugurated no
new policy. 1t will keep in circulation
and as good as gold all of the silver and
paper money which are now included in
| the currency of the country. 1t will main
tain their parity. 1t will preserve their
! equality in the future as it has always done
In the past 1t will not consent to put
this country on a silver basis, which would
! inevitably follow independents free coinage
at ratio Of 16 to 1. 1t will oppose the ex-
/ pulsion Of gold from our circulation.
If there is any one thing which should
be free from speculation and 1luctuatiOn
it Is the money of "a country. 1t ought
never to be the subject Of mere partisan
| contention. When we part with our labor,
our products, or our property, we should
receive in return money which is as staple
and unchanging in value as the ingenuity
of honest men can make it. Debasement
of the currency means destruction of
values No one suffers so much from
cheap money as the farmers and laborers,
| They are the first to feel its bad effects
and the last to recover from them.
Farmers and Laborers Suffer Most.
This has been the uniform experience of
all countries and here, as elsewhere, the
poor, and not the rich, are always the
/ greatest sufferers from every attempt TO
| debase our money. 1t would fall with
/ alarming severity upon investments al
| ready made; upon insurance companies
and their policy holders; upon savings
banks and their depositors; upon build
/ ing and loan associations and their mem
bers; upon the savings of thrift; upon
pensioners and their families, and upon
wage earners and the purchasing power
of their wages
The silver question is not the only issue
affecting our money in the pending con-
test. Not content with urging the free
coinage of silver, its strongest champions
! demand that our paper money shall be is
sued directly by the government Of the
United States. This is the Chicago Dem
ocratic declaration, The ST. Louis Peo-
pies declaration is that "our national
money shall be issued by the general gov
ernment only, without the Intervention
of banks of issue, be full legal tender for
the payment of all debts, public and pri-
vate, and be distributed direct to the
people, and through lawful disbursements
of the government"
Thus in addition to the free coinage Of
the worlds silver we are asked to enter
upon an era of unli mited irredeemable
paper currency The question which was
fought out from 1855 to 1879 is thus to be
reopened, with all its uncertainties and
cheap money experiments of every CON
ceiyable form foisted upon US, This indi-
Gates most startling reactionary policy,
strangely at variance with every require
ment of sound finance; but the doclara-
ton shows the spirit and purpose of those
who, by combined action, ape contending
for the control of the government
Not satisfied with the debasement of our
coin which would inevitably follow the
free coinage Of silver at IS to l, they would
still further degrade our currency and
threaten our public honor by the unlim-
tied issue of an irredeemable paper cur
rency a grayer menace to our financial
standing and credit could hardly be con-
ccivcd, and every patriotic citizen should
be aroused to promptly meet and effect
ually defeat il.
In the Highest Degree Reprehensible.
1t is cause for painful regret and So
lcitude that an effort is being made by
those high in the. counsels of the allied
parties to divide the people of this country
into classes and create distinctions among
us which in fact do not exist and are re-
pugnant TO our form Of government. These
appeals to passion and prejudice are be-
meath the spirit and intelligence of free
people, and should be met with stern re-
buke by those they are sought TO influence,
and l believe they will be, Every attempt
to array class against class, 'uhe classes
against the masses, section against sec
ton, labor against capital the poor
ngainst the rch'' or interest against inter
] I'M tI l. int ba u