The herald., 1896-05-14

Men who call themselves Democrats
and profess to be opposed to legislation
for the enrichment OF classes out OF the
earnings OF the masses. whether By
sorry exhibition OF themselves when
they join In the clamor for the coinage
of dollars out OF bits OF silver worth
only SO cents each.
When they do this they give tho lie
to all their professions and array them
protection, the mos, odtous a. well a.
insidious OF class legislation, There Ia
no possibility OF reconctltnH their con.
duct with their professions, They pro-
claim by their acts that they are tneln-
cere when they pretend to favor equal
ity OF opportunity SO far as that can he
secured by equality ct law. They rtvs
claim as plainly as Mckinley ever dtd
that they believe In enrichinN favored
men at the expense OF other men,
Eighteen years ago. when the bullion
in a silver dollar was worth only about
s per cent less than the bullion IN . gold
dollar, II was possible for Intelligent
men to believe that the silver dollar
could be restored to parity with the gold
dollar by coming Il without limit on pri-
vate account But the time when an
intelligent man with any knowledge OF
the subject could believe that ended
long ago. Ever since II was demon
possible to arrest the fall Of silver by
government purchases. supported by
free coinage in other countries this has
not been a question OF finance. but
question Of protection and class favor
itism.
AS such it has been made a part OF
their grand scheme Of dickering and
trading and log rolling by the Repub-
licans. 1t was appropriate that the Re
publicans should take II up and use 1t
for all it was worth as a spoke in the
big protection wheel which ought to be
left to them as their exclusive stock
in political trade. The silver question
has been one Of protection to the min
ing-camp interests. and its protection
side ought to be espoused only by the
protection party.
Democrats who shout and plot for
mining camp protection have not even
the poor excuse that they are seeking
protection for the needy, and when they
join in the absurd Populistic cry against
Wall street they even more strikingly
illustrate their character of an EN-
bodied contradiction. The men of Wall
street are poor and harmless indeed as
compared with the kings of the bonanza
mining camps. to whose demands for
protection the Hinrichsens lend a SYM
pathizing ear
And these Hinrichsens pretend not to
know that free silver would benefit the
bonanza kings more than anyone else.
while it would not hurt the men of Wall
street. The latter are as far sighted and
resourceful in all matters affecting their
pecuniary interests as any class Of men
In the land. They have their means we'll
in hand and can adapt themselves
more quickly than any other class to
any change in the standard of value.
They prefer a stable standard because
1t gives a steadier market and gives con-
fidence to investors in the securities
they handle. But If Its stability Is Sc
riously threatened they will be among
the first to know what to do about II.
and they will profit richly where others
lose. The notion that a degradation Of
the standard would punish Wall street
is puerile to the last degree.
Free silver coinage on private ac-
count would benefit chiefly the owners
of silver mines and those having silver
bullion on hand. because 1t would ena-
BILE them to pay their debts and the
wages of the men they hire in dollars
costing them not more than SO cents
each. With such class favoritism and
such robbery of workingmen and all
others who have money of kind not
specified coming to them no Democrat
who has the slightest regard for his
professions ought to have anything
whatever to do..-Chicago Chronicle.