Daily Kennebec journal., 1896-09-28
BRYAN At sArH.
Continued from page ~

"SpeS aiiu taxes, WHet1cF IL pe Solu "
silver or greenbacks, is enough for us
The science Of money is not Difficult
| to understand. When the principle!
are understood 1t is all simple enough
our opponents talk about wanting al
honest dollar. You ask one Of then
what he means by honest money ant
| he VIII tell you that he means sount
| money. Ask what he means by sount
money. and he will tell you he means
honest money. haughter.) 1t is hare
to get him out of the circle, but If yot
can get him to define sound or hones
money, what definition will he give
you? Let me tell you the only defini-
| ton l have heard gold standard ad.
vocate give within the last three years
lie Will tell you sound or honest money
ismoney which when melted loses none
OF its value, money which is worth II
the form of bullion as much as it is
coined. That is the only definition you
have heard given by an advocate OF
sound money within the last three
years. | want to show you how absurd
that is, how more than childish it is
Our opponents assume to possess all
knowledge on the financial question.
DO you say that an honest dollar is
dollar which loses nothing by melt
ing? Then a Mexican dollar is an hon
est dollar because it does not lose Il
cent by melting. (Applause.) The Mex
ican dollar is worth the same Us the
bullion, and the bullion is worth the
same as the dollar in Mexico or any
where else in the world. SO the Mexi-
can dollar is an honest dollar according
to the only definition of honest money
that the advocates of the gold standard
will give you. (Applause.)
But this definition of an honest dol
lar overlooks the most important char
acteristic of a dollar. Suppose all the
nations of the world agreed upon gold
rs the standard, upon cur dollar as the
unit. Then suppose the next day they
should get together and agree to gather
TIP and destroy ninety nine one hun
dredths of all the gold money of the
world, What would be the result =?
You would have one dollar in circula-
tion where you now have 100 But il
would be honest, according To the gold
standard definition, because if you
melted dollar it would not lose any
thing. Q.auGhter.) If you owed a debt
of n thousand dollars it would be one
hundred tinesas hard to get the money
to pay the debt, but you would be pay
ing your debt in honest dollars.
Let us take another view of this
honest dollar definition Instead of
surprising ninety-nine hundrelth,;
Of all the gold destroyed suppose some
one should find gold mine so rich
{ ,
To make one hundred times as manN
dollars as there are ia the world to-
day. What would he the result? Whore
you have one dollar now you would
have one hundred then. IL would hc
honest money because If you melted Il
dollar it would not lose anything
tLaughter) But If you owed Il debt
Of $1,000 and paid that debt it would
take about 100 times as much toi buy
the same amount of other things as Il
used to. and you never could convince
your creditor that you had paid him in
honest dollars. The dollar may buy
twice as much. or 100 times as much or
1000 times as much. and yet it would be
honest money according TO the gold
standard definition.
teristic to he devine quality which
exists in the metal independent of
human agency or influence. 1t is moth
ing but the effect of law. Suppose the
law says any man having a certain
amount of gold can have it converted
into Il dollar by paying five cents. or
the cost of coinage. What would be
the result? 1t would be that the bullion
could never be worth over % cents, be
cause nobody who had bullion would
pay five cents to have that bullion con-
Verted into a dollar. Therefore. the
very moment you make a charge for
mintage that moment you make "A diff
erence between the bullion and coinage
value. | call attention to this because
our opponents base their whole case
upon the fact that you can melt a dol
lar and it loses nothing if it is a gold
dollar. CA voice: IF you buy silver at
the present price how much can you
get it made into money for under free
coinage?'D
Under the present law you could
not have it coined at all tApplause. }
CA voice: Answer the question" y | am
going to. Under the present law YOU
coulu NOT nave IL coined at All, nut
under the free coinage of silver you
can't find a man fool enough to sell you
the silver at less than the coinage value,
(Applause.) (Another voice: Now you
better keep still'D
Il do not want you to attempt to en-
barrass anybody who asks questions.
That question was asked in good faith,
and am glad to have in asked because
] want that man to understand the diff
ference between buying silver now.
when the mints are not open to it, and
buying silver after the Inints are open.
when every man can do with silver just
what he can do with gold. Then no
body would be fool enough to throw the
money away. (Applause.) Now let
me ask my friend if under free coinage
you have that much silver and take it
to the mint yourself and have it con
Verted into money at $1.25 an ounce
would you sell it to anybody for &c
cents now? Gaughter.) Would you un-
der that law, if you have silver sell it
to anybody for &C cents when you could
coin it at $1.29 You would not sell il,
would you? You would so and have it
coined, wouldn't you? (Applause.) Now
all you have to do is to just consider
every other holder of silver has as