Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1896-08-19
BRYAN'S ADDRESS.
CONTINUED FROM FIRST PAGE.

this assumption Is entirely without foun
dation. Secretary Carlisle appeared before
the house committee on appropriations on
Jan. 81, 1895, and I quote from tho printed
report Of his testimony before the commit
tee:
Mr.. Sibley-I would like to ask you
(perhaps not entirely connected with the
matter under discussion) what objection
there could he to having tho option of IT.
deeming either in silver or gold lie with
the treasury instead Of the note holder?
Secretary Carlisle-H that policy l1d
been adopted at the beginning Of rcsump
tion-and am not saying this for the pun
pose of criticising the action OF ans
of my predecessors or anybody else-thc
policy of reserving to the government, ut
the beginning Of resumption, the option OF
redeeming In gold or silver all Its paper
prescnted, I believe 1t would have worked
beneflcially, and there would have been no
trouble growing out Of 1t, but the secre.
taries of the treasury from the beginning
of resumption have pursued policy OF re-
deeming in gold or silver, at tho option Of
the holder Of the paper, and If any secre-
tary had afterward attempted to change
that policy and force silver upon man
who wanted gold, or gold upon man who
wanted silver, and especially If he had
made that attempt at such critical period
as we have had In the last two years, my
Judgment Is 1t would have been very disas-
trous.
I do not agree with the secretary that 1t
was wise to follow a bad precedent, but
from his answer 1t will be seen that the
fault does not lie with the greenbacks and
treasury notes, but rather with the execu-
tive officers who have seen fit to surrender
q right which should have been exercised
for the protection of the interests OF the
people. This executive action has already
been made the excuse for the Issue OF more
than $3.50, 900, 900 In bonds, and 1t is I'M
possible to estimate the amount Of bonds
which may hereafter be issued If this policy
Is continued. We are told that any attempt
upon the part of the government ut this
time to redeem It's obligations In silver
would put premium upon gold, but why
should it9 The Bank Of France exercises
the right to redeem all bank paper In
either gold or silver, and yet France main
tains the parity between gold and silver at
l..
culation moro silver per capita than we do
in the United States
It may be further answered that our op-
ponents have suggested no feasible plan for
avoiding the dangers which they fear. The
retirement Of the grcenbacks and treasury
notes would not protect the treasury, be-
cause the same policy which now leads the
secretary Of the treasury to redeem all gov
ernment paper in gold, when gold Is de-
manded, will require the redemption OF all
silver dollars and silver certificates In gold
If the greenbacks and treasury notes are
withdrawn from circulation. Moro than
this, if the government should retire its
paper and throw upon the banks the ne
cessity of furnishing coin redemption, the
banks would exercise tho right to furnish
either gold or silver-in other words, they
would exercise the option, just as the gov
ernment ought to exercise 1t now The
government must either exercise the right
to redeem it's obligations In silver when
silver is moro convenient, or 1t must retire
oil tho silver and silver certificates from
and leave nothing but gold as
legal tender money. Are our opponents
willing to outline financial system which
will carry out their policy to Its legitimate
conclusion, or will they continue to cloak
their designs in ambiguous phrases?
Necessity For Bimetallism.
There is On actual necessity for bimetl-
ism rs we'll rs theoretical defense Of 1t.
During the last 90 years legislation has
been creating an additional demand for
gold, and this law created demand has re-
suited in increasing the purchasing power
Of each ounce Of gold. Tho restoration OF
in tho United States will take
away from gold just 80 much OF its pur-
chasing power as was added to 1t by the
Of silver by tho United
States. The silver dollar is now held up to
the gold dollar by legal tender laws and
not by redemption in gold, because the
silver dollars are not now re-
deemable in gold either In law or by ad.
policy.
We contend that free and unlimited coin
age by the United States alone will raise
tho bullion value of silver to its coinage
value, and thus make silver bullion worth
81. 20 per ounce in gold throughout the
world. This proposition is in keeping with
natural laws, not in defiance of them. The
best known law Of commerce Is the law OF
supply and demand We recognize this
law and build our argument upon It. We
apply this law to money when we say that
o reduction in the volume Of money will
raise the purchasing power of the dollar.
We also apply the law of supply and de-
mand to silver when we say that new
demand for silver created by law will raise
the pricc of silver bullion. Gold and silver
arc different from other commodities in
that they arc limited in quantity. Corn,
wheat, manufactured products, etc, can be
produced almost without limit, provided
they Gun be sold at price sufficient to
production, but gold and silver
are called precious metals because they are
found, not produced. These metals have
been tho objects Of anxious search as fur
back as history runs; yet, according to MIR.
calculation, all the gold coin Of
the world can be melted into % foot cube
and all the silver coin in the world into q
66 foot cube. Because gold and silver arc
limited, both in the quantity now In hand
and in annual production, it follows that
legislation can fix the ratio between them.
Any purchaser who stands ready to take
the entire supply Of any given article Mt u
certain price can prevent that article from
falling below that price. So the govern
ment can fix price for gold and silver by
creating demand greater than the sup
ply. International bimetallists believe that
several nations, by entering into ON agree
ment to coin at fixed ratio all tho gold
and silver presented, can maintain the
bullion value of the metals ut the mint
ratio. When n mint price Is thus estab-
lishcd, it regulates tho bullion price, be-
cause any person desiring coin may have
tho bullion converted into coin at that
price, and any person desiring bullion can
secure it by melting tho coin. The only
question upon which international bimetal-
lists and independent bimctallists differ Is,
Can the United States by tho free and un-