People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1896-07-30

who hang out false lights and lure the snip
Of state on TO rocks, are the worst enemies
Of a republic. The damage they do Is ire
parable. Vain boasting and pride as to a
nations condition, like In individuals, goes
before q fall 1t IS this vain boasting that
has aided in the overthrow Of all republics.
Its use now will result in the overthrow OF
this present government Of the United
States. Be warned in time that the down.
fall of all past republics was preceded by
q refusal to recognize existing evils.
They Say silver VIII Run Gold Out.
They say that 10 remonetize silver will
run gold out OF the country. Gold is not
IN circulation now. 1t is cornered. The
merit of bimetailism Is to recognize the TACT
that from time to time one or the other OF
these metals will leave us, and the fact that
we have the other with us Is what would
save our financial system. II there are
causes tending 10 take gold away from us.
Il will go whether silver is money or not.
We have no silver now as real money. and
yet gold Is leaving US. They stopped the
coinage Of silver even as credit money two
years ago, and yet gold has since left Us
faster than ever.
Over Production of Silver.
They say silver was demonetized on ac'
count Of overproduction. At the time sil-
yer was demonetized, the world was pro-
ducing So cents in silver 10 one dollar In
gold; less silver than gold. In the p years
since then the world has produced about
equally dollar for dollar of silver TO gold.
The world is now-in lS96-preduc!ng about
% cents worth Of silver TO one dollar Of
gold.
siIver's Coinage Since 1873.
They say: 80 many hundred mlllloni
Of silver has been coined since lSI3," and
ask: "Why are you not satisfied with such
ar enormous coinage?"
The answer is this: All the silver coined
since 1873 has been credit money, prac-
tically redeemable in gold. 1t has not added
q dollar to the primary money of the ma
ton. The more you issue of It in this form
the worse It r. for the stability of our finan-
cial system, if the proportion Of credit
money is already disproportionate to the
quanety Of primary money. What was
needed was its recognition as primary
money, in competition with gold. As credit
money, 1t answers no other purpose.
The Act OF 1873.
But" they say, "by the Bland-Allison
act Of 1878. silver is now full legal tender
money"
The answer is this: BY that act silver was
made legal tender only In the sense that
greenbacks are full legal tender. II was
left crippled by limited coinage. Free
coinage was not given to It, as enjoyed by
gold. None Of those rights were conferred
on It enjoyed by gold and that are necessary
under true bimetallism to restore parity
In commercial value between the two
metals. Nor was full legal tender given to
II. A clause was inserted:
UNLESS OTHERWISE PROVIDED IN THE
CONTRACT"
This gave the money power an opportunity
to continue their war on silver. The coun-
try was flooded with notes for you to sign
! payable in gold, and when the law thus con-
ferred the option on the creditor, as to
vhith metal he would demand, another law
/ IN binetall!sm was violated. Where before
1873 the debtor had the option. gave It to
I the weaker metal. II either was, and thus
maintained the commercial parity, the
Bland-Allison act gave the option to the
/ creditor, who would always demand the
dearer metal, and the dearer it became the
more apt he would be TO demand II. In
stead of the government debating what
was money by this act, the creditor was
allowed to dictate, and since then the
money lenders have bound this country
and Its people up in billions Of dollars worth
OF bonds, notes and mortgages payable in
| gold. The debtor. as a rule, has no option,
/ when ne goes to sign note tor borrowed
money. Al such a time, money Is such
necessity to him, that he Is putty In the
hands Of the money lender.
! Nor does he, as a rule, know that he Is
assisting in piling the demand on gold
and further increasing its value He Is
hopeful and expects the tomorrow to take
cure of itself. When he goes to pay the
debt, he finds that dollars have risen and
that prices have fallen. and that he has
to give up more Of his property than ever
In exchange for gold, or its equivalent.
Improved Facilities
| They say improved facilities and pst
/ demonetization Is responsible for low
! prices.
! The answer to that Is this: From 1850 10
1873 was a period OF great Improvement In
Inventions and improved facilities, greater
/ by far than for the same period either be-
| fore or since. and yet n the face Of i'm
proved facilities, pricas advanced. II i'm
proved facilities have lowered prices since
1873 why did they not do II before 1887
| Cost Of prbducs0n 10 not what makes
prices.
What makes pHees Is this; Il 10 the
+ relative quantity II the two, money srd
property. and the demand for each
The Qusnsits OF Money.
They say we have as much money noe
Per capita as in INA The answer Ii rblss Il
is true we have In gold and al forms OF
credit money a. much per capita as We had
m 1879 But over two-thirds Of this money
Is credit money, and less than one third
Is gold or primary money. II Is Therefore
topheavy. II shakes confidence In Il all
Primary money fiIes the sea level Of Prices,
ard will support oaly an equal Vaantity
Of credit money: any greater Issue Of credit
money does not hslp the situation. but on
the contrary, n IL harmful. We hevv less
than one-half as much primary money
now as we hca per cspta n Ha
We have only haA es much sound money
now as IN is1i When you consider
the money hoardsd Up In bank vaults
not to go again in circulation. except In the
form Of loans. which is hurtfu. there Is not
10 exceed five dollars per capita in clroula-
ton to-day m the United States Il Is not
money to loan that gives healthy tone to
business; II is money-seeking investments
-purchases-that benefits trade.
Cost of Producing silver
They say 1t costs less to produce silver
now then formerly, and that makes It
cheaper. When q man makes that state
ment to you. put this question to him: Does
1t not also cost equally less to produce gold?
Wages and wageEarnerA
They say wages have not decliped.
Store clerks in the city Of Chicago In ls73
got 3l2 a week. about an average Of that
They are now getting on an average about
six dollars a week.
Unorganized labor has fallen proportion
ately. 1t is only organized labor that has
held up prices. and 1t has done that in two
ways: One IS, that organized labor Is
among the irst-class mechanics where ex-
| ran,,irad ha a,.r,niv ~ h. :