The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1896-03-04
Benson, MINI.
POOR KNUTE,

Another After His Scalp-Blaine VS.. Nelson.
Editor Representative.
have just read Senator Ringdal's reply to
Senator Nelson, and he lays out the giant
corporation attorney in fine shape; but in
his earnestness he missed giving us the COM
edy portion Of Nelson's speech.
After such beating some one should play
the good Samaritan and as we are too poor
to use oil and wine on Tory's wounds
please allow US to pour on little brine.
In Nelson's now celebrated farce comedy
the United States senate, the gentleman held
up IN American dollar in one hand and two
Mexican dollars in the other. proceeded to
state that he could buy as much with the
American silver dollar as with the two Mex
lean lean dollars Then striking a tragic atti-
self thus: Because the American silver liver
dollar has gold dollar behind it," What
bray! What a splendid Illustration of the
power of the fiat dollar, as against silver
bullion!
The gentleman seems to have forgotten,
or did not know that our silver dollar
stands on its own fiat base, the same as the
gold dollar does; that, though demOnetized
in 1873, 1t was remonetiZed in 1878 by the
Bland law Though not given free conage);
and TT, that our secretary of the treasury can
gold, but being the henchman of a British
tory he will not do it.
Nelson seems to have omitted to state also
that Mexican dollars in this country are now
only silver bullion. How proud the great
state of Minnesota must be of her junior
senator, the ass in the lions skin. Here is
the lions roar. In 1864. James G.. Blaine,
in speech at Skowegan, Me-, pulled pa
per dollar out of his pocket and asked his
audience; What is this S?r "a dollar And
mechanic. the merchant, and everybody.
What makes it good dollar? Because
every dollars worth of property in the
United States is behind it and the lifes blood
of every true and loyal citizen is behind it,
and that makes it good dollar
Is it any wonder that such an illustration
vCa1 to- 1no Try,tt tod Not
ate? 1T must have caused almost as much
mirth as Tilman's speech did chagrin, and
even at this distance l can see the. "crit-
ter's' ears sticking out and his tail wag
while he brays. Here is another roar from
the lion of Maine, in 1878, in the silver dis
cussion which resulted in the Bland law:
question to bimetallic monometallc
standard, my own views are sufficiently in
Dictated in the remarks have made. / be-
lieve the struggle now going in this
country and in other countries for single
gold standard would, if successful, produce
widespread disaster in and throughout the
yer as money and establishing gold as the
sole unit of value, must have ruinous eff
feet on all kinds of property, except those
investments which yield fixed return in
money. These would be enormously en-
HANGED in value, and would gain dspro-
pOrtionate and unfair advantage over every
other species of property. 1t is impossible
to strike silver out of existence as money
without results which will prove disastrous
to millions and utterly disastrous to tens
of thousands. 1 believe gold and silver coin
to be the money Of the constitution: indeed,
the money of the American people, anterior
to the constitution which the great organic
law recognized as quite Independent of its
own existence"
What a prophecy, and what different
roar from the genuine lion to the ass in his
skin. Hal ha! Let the cobbler stick to his
last" Our Knute made a much better cor
poration attorney than he dos United States
senator. james Arnold.
Vesta, MINI.