The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1896-07-09


reversed Its settled doctrine of 100 years,
the income tax Incorporated in the tariff
bill would long since have abundantly
supplied 1t.
Respecting finance, the Republicans,
Populists and Democrats, while differing
upon almost all other subjects, had united
in 1892 in declaring for the restoration of
our American system OF bimetallism. BY
Republican and Democratic efforts alike
the Sherman law was swept from the
statute books, the eagerness to rid the
country of that Republican incubus being
so great that no prudent effort was made
to provide substitute. In the very act of
the repeal Of the Sherman law IL was de-
clared to be the policy of the United States
OF America to continue the use OF both
gold snd silver stand,ard Of monsy rs,a and m
trinsic and exchangeble value. The Re
publican party has now renounced the
creed of its Platform and of our national
pledges, and presented to the country the
issue of higher taxes, more bonds and less
money. 1t has proclaimed at.last, throw.
ing away the disguises of the British gold
standard. We can only expect, should
they succeed, my countrymen, a specimen
Of panic and long protracted period of
depressions. Least OF all, ask us not to
join them upon the money question and
fight sham battle over settled tariff, for
the money question Is the paramount Is.
wolves true Americanism more than any
economic issue that ever was presented to
q president at a presidential election.
The existing gold standard Whence
comes the idea that we are upon itp No!
we are not upon any gold standard, but
we have a disordered and miscellaneous
currency of nine varieties, three of metal
and six of paper, the product, for the most
part, of Republican legislation, rendered
worse by treasury practices begun by Re
publican secretaries and, unfortunately,
followed by their Democratic successors.
Then consider these facts gentlemen:
The federal, state and municipal taxes in
this country are assessed and paid by the
standard of the whole mass of money in
circulation. No authority has ever been
conferred by congress upon the issue OF
any bonds payable In gold but distinctly
refused. The specie resumption of 1870
gave the surplus revenue in the treasury,
not gold only, the money of redemption.
Provision made by the Bland-Allison act
Of 1873 added to our circulation some 35O,-
100000 of standard silver money or paper
based upon 1t, and all that mass of silver
money Is sustained at parity with gold by
nothing whatever on earth but the silver
in 1t and tn, legal tender functions inn
parted to IL by law. Applause. We
have no outstanding obligations in the
United States except the small sum of 4O,-
600, 900 of gold certificates, which are speci-
fically payable in gold and they, of course,
should be so paid. All of our specie obli-
cations are payable in coin, which means
silver or gold at the government option,or
in silver specifically and only. There is
more silver and paper based upon silver in
circulation today than there is Of gold or
paper based on gold, and that the gold
dollar Is not the unit of value Is demon
strated by the fact that no gold dollar
pieces can now, under our laws, be mint
ed. If we should go upon the gold stand
ard we must change the existing bimetal-
lie standard of payment of all public
debts, taxes and appropriations, saving
alone those specifically payable in FoId.
AS we have $50, 900, 100000 of public and
private debt il would take more than
three times all the gold in this country to
pay even one years interest upon 1t. We
should be compelled hereafter to contract
the currency by paying off $500, 600 of
greenbacks and Sherman notes in gold,
which would nearly exhaust the American
stock in and out of the treasury, and the
same policy would require 1914, 100000 Of
silver certificates should be paid in gold
also as foreshadowed by the present draft
upon the country's stock of gold This
means an increase of the public debt by
$500 ,00O00 900, with the prospect of s344, ,000,-
900 more. The disastrous consequences of
plate, and the only alternative suggested
to fight for before the people is the free
coinage of silver at the ratio of IL TO /,
(cheers) and the complete restoration of
our hereditary and constitutional system
OF American money.
We pray you, no more make shifts and
straddles Vex not the country with your
prophecies of smooth things to come from
the British Republican propaganda. Ap-
plause. The fact that the European ma
tions are going to the gold standard, rem
ders it all the more impracticable that we
should do so for the limited stock of gold
in the world would have longer vision and
smaller share for each nation. Previous
predictions have been punctually refuted
when prosperity was prophesied to come
upon the uncopditlonal repeal of the Sher'
man law. Instead of protecting the tres
ury reserve, as was prophesied IL would
do, an unprecedented raid was promptly
made upon it and S282, 900, 900 of borrowing
gold have been Insufficient to give guar
antee to its security Instead of causing
foreign capital to flow to us, II has stimu-
lated the flow of gold to Europe, and
greenback notes and the Sherman notes,
which are Just as much payable in silver
as in gold, have been used to dip the gold
out of the treasury of the United States,
and to store it in the strong boxes of the
war lords of Europe. Instead of reviving
business, this policy has further de-
pressed it,
Instead of increasing wages this policy
has further decreased them. Instead Of
multiplying opportunities for employ
ment, this policy has multiplied idlers
Instead of increasing the prices of our
produce, this policy has lowered them, 1t
is estimated about 10 per cent in three
years. Instead of reviving confidence
this policy has banished confidence. In
stead of bringing relief, 1t has brought
years Of misery, and for this reason 1t has
contracted the currency of the United
States "a head for every man, woman
and child since Nov. /, 1893, and with this
vast aggregate contraction the price of
land and of manufactured goods and of
all kinds of agricultural and mercantile
produce has fallen. The public revenues
have fallen, wages of labor have fallen and
everything on the face of the earth has
fallen, but taxes and debts, which have
grown in burden, while ON the other
hand, the means of their liquidation has
been diminished. In the meantime, gen
tlemen, commercial failures have pro-
gressed with devastating effect north,
south, east and west in this nation. The
dividend on bank stocks have shrunken.
Three-fourths of the railway mileage Of
the United States Is now In the hands of
receivers and the country has received a
shock from which 1t will take many
years to recover. Yet, in this distressed
and contracted condition, the new-aedged
monometallists ask us to declare for a
gold standard and to wait for relief upon
some ghostly dream of an international
agreement
But the people now do well know that
the conspiracy of European monarchies
led by Great Britain has purpose of ag.
grandisement to serve in the war upon
American silver money and stands in the
way OF such agreement. With their
credit they seek to enhance the purchasing
power of thousands and millions which Is
owed to them all over the world, and
which you owe TO them. They draw upon
the United States of America for their
food supplies and raw material, wheat,