The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1896-02-23
No MIDDLE GROU ND.
Nothing Gained by Trying to Legislate
Facts Out of Existence.
Astoria Astorian.


There can be no middle ground between
honest and dishonest money. A dollar is
either a dollar or 1t is not dollar, and the
government that means 10 make an honest
dollar has no hesitation in saying
so. not only in its obligations, but in all It's
transactions, and all its utterances on the
subject.
There can be no middle ground between
a dollar intrinsically worth loo cents and
dollar that Is intrins.cally worth 50 cents.
Tho government may interpose its omln-
potent power and maintain 53-cent dol
lar by practically redeeming 1t in gold, hut
the government that thus degrades its cur
rency necessarily impairs its credit with
the nations Of the world, and paralyzes
business enterprise amongst its own people.
The greenhack is worth its face IN every
section of the world, because it is redea'na-
BILE in gold, and the so-called silver dollar
issue by our minis is accepted in other
countries at nearly double its value, solely
because the government credit Is pledged
20 its redemption in fun. The American
visiting Mexico can buy 80 cents worth
OF goods pay an American dollar to the
seller and receive d Mexican dollar in eN-
change that is intrinsicsily worth 'aoce
than the American coin. IL is simply the
credit of the government that makes the
degraded silver dollar in this country psss
current for a value nearly double its in
trinsc worth.
There are whispers of negotiations in both
the great parties to harmonic on The
money question by yielding much TO the adj
yocates Of cheap money. Both parties are
afraid Of the coming presidential elecrion,
and the leaders of each are trying 10 har-
monize their forces This is simply imposs.-
BILE The free sllyerite believes in nothing
but cheap money. Whatever he may say,
he means silver monometalism, for the
.f -
in this country would bring us suddenly
10 the free silver standard along with the
pagan nations CT the earth, and in open
hostility 10 the civilized nations OF the
world.
our credit would be justly destroyed, our
securities would be sent back upon our
market IN vastly greater amounts than we
have even money 10 pay. and no honest
people on the eartn would trust our gov
eminent. even on the silver basis-that is,
taking cur securities at two dollars for one
to the purchaser-for the reason that the
nation that once defIauds its creditors, or
that permits its people to desraud individ
ual creditors, cannot command the conf
denCe OF fair-minded people in any coun-
try or climate. There can be no middle
ground on the question OF money. II must
be honest or dishonest. and the great par
ties Of the country must IN the next contest
declare either for honest money. or SUBJ
stautally declare against il.
This question must De met in the coming
election. and Ii can be met in but one way.
Parties must he for honest money or
against it, and there are hundreds Of thou
sands of intelligent. faiT-mmded men in
beth parties who VIII regard the money
issue as paramount 10 all. and vote for the
next president solely with reference to the
enduring establishment Of honest money
in this country. in harmony with the money
of the entire civilized world