The McCook tribune., 1896-08-21

your national debt lhcro nave pech ~ Etc"S
many battles fought again gold. hut goii nus
won every time Gold never has compromised
cold has made the world rcsrect it n ] the
time. The English people once thought thoy
could get alo ~ without gold for while, ont
they had to come back to IL
.On June 1. 1874. Senators Jones and Stewart
and all the representative and sonnt RS Oh Ih'
silver states were urgent and honest IN slyins
that COLL was tho best and only standari OF
yalue, but they changed their minds when tho
largely increased and ins reasins pr 'duction OF
silver In Nevada and other states redu,ei tue
market value of silver below that of gold "a mo
est abl he'd alto of sixteen TO one. linen tney
wanted market for their silver. Thes wanted
to pay existing debts aud obligations con
tracted upon a gold basis IN silver but took
care in their contracts to stipulate for the pay
mont of gold in than. and thi has been an is
nov the general practic, in the silver stairs
During this period silver rapidly fell IN
market value below gold ut the ratio OF sixtion
to I. Prior and subsequent TO ls7- many
changes ware made in coinage by the leading
countries of the world Germany in 1911
changed its standard from silver to gold
France Italy, Switzerland and Belgium uad IN
1852 entered into a treaty called the Latin I'M
ion to which others iecame parties an 1 by
which tho coins of each of these countries are
received and paid by all of them. This i'm
portant arrangement was first modified and
finally abandoned and gold became the stand
ard of values of tn. countries but IN al. sill
yer was coin d and largely used IA subsidiary
coin p ccis,ly as in tho United States.
Mr.. Sherman here sketched at con-
siderable length the history OF the
Bland Allison act of 1875 and the
Sherman purchase act and it's repeal.
Referring to the bimetallic declara-
tion in the repeating act declaring it
fr, no Of hn Init
to always maintain the parity of gold
and silver, he said:
This &c aratiol m,de by Cong ress nd ap-
proved by the president at time when tho
public mind was centored upon the silver Quis-
ton, is wise staten ,nt of public pollcJ that
ought to be acted upon without regard TO par
ty divisions This bill passed House OF Rep
resentatives fresh from the people by vot OF
235 yeas and 1l8 nays and tho Senat, b. tho
vote of 43 yeas ag inst 32 nays. This act was
not party vote but it is, L believe the ex-
preston of opinion of a majority of the two
great parties of the country.
"And here, fellow citizens, we ought to stand
/ appeal t. Democrats and Republicans alike.
We are all Interested in having n sounI and
stable currency founded upon gold and silver
We cannot by law hx the value o either metal
or coin o. of any of the articles that enter into
the wants of life.
I'VE had, July I, last in a;tual circulation
among thu people of the Unit,d statey, S., '09,-
u, ,20j. stated by the report of the treasury
department. We had also at that date 3d.
51J.93l in the treasury, mostly gold and silver,
held for redemption of United States notes and
silver certificates. Ali these forms of money
have boon maintained by tn, government at
par with gold and they traval the cir,l3 of tho
world without diminution of their purcha ing
power. Though silver bullion has fallen to
nearly one half its former value yet We have
usod it AMI maintained silver coins made from
it at parity with gold at the ratio of 10 l.
But now we brought face to face with a
propos ition which, if dgreeI to. W il make sill
yer the sole standard of valus for all d bis and
credits !o- the wages of labor and tn, pur-
chase and sale of property If the free coinage
of silver is authorized, then the market va ue
of silver bullion becomes the standard for pay
meats on Il contracts made in the past, the
present or the future and 4I2Il grains OF
standard silver bullion, worth now - cents,
can, with frae coinage, be coined into a dollar
upon the demand of any holder of such billion.
The government does not undertake to
its relative value w.th gold. The
government stamps it This is dollar It's
purchasing power is fifty- three cents but it's
debt paying power is one dollar of debt 1t it
the doctrine of tho iopulist and Anarchist,
but it is in direct opposition to the traditional
policy of Jeffers IN, Andrew jackson and the
Democratic party.
1t is sometimes said of creditors that they
are blood thirsty Shylocks, a-istocraIs blood
suckers, extortioners 1t may be that there
an among moaey lenders some m5n who merit
epithets, but the great body of the creditors of
our country are among the thrifty, ndustrious
and intelligent men and women of every com
munity
'One great body of CT EDITORS here is the 3d.
O)O Union soldiers their widows and orphans,
who are creditors of the United States to the
n 1tOO fnr
AMI sacrifices in ths Union army 1t " ould be
an act of perhdy and meanness beyond express
sion for this great country to pay tham with
money of less purchas ng power tn gold roin
merely because the overpro1uction of silver in
the United States has re Iuced the market value
Of silver bullion contained in silver dollar
10 take advantage of this decline in order to
reduce the value of the pittance to those PEN
'loners is worse than to rob the graves of the
lead.
by far the greatest iniury resulting from
The Tree coinage of silver will fall upon tho
Torkingmen Their wages are now based upon
nonej of the highest value upon gold coin OF
standard value. Under free coinage of silver
The value of the silver d dollar will fall to fifty
hree cents in gold, / have already said
he l0) cents Of the gold dollar will be worth
~ cents of the silvor doll ar. With free COIN
'ge of silver every workiny man can and ought
% demand enough silver for his daily wa ces to
mt wages III gold The struggle between
Torkln Zmen and employer will then commence
IN no one knows better than the workingman
low din ult 1t Is to gce an advance of pay We
laVe strikes and strif,s enough now when the
working man gets his pay in gIid coin, or its
quivalent but what will be the condition
when he is paid in cheaper money OF the same
ION nal amount but of less purchasing power7
Every sentn mt of justice will be on the side
# the workingman il his struggle for good
money or increased wages in cheap money.
OF all the evils which COVER ment can in
llct none can be greater than cheap monav.
whether OF coin or pa .er. That dollar is the
est dollar that buys the largest quantity of
ood and clothing. That dollar is the gold
olar. for It buys food a nd clothing than
ny other dollar and will also buy silver dol
ar for fifty hree cents if the coina &c of silver
8 made free at the rItio of l. II | of gold
Experi nee has shown that the United
tates can make the silver dollar buy as much
S the gold dollar. but it can only b, done by
he government buying silver bullion "a needed
nd coming 1t into liars on government ac-
ONT. This hls been crie |.
This matter of tn free coinage of siIyar and
he degradation of th1 stand ri OF vaIue in
owes not only qucs ions of money but of
onor and good faith When their honor is in
Owed. the people never fail to rcsponI They
ave compile with ever promise AMI paiI
very debt contr Ics ed since the orpa,i1atio,