The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1896-09-09
REPUBLICAN EDITORS



morning. The venerable John ILOpley,
OF Buceyrus. was In the chair, with
Colonel II. L. Blown. of the GAINESVILLE
Courier, vice president. and C. u. Nc
Coy, OF CoslNcton, secretary. An able
paper on the financial question wasread
by II. 7. BOylen, OF the Cincinnati
Commercial Tribune. The editors will
call on Major Mckinley at $3.50 p. III.
The feature OF the afternoon session OF
the Republican Ohio editors was an I'D
dress by Hon. Charles Emory Smith.
editor OF the Philadelphia Tress. and
eX-minister 10 Russia. Mr.. Smith elO-
quently said In part on "The campaign
Of education:
at is a high privilege and distinction
10 address this notable body In this
memorable year on this interesting oc-
caslon. | am fully sensible OF the hon
or you do me and beg TO return my
grateful acknowledgements. When JET
ferson said that he would rather have
newspaper without a government tlMn
u government without newspapers, he
Indicated the vital part which newspa-
pers play under free institutions. That
was u hundred years ago. They We're
then printed with all the limitations
OF the hand press with only the !ntre-
quent mall us their feeder and only
the stage coach as their distributor.
To-day liberty Is their Vital breath.
but the telegraph Is their nerve center
and the railroad their arterial cIrcu-
lltlon. Government has expanded and
population multiplied twenty fold; but
newspaper circulation and resources
and influence have multiplied a thou
sand fold. A hundred years ago news
papers were sentInelS at the outpOsts.
To-day they hold the central citadel as
leaders and exponents; they are the
very life-blo OF free discussion.
Horace Greeley was the greatest
controvcrsialist and moral force the
world has ever seen In the editorial
profession, but Whitelaw Reid with
consummate skill, organized and d.
rected a far more complete and pro-
SreSslve journalism. Thurlow Weed
was an unrivallcd political oracle and
seer, but Charles A. Danna, master
OF every weapon. wleldS n rapier or
fires q gattIlng broadslde OF which the
leader OF the preceding generation new
er dreamed. James Gordon Bennett.
the elder. raced the pony or flew the
carrier pigeon. but James Gordon Ben
nett, the younger. speaks to two con-
tlnentS at once.
THE journalism of the Interior Ohio
town surpasses that OF the metropolis
thirty years ago. and the great news
papers OF New York. Philadelphia, Bos-
ton, Baltimore. Cincinnati Cleveland.
Chicago and ST. Louis have grown in
calculably In scope. resources, ex-
penses. profits and power.
"rhe Intimate connection between
politics and journalism suggests the
thought OF the hour. This IL pre-eml.
nently campaign Of education. 1t Is
thus peculiarly our campaign. The
journalists are the real educators. The
thousand men hear and u million men
read.
1T IS true there are great text books
from the masters. There Ia n new
Adam Smiths Wealth of Nations"
with American applIcation:a new Bun
yan's "Pusrim's Progress" through
the Slough OF Despond OF Democracy
and up the Hill of Difficulty: new
Baxter's Saints Rest" under assured
Republican restOrItion. The other
titles Of these masterpieces are Will
lam McKinley's COMPLETE POLlT-
ICAL ECONOMY OF open MILLS
FOR FULL LABOR RATHER THAN
OPEN MINTS FOR FREE SILVER"
BENJAMIN HARRISON'S "SATIR-
ICAL REFLECTIONS on THE AB-
SURD1TIES OF A BOY ORATORS
IDEA OF INDEPENDENCE OF THE
LAW OF GRAVITATIOS." AND
THOMAS Il. REEDS OLD ORCHARD
"PLUMS OF POLITICAL PH1LoS-
OPHY."
But the old text books are eXpounded
by the professors In the class room and
so the new text books are edited with
notes and index and daily elucidatlOn
by the school masters OF journalism.
eve must first educate ourselves. We
must educate the people In elemental
principles. We must educate them to
understand thnt we cannot have two
standards OF value any moro than two
standards OF weight or length. In our
modern civilization the function OF mo-
ncy AS 4 measure of value Is even more
important than Its function rs 4 medi-
um of exchange. Our exchanges ug-
grcgate sixty thousand millions a year,
but our money In circulation Is only
fifteen hundred millions. The bulk OF
the exchanges i9 effected with checks
and other Instruments OF credit. Hut
though money itself IL not exchanged
nl exchanges are measured In the dol
lar unit OF value. and the security and
safety OF the whole volume depends on
the integrity of that dollar unit. Just as
the safety OF every sale Of cloth de-
pends on the Integrity OF the yard unit.
You can make yard stick Of wood or
OF ivory. but they must have the same
length. You can make u dollar Of gold
or silver, but they must have the Sumr
value. You sell cloth and measure the
dollar quantity In yards; you pay and
measure the amount in dollars; and
whether sou measure IN half yards
called yards or In tifty-Cent dollars
called hundred cent dollars, the trans
action is equally fraudulent md dis
honest. Our existing coinage standard
Of value Is the hundred cent gold dol
lar, free silver coinage would make our
standard the iifty-Ccnt silver dollar.
and that Is the reason why II would
be crime OF reputation, dishonor and
disaster.
We must educate the people that gov
ernmcnt ilnt cannot make money. The
government stamp weighs and ccrtliles.
but does not create. Money Is OF two
kinds. real money and representative
money. Real money has intrinsic val
uc e1unl to It's face. Representative
money IL a promise to redeem In renl
money. The gold dollar IS real money,
because 1t IL worth one hundred cents.
whether coined or melted. The paper
dollar Is representative money because
II Ia Himply a promise 20 redeem In II
real dollar. Its vnluc IL not In the
stamp, hut In the fact that the stamp
pledges a real dollar behind 1t. Tho
present silver dollar Is particularly ana
partly representative. II has iitty.iiVe
cents Worth OF value. and f0rty-cIGht
cents worth Of fuIth-fnith that the
government viii rulnll It's pledge OF
keeping Il at parity with gold. The
proposed silver dollar under free coin
age would be neither real nor rcprcacn-
tativc. It could not say even with the
papcr.1olnr, 81 know TINT my rcdocm-
lI.tALl, y Es.r. IlLnrn ,nnnll ln In.