Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1896-07-17

the north in Richmond, the south an
swered back: Let US have peace; peace
union and liberty now and forever
LAS the majority of the democratic par
| ty is not sectional neither does 1t stant
for any privileged or class legislation. The
active business men of this country, its
manufacturers. merchants. farmers, sons
| of toll, in counting rooms, factories, field
and mine, know that contraction of cur
| rency sweeps away with silent and rest
| less force of gravitation the annual pro-
| fits of their enterprise and investments.
| They know, too, that the gold standard
means contraction and organization OF
! disaster What hope is there for the
country and what hope for the democracy
unless the views of the majority be adopt
ed. Do not the people know II was not
silver legislation but legislation by
that has caused and now causes
financial depression? DO they not know
that their demands were made upon de-
mocracy in 1898 and the Sherman law re-
pealed without substitute the very states
of the east that demanded 1t turned
against the democratic party who granted
1t and swept away their majority in
torrent of ballots. II the silver men had
their way then instead of the gold mono
metallists what storms would here today
be implied upon their heads. but the peo-
ple applying the power of memory and
their arrested prosperity, need not go far
to find them.
''They do not forget when the demo-
cracy came into power in 1898 that 1t in
herited from its republican predecessors
the tax system and currency system of
which the Mckinley and Sherman laws
were the eliminating atrocities 1t came
to power amidst the panic which ttly fol-
lowed upon their enactment with strikes,
lockouts. riots and civic connections. while
the scenes of the peaceful industry in
Pennsylvania had become military camps.
Besides manifold oppressive features, the
Mckinley law has thrown away
fifty millions of revenue derived
from. sugar under the special plea
of free breakfast table and substituted
bounties to sugar planters. thus decreas-
ing the revenue and increasing the eX-
penditure. thus burning the candle at both
ends aud making the people pay at least
double for the alleged free breakfast.
From the Joint operation of the Mckinley
law and Sherman law. the adverse bal
ance of trade was forced against rs in
1898 The surplus of Sioo'Wo,oo
in treasury was converted into
a deficit Of s7OOO,O0O in 1894
and engraved bonds prepared by the re-
publican secretary to borrow money to
support the government were Ill omens
of the recognized ruin that awaited the
incoming democracy and depleted treas
thorltes OF the ill-stared Sherman law
makeshift were already at the confession
al upon the stool of penitence and were
begging democrats to help them put out
the confiaEation of disaster that they had
themselves kindled. SO far as revenue
to support the government was concern
ed the democratic. party, with but slen-
der majority in the senate, provided it,
and had not the supreme court of the
United States reversed its settled doc
trine of 100 years, the income tax incor
porated in the tariff bill would long since
have abundantly supplied it.
"RespeC ting finance, the republicans,
populists and democrats, while differing
upon all ether subjects. almost had united
IN 1892 for Il n ng our system Of b.metal-
lism. BY republican and democratic eff
forts the Sherman bill was swept from
the statute books the eagerness to rid
the country of that republican incubus be-
ing so great that no prudent effort was
made to provide substitute. In the very
act of the Sherman law repealed it was
declared to be the policy of the United
states of American to continue the use of
both gold and silver as standard money
and coin them in dollars OF equal intrinsic
and interchangeable value. The republi-
can party has now renounced the creed
of its atform and presented to the coun-
try an issue of higher tax more bonds
and less money. 1t has proclaimed, at
last, throwing away DISCUSSES, for the
British gold standard
THE money question Is the paramount
issue before the American people and 1t
involves true Americanism more than
any economic issue that ever was pre-
scented at election. We are not on any
gold standard, but we have a disordered
and miscellaneous curreny of nine va
rieties, three metals and six paper pro
ducts for the most part of republican
legislation rendered worse by treasury
practices begun by republican secretaries
and unfortunately copied by their demo-
cratic successor. (Applause) Then con-
slider the facts. gentlemen. federal, state
and municipal taxes in this country are
assessed AMI paid by the standard of the
whole mass of money in circulation. No
authority has ever been conferred by con-
gress tor the issue of any bonds payable
In gold but 1t has been distinctly refused
The provision made by the Bland Allison
act of 1876 added to our circulation $780,
900 600 of standard silver money or paper
based upon it, and all that mass of silver
money sustained at its parity with gold
by nothing whatever on earth but silver
and its legal functions impaired to it by
law. (Applause)
Payabte in Coin.
I'VE have no outstanding obligations of
the United States EXCEPT the sum of Si4.-
100000 gold certificates, which are spe-
sllicdlly payable IN gold, ana they, OF
course, should be paid in gold. All our
specie obligations are payable in coin,
which means silver and gold, at the gov
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 upon
gold, and that the gold dollar is not the
unit of value is demonstrated by the fact
that no gold dollar pieces can. under our
laws. be minted. If we should go upon
gold standard we must change the exist
ing bimetallc standard in payment of all
public debts, taxes and appropriations,
saving alone those specifically payable in
gold. As We have twenty billions of public
and private debts. it would take more
than three times all the gold in this coun-
try to pay even a years interest upon it,
We should be compelled, hereafter. to
contract the currency by paying off $500.
100000 in greenbacks and Sherman notes
in gold, which would nearly exhaust the
entire American stock in and out of the
treasury, and the same policy would re-
quire that the $4,000 600 in silver certih-
Gates should be paid in gold also. as fore
Swallowed by the present draft upon the
country's stock of gold. This means an
increase of the public debt by 800 0b1 600