The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1896-09-16

ply is augmented by the offerings OF all the
world2 The loss upon these silver purchases
TO the people OF this country has now been
nearly l50 millions OF dollars.
The dollar OF our fathers. about which so
much is said was an honest dollar. silver
maintaining full parity of intrinsic value
with gold The fathers would have spurned
and ridiculed proposition TO make silver
dollar worth only SO cents stand of equal value
with gold one worth 100 cents The expert
ence Of all nations proves that any deprecia-
tion however slight, OF another standard, from
the parity with gold, has driven the more VAL
liable one out OF circulation, and such expert
ence in matter Of this kind is worth much
more than mere interested speculative opinion
The fact that few gold coins are seen In or
dinary circulation for domestic uses Is no proof
at all that the metal is not performing most
important function in business affairs. The
foundation of the house is not always in sight,
but the house would not stand an hour II there
were no foundation. The great enginery that
moves the ocean steamship is not always IN
view of the passenger, but 1t is, all the same,
the propelling force Of the vessel, without
which 1t would soon become worthless der
elict.
1t may be instructive to consider moment
how the free and unlimited coinage OF silver
would affect few great interests, and mem
tion only enough to demonstrate what q ca
l8mity may lie before US II the platform
formulated at Chicago is permitted to be car
r!od out.
There are now on deposit in the savings
banks OF 80 states and territories Of this Cnion
the vast sum of 81, 900 100000, These nre the
savings of almost a,00O0 900 depositors. In many
cases they represent the labor and economy OF
years. Any depreciation in the value Of the
| dollar would defraud every man. woman and
I,b4 t,hA No. ha1n
dollar Of their earnings when deposited was
worth 100 cents in gold Of the present standard
of weight and fineness Are they not entitled
| 10 receive in full, with interest all they have
| so deposited: Any legislation that would re-
| duce 1t by the value Of single dime would be
| an ntolCrable wrong TO each depoSitor. Every
bank or banker who has accepted the earnings
OF these millions of dollars to the credit OF our
citizens must be required to pay them back In
money not one whit less valuable than that
which these banks and bankers received In
| trust
There are in this country nearly 600 build
ing and loan associations with shareholders TO
the number Of 1S0O,0J0 and with assets
amounting to more than s5OO,010,0O0 Their
average OF holdings is nearly $500 per capita
and in many cases they represent the savings
Of men and women who nave denied them
selves the comforts OF life in the hope Of being
able to accumulate enough to buy or build
homes of their own. They have aided in the
erection of over million OF houses, which are
now affording comfort and shelter for 100000
OF our thrifty reople
Free coinage at the arbitrary rate OF i6
ounces OF silver to one OF gold would be equiv
alent to the confscatlon of nearly half the saw
ings that these people have invested 1t would
be tantamount to war upon American home
makers. 1t would be an invasion Of the homes
Of the provident," and tend directly to 'de-
stroy the stimulus To endeayor and the com,
pensation OF honest toll" Every one of the
shareholders Of these associations Is entitled
TO be paid in money Of the same value which
he deposited by weekly payments or otherwise
in these companies No one of them should be
made homeless because q political party de-
mands a change in the money standard of our
country as an experiment or as o concession
to solhshness or greed.
The magnitude OF the disaster which would
overtalte these and cograte interests becomes
the more stlikingly apparent when considered
in the aggregate. Stated broadly, the savings
banks, life insurance and assessment compan-
les and building loan associations of the coan-
try hold In trust a6 800, 7l7 3Sl, The debascment
Of the currency to a silver basis, as proposed
by the Chicago platform would wipe 0at at
one blow approximately s7,0e3 1856 OF this
sKstosaVo AuSoiuis W suo toioIV " 'Hs ~. ", ~
- poi 49, y. 49, ~ soot
toos 200 ios e.. 49,, ,o.oI 80
the people, and held In trust In THESE institu-
tions which would be obliterated by the tri-
umph OF free and unlimited silver coinage,
would be seven and one-half times the total
value OF the annual cereal crop OF the United
States. The total value OF the manufactured
tcoo ,,o, so gro "a, 300 ur,e os,obliYbrn.r. ~ a
ne, 1T 80 ,,aI,,o 90 ,,o,,, ,,ro,a,I ,,,o,,ls
nn.oi, y - o., trnsa .hroo ;nta,as,s ,Io,a
er,oI 20 az ,,er cont NJ tbie enornors oI,tnrt M
o .ha ~. ni,Tao,i,,, ,nd,strios ~ tho HTrion
va ,,,,,Id 80. Airooti Nc, l thind ~
i.s ,rboIo r,on,,In,ion
oma b,,,,a.od a,d tor.,, -,l,io,, ~ do,,ors
a, on,T,r, oro 40 W. re,s'orors oT tho ioto
p,a. T,'o+ o,,,, ranreso,,ts hIoos sni,ied anS
s,'N,n;,,,,s aHd',roJ ~ nrda, ,n ,,raeor,,o thie
".io,, e., dist.,a,ro,io Tn ,,,ou oosaS
,,otd i ,au,,ons ora aynooS,nn,,,
sn,oII. In so,,, ~ an, oro tbor cvceestye The
I'll ,t, ,,,,5 i,,,ot .,,so -, .h ov,,o, -.
is,1,in,, t., ~, -, -, o,,Id ,.,,n,,izo ca
S,,Ia,, 49,, ,,o ,oo,o r, soc,,ri,, ~ tbo
oa,,nt,',, ,,,niSb ro,bor tbon -oyrortl our vat
,o,5'a, Pnr'' n,S is of t,o
,n,.o ~, ,no,,b, ~, ,,o.a -, on,, ,,,trJotio
o,,isa,, 90 -ha,o,-or rn,;+;o,I fn,,h Nc nort,,
n,,tiI ,hot ,rbteh mo, in corrertion ~ Cbicaco
~ go ,a5 ~, ine,,i, ,ha yIc, ,,
,,,ors -, onr s,r,,,,a tor tbe ,,otional l;fo nv,
nroposinr 10 scale their pensions horizontally.
and 70 nar them hereafter In depreciated dol
lnrs worth only fiftv-three cents each
mn o,,,o,,,,, a,,ai o1J,,ior 20 tho ,,,oroo,,
o,-ana', norood ~ danoSitn.s cnd tr,,s, com
n,i"', &, lotiaroI ,at,ay,,3 ,,,i,,o.a ror,,n o.
boido,s ~ sro "a occ;den, ir,s,,.n 700 nolic;eS
hoIdo., -, ind,,s..foI ,I,,,rnrno ,,,hara ~
do,,ostnS or ne rnr,;r,,ns rn,ta beo
nojd =, ,otG or tie ec,,Ivotent re On enorr,ors
~