The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1896-06-25

who can do much more than | can for
the party. | shall not assume she posi-
ton of leadership. My decision TO stay
was simply based on the duty of every
person who believes in the party, for its
principles, to stand by and lend his aid
and take his chance when the great
crisis is upon the party. Fundamental
differences of opinion exist inside the
party, marked almost by sectional lines.
The great question TO my mind is
whether the party meets in convention
now, as in 1860, with issues and differ
cnces that are for the moment irrccon-
cllablc For the past fifteen years
leaders of public opinion in the south and
west have been advocating as the great
remedy for existing ills the free coinage
of silver at IL TO l, with or without the
cooperation of other nations 1t has
come to be believed quite generally anu
conScicntiOuSly. \ large majority of
the delegates to the Democratic con-
vcntion have been selected by the people
for the purpose of Incorporating that
doctrine into the platform Of the Demo
cratic party.
"Our people ON the other hand, en-
tircly disagree with these views and be
licve almost universally that it will
bring general ruin to the business and
prosperity of the country. 1t is deemed
a new doctrine when proposed to be in
corporatcd into the platform of the ma
tional Democratic party. 1t is true that
in no previous platform of the party can
it specifically be found. Subsequently
no party obligation heretofore assumed
obliges them to subscribe to it. Under
these circumstances, if the results of the
Democratic convention shall be to cs-
| tabsh, as the issue of the campaign. he
| free coinage of silver ut II ratio of IL
| to |, independently of other nations. in
the intensity of feeling likely to arise
it is to be seriously apprehended that Il
| disruption of the Democratic party might
| occur. Certainly no substantial follow
ing could be secured for the doctrine
among eastern Democrats. They might
not vote the Republican ticket for other
reasons believing that the Republican
party stands for other issues that are
| detrimental to the country, but the
| Democrats in the east would not. III my
| opinion, vote for it,
| ",rhis movement for free coinage pur-
| ports to have for its object the cstah-
| liShment and maintenance of gold and
| silver as the money of the country, upon
equal terms with each other, and at Il
parity of purchasing power. If, by he
proposed measure, that object could he
secured, there would he no substantial
disagreement i'll the party Every ma
| tional Democratic platform that mas
heretofore spoken upon the subject has
declared for both gold and silver money
1t is our traditional policy. But The
maintenance of the double standard al
the present time is not Il question of de-
sire; it is Il question of ability. The
commercial value Of silver has declined
in the markets of the world.
whatever the causes are and whoever
is to blame for the fact, silver has de
clined, and free coinage, now ut Ii to
is the same rs our offering for all tn,
silver in the world about twice what il
is selling for in the market. lnterna
tional exchanges have to be paid il
gold and it would seem plain that if we
under these conditions, open our mint,
to the free coinage of silver and gold n
Il ratio of comparative value which i,
largely ut variance with the commercial
value of the two metals, we must tax,
the entire silver surplus ourselves. main
tain its parity with gold or else we shall
90 to n silver basis.
France in 1873 closed her minis agains
silver and abandoned the experiment
deemng herself unequal to the task alone
and ut that time it was not so difficult
for silver was then on a parity with gol,
ut the ratio in use. and even England
minis in India We're open to the free coin
age of silver. If the experiment of main
tanning the parity of the two metals at
coinage standard was difficult then, i
would seem to be positively hopeless nov
without international agreement. Ger
many, France, Belgium, Italy and Aus
tria believe in double standard and de
sire to establish it, but no one, two o
three of them deem themselves able t
maintain the double standard, even wit
the cooperation of the United States. l
the result of the measures proposed woul