The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1896-08-29

euliar Eoreboding. Tracing the steps Of
1.-the money power that IS shaping the des.
TIMES Of the nations of the earth today
the footprints Of its path are plain to the
students Of political economy. But the
important question now is. Are the com,
con people posted or educated On this
| financial question to act intelligently and
Independently, to restore the blessings OF
| freedom and independence to themselves
and their posterity, or will they be lured
to believe in the shallow sophtstry Of paid
and palnpered agents Of plutocracy, who
are conspiring at the vitalities Of theil
liberties?
| 1t would be unjust to accuse the masses
OF the American people of being Ignorant
or to accuse them Of lack Of manly in.
| dependence when the question OF theil
future liberties is at stake, as well as the
Butler stated in 1885 that he thought the
workingmen Of this republic were sufti-
GENTLY enlightened to act intelligently or
| matters of vital Importance to themselves
but in that he was mistaken. He safd
that the common people are. always folled
on matters of most vital Importance to
themselves. The question of PARTIES OF
! values of metals are subterfuges taken
into discussion on the money question to
deceive the inexperienced mind. The 3d.
900, 900 Of dollars in greenbbacks that were
issued prior to the exception clause de-
basement, circulated side by side with
gold, and what was the commodity value
Of that paper on which the stamp Of the
nation declared 1t legal tender?
BY tracing subsequent acts Of congress
suspicion Is strongly engendered as to the
cause Of the debasement Of the greenback.
The debatement of the greenbacks by the
exception clause reduced their standing as
deprecated them, while gold and silver
apprecba ted in the ascending ratio. Very
soon afterward our present national bank
ing system was devised, which enabled the
monjed barons to purchase government
| bonds at about so cents ON the dollar with
greenbacks and deposit the same with the
secretary of the treasury at Washington
and obtain charter for national bank
and have 80 per cent of the bonds SO de-
posted returned to them in the shape OF
bank notes, made expressly by the govern
ment for their use, along with receiving
interest in gold on the-faall .a1nount of the
deposit, in advance, and pay no taxes.
This being done, the next step necessary
to create a demand for the money of the
banks was to systematically contract the
currency by constgnlng the greenbaek to
the furnace. This scheme was consun1-
mated by an act auth orizfng the secretary
Of the treasury to sell $40 government
bonds and with the proceeds, retire United
States currency including greenbacks.
This being successfully accomplished, the
next necessary step to further the Interest
Of the money changers was the passage OF
an act guaranteeing the payment OF these
bonds in coin. During the session of con-
gress that passed this act, Oliver P. Nor
tom, as we'll as several others, are on rec
ord denouncing the act and claiming 1t
would be foul injustice to the govern
ment and the people of the United States
after selling these bonds on an average OF
not more than go cents on the dollar, now
to propose to make a new contract for the
benefit of the bondholders. Yet it is a sad
and historical fact that that contract was
made which enabled the bondholaers to
rob the people through the government.
Subsequent to this act, as the next step to
enhance the value of the lordly bondhold-
ers' investment and to more firmly clutch
the death-grip on the American people,
was the crime Of 1873, which doubled the
value of the bondholders' bonds by cutting
off one-half of the veritable supply of the
metal that constituted our coin currency.
thus having the people bound by acts OF
legislation to impossible contracts-con-
tracts that were sure to prolong the grasp
of the money power on the people by doub-
ling the peoples Indebtedness.
The refunding act and the specie re-
sumption act were also conducive of ruin
Gus results to the common people. The
horrible losses and ruin that followed in