The Clarksburg telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1874-1926, 1896-09-18

lent Of a declaration that 50.cent pieces
are dollars. They might Just us well
pass q law that so cents Is dollar.
That would not make It so, would 1t ?
1t would be q legal dollar; but 1t would
not buy q dollars worth OF anything.
What Is the effect Of that? The mcr-
chant would take care of himself.
"a man keeps store down here on
Broadway, and that law is going into
operation tonight. He summons all bis
clerks and buys % cents worth Of pen
morning he has marked up his goods to
the new scale. He can do all that. But
there are great numbers Of people, hnm.
berless people, who enlist our interest.
and some of them cnkindle our sympa-
thies, who cannot use the pencil. Take
the work of man. He cannot 30 to tho
pay roll with u pencil and mark II up.
He has got to consult somebody. He
has 10 enter into an argument. He has
got to get some other mans consent be-
fore he can mark mp his wages. Then
there is the pcnsioncr, those that are re-
ceiving pensions from this government
for gallant deeds done In the war, and
Others for the loss of beloved ones. He
cannot take his pension certificates, and
when 1t reads eight dollars make it read
sixteen dollars. He must wait for an
appeal to Congress, and n Congress that
y populIistic in character would be I'M
men who have life insurance. Can they,
where the policy roads 5000. make 1t
40, 600 2 " Can tho managers Of
those inst tutions make II right with
Stliema No. This policy coerces integ.
ritys Applauscl. K
My friends, the men surely do not
contemplnte the rretrievable md extern.
siyc character Of the disaster and ais.
turhancc and disruption which they are
proposing for all of us In all our business
affairs. grcnt aud simple. Take the Ia
boring man; how full of sympathy they
arc for him. My countrymcn. I never
spoke false word to the laboring man
In my life: Great applausc). I have
cncc by appeals to that part of his M
turc that will pollutc The intellect and the
conscience. have believed and / DO
licye today TINT any system that main
tains the prices Of labor in this country.
that brings hope into the life of the la
boring man, that enables him to put by,
tbat gives him n stakc in the good order,
the prosperity OF tho country, is the mol.
icy. that should be our American poltcy.
lApplause.l have resisted in many
campaigns this idcn that a dcbnsed cur
sSsSS .NNuA AiNtp tuS MOTklusU1Un. me
first dirty GRAND that dirty dollar does
is 70 cheat the workingmcn. (Arplause.)
MY friends. II cold Statistical inquiry.
non-partisan in its character, was made
by u committee Of tho Senate in 1890
md soinc following years. The commit.
tee was composed OF Democrats ana Of
Republicans. and they set ont TO study
as statisticinns the relative prices Of com
moditics aud wages ut differen, periods
In the history of our country. This in
vcstigation covered the years Of tho war.
It showed how prices Of goods went IN
and In what proportion labor advanced.
Goods went up rapidly because tho non.
cil process Is quick process. Wages
won't IN laltingly and slowly. because
lilc employer has 10 be persuaded mud
the pencil won't serve.
Now. have here memorandum of
some of those facts resulting from that
investigation. Labor in one period nd-
vanccd 3 per cent: goods, the things
the men had to buy out Of their wages
for their families and their living, nd
vanccd Is per cent. Through another
period the laborcrs' wages advanced 10Y,
per cent, and the price of goods nd.
yanccd 40 per cent. In another period
the wages Of the lnborcr went mp IS pcr
cent. and the prices of merchandise nd.
sanccd 30 per cont. In another peri.