The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1896-05-19
WHERE THE TREE-sILVhRlih WILL
LAND.

a,s4,,cuisbed free-silverite has saiU
nc cannot go with the gold
,.,,osr because they would rob the peop'o
80 cyorvthing they have, and they cannot
90 with the Populists, because tn'y
want 70 make money out Of nothlns' ANU
therefore. their money would be worm
thin He proposes, therefore, ''"'
Democrats shall flock by themselves oue
On INST which limb of the tree he Wou'1
have them to roost is not PLAIN
II certainly is a fact that a s0'u-
e,a,dard man and Populist represent
two extremes. The gold-standard man
...... ,,,or. can no more be two stand
ards of value of different values tld1i
,,era can be two yardsticks or diiier-
ent lengths; that as we must nave one
standard Of value, and gold Is best
adapted TO the purpose, gold ought 10 Dc
that standard. and that all promises To
nag money must be Immediately CONVEX
tible into the standard whenever money
&c demanded. The Populst says that
there is no money except that which Inc
Government stamps as money, that the
value of money lies in the Government
stamp. and not in the material when
composes the money, and, therefore, when
the Government stamps piece Of green
paper and calls II a dollar. or when II
stamps an oak leaf and calls II dol
lar. the green paper or the oak leaf really
becomes a dollar. There is undoubtedly
as wide a distance between these two
as there Is between the North and the
South Pole. and as free-silver Demo-
Gratis are looking for middle ground on
which 10 stand they can certainly find
footholds at thousands Of intermediate
points.
We can't. for the life OF us, see why
they take the particular point represent
Cd by the ffty-cent silver dollar There
was the copper dollar which they might
have taken as their resting place, and the
iron dollar, or any enc of several other
dollars which are not really dollars but
which will do Just as well to call dollars
as the nfty-cont silver dollar. We can't
understand, therefore why free-silver-
itc II he was going TO leave the real
dollar. should turn up his nose at the
Iopulist and scornfully say he would not
go with him 10 the point at which he
has planted himself. One can under
stand the Populist. He is either a very
wicked man, who wants 10 rob great
many people Of what belongs 10 them.
or he is a experimentation sort OF
crank-a kind of Colonel Sellers-who
thinks that form is really just as good as
substance when you get used TO II. But
the Populist. though very ridiculous, IS
from his premises. logical. He SAYS. aban-
don the idea Of money depending for its
value upon the value Of the material that
oomposes 1t. and. having token that
position. he logically says money need
have no value at all. But the free-sllver-
tie. while joining him in saying that
the value of money does not depend upon
the value OF the material that composes
Il; foolishly stops short OF the Popu-
lists conclusion. and says he will make
money to consist in part OF the value Of
the material that composes IL and IN
part Of the moonshine Of which the Popu-
list says II should entirely consist.
The position of the Populist is the only
logical one for man that starts out
upon his 3ourne3. and n Il GaiRa 70 ma