The herald., 1896-07-23
GOLD FOR THE CLASSES,
SILVER FOR THE MASSES

apparent progress is sun eHuOWeu Will
an inherent nature closely allied to COM
mon animal life-the big fish devouring
the small. is clearly portrayed in the
present political contest-so seriously
confronting us today of the classes
against the masses.
Step by step along the line of smiling
fortune-from the "well-to-do man"to
the oft times millionaire-with the few
est exceptions we find them loyal to the
cause of the single gold standard From
the blissful hours spent on Easy street"
on the apex of Mount Millionaire, made
hazardous to ascend by special legisla-
tion, we find the classes looking down
upon the masses in the sweltering val
ley of toll, whose burdenSare made the
heavier correspond1ngly by the same
special legislation. Content upon this
contracted peak of a single gold stand
ard? Certainly-why Motif viewed
from selfish standpoint. To mystify
the correctness of this statement we
find many to sustain their theory, upon
whom fortune has not smiled; who either
with the hope of crumbs from the rich
mans table by political preferment, di-
rectly or indirectly, or under the thumb
screw of debt, or so very loyal to party
as against principle that they would
vote for the yellow dog" if on their
ticket-and thus we find the war raging
today, the classes for gold against the
masses for silver.
But underlying this surface outburst
OF political excitement there is conceal
ed mighty power, equal to that -
hind the button, which when touched
produces the electric light in your room
or moves the street car. 1t is the power
that utilizes the politics only as one of its
mediums to strengthen and perpetuate
its forces. and that power is combined
wealth and corporate power" radiating
from great dynamo in London: its DOS
tive and negative forces are felt in this
country through a sub-station on Wall
street, with financiers, manufacturers
and railroad magnates as the positive,
with the producer, the small merchant
and the laborer as the negative. Through
politics
They shift their scenes to please the eve
Results .like the spider and the fly
Four years ago they brought the Dem
ocratic party upon their platform, but
the masses at the late Chicago conven-
tion gave strong evidence of denuncia-
tion OF the actors In the meantime they
had found it necessary to shift the scene
to Republicanism The single gold
standard is the same, with a tariff side
show, and thus they come before the
people willing 10 crown any party with
the laurels of office. They reserve the
right to dictate that part Of the play re-
lating to finance and tariff. And now the
curtain is about to rise. shall the play be
Tor the classes or the masses? The voter
is to decide.
You do not find it necessary to read the
Bible through to know whether it is
wrong to lie or steal; nor will you find it
necessary to be led astray by reading
all the volumes and columns devoted to
technical details on primary money pa
per money, fifty-cent dollars and hon
est money. First of all we need honest,
patriotic men-their need is made so
very apparent by every condition
around us. Do we need any better proof
that something is going wrong" than to
look at the poverty stricken, mortgaged
FARMER whose produce is forced upon
market far below cost? Is it not true
that if our farmers (who are the granite
pillars upon which we stand) are forced
to do business upon gold basis, with
silver at par, that the foreign buyers
will only buy our bullion and use it at
par in silver standard countries; and we
must stand the discount If we sell our
farm produce
Listen to the words of an honest pat
riot, James G. Blaine, in the United
States senate in 1880: IT believe the
struggle now going on in this country
and in other countries for a single gold
standard would. if successful produce
Widespread disaster in and throughout
tiiC NpiiiiIlClCidI NOilQ. ne u6SlFucIlOn
of silver as money, and establishing
gold as the sole unit of value. must have
a ruinous effect on ali forms of property
except those investments which yield
fixed return in money. Those would be
enormously enhanced in value and
would gain disproportionate and un~
fair advantage over every other species
of property. If. as the most rela BILE sta
tistics affirm, there are only 81, 900 900, 900
of coin or bullion in the world, very
equally divided between gold and sill
YER it is impossible to strike silver out
of existence as money without results
that will prove distressing to millions,
and utterly disastrous to tens of thous-
ands."
Il believe gold and silver to be the mon
ey of the constitution; indeed, the money
of the American people anterior to the
constitution which the great organic
law recognized as quite Independent of
its own existence. No power was con-
ferred on congress to declare either
metal should not be money. Congress
has. therefore, in my Judgment. no pow
er to demonetize either If, therefore,
silver has been demonetized ] am in
favor of remonetizing it. If its coinage
has been prohibited I am in favor of
ordering it to be resumed I am in favor
of having it enlarged" And because he
could not be handled by the corporate
power" he was not nominated for the
presidency. I was a delegate to the
Democratic national convention in 1880
when nearly the whole party wanted
Mr.. Tilden nominated-but Tammany
could not control him. The people We're
not at that time "pinched" by poverty
and aroused at the coming storm as they
are today-it was party, not principle
and the convention was compelled to
yield to the dictates of New York
which state has always dictated its
financial anG tariff plank in the Hemo-
cratic platform, and we, therefore.
should not be chagrined at the remarks
of exGov. Flower, that "it is crazy
quilt ticket, headed by picnic orator
to serve western brainless fools" IT is
possible that in November the voice of
the people may teach him why the late
Chicago convention walked upon Tam
many Hill and plucked the fading Flow
er that would not bloom in the western
garden.
1t is plain to be seen why the states
embracing the ports of entry on the
eastern shore, through which most of
our imports and exports are handled
favor the single gols standard. Their
financial and commercial interests are
more in touch with foreign countries
than with our middle, western and
southern states-and this is why Mary
land, which has always been a LOYAL
Democratic state, has joined her forces
with Pennsylvania, New York and the
New England states. They have thrown
down the gauntlet of defiance that
money counts" We believe that votes
also count. The grand and noble Hen
ry NJ. Teller has sounded the bugle Of