Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1896-09-25
LA.SECRETARY
SEIZURE.
SHOWS CLEARLY THAT FREE SILVER
WOULD MEAN RUIN TO INDUSTRY.

nation-Mr. Eryans scheme to Throw
the Country Into Tits 80 That lie Can
Try His sixteen Ia one onack Medicine
Evil Effects of the Free Coinage Agita-
tion Already Manifest.
Hon. Carl SchrrZ, eX-accretary Of the
interior, addressed an immense audience
in Central Music hall Chicago. on
Sept, 3. Speaking of possible free sill.
ver victory he said:
Consider what the immediate conSe-
qucnoes would be if Mr.. Bryan wee
! elected president, with congress to
match, Mr. Bryan wcpld Of course he
anxious 10 lave his ficc coinage law
! enacted, but that could not he, even if
/ he called an extra session of congress,
until some time IN April or May, five or
! six months after the day Of election.
! But aS soon as on the 18th Of November
| the result of the election was announced
everybody would know that the rarity
of gold and silver would not be main
/ tanned
1t having been made certain by Mr.
Bryan election that the parity Of gold
and silver would not be maintained,
there would be IA rush upon the treas
ury for the gold III il by persons hold
ing greenbacks entitled 10 redemption,
and the gold reserve would be exhaust
ed in a twinkling Gold will instantly
disappear from circulation, to be hoard
ed or exported Why will it disappear:
Because every sensible person when
making payment will prefer TO make
it i'll the less valuable dollar and hold
the moro valuable gold dollar back for
moro profitable use. Gold will there
fore quickly rise to premium, and we
shall be on the silver basis long before
a free coinage law can be enacted. Can
daily transactions in buying and sell
ing, in paying and receiving wages,
will no longer be carried on upon the
basis of the gold dollar worth 100 cents,
but of the silver dollar worth 80 cents
or thereabout, for the government will
no longer hold up the silver dollar to
the value of the gold dollar
The quantity of gold vanishing from
circulation will amount to about $780,
600, 600, the disappearance of which
will make o tremendous hole in the
volume of our currency. But, says the
silver man, there will be free silver
coinage to fill the gap promptly with
coined silver or silver certificates. Oh,
no, my fellow sufferers The disappear
ance of gold Will happen promptly after
the election of Mr.. Bryan, and there
will not possibly be any free coinage of
silver for at least six months, and it
will require great many more months
to fill a gap Of 5000. O00, 600.
What will happen meanwhile? The
St Louis Globe Democrat reports Mr..
Bryan TO have said some time ago: 81
think it-meaning the victory of the
free coinage movement-vill cause
panic But the country is in depIor-
able condition, and it will take extreme
measures to restore it to n condition of
prosperity" Whereupon the st. Louis
paper pointedly remarks, Evidently
Mr.. Bryan has heard Of the doctor who
always threw his patient into fits before
administering any curative medicine. "
Just so.
How, then, would Mr. Bryan's fit"
work? The sudden disappearance of our
gold from circulation would produce
the most stringent contraction of the |
currency on record. Business men who |
owe money and ut the same time have |
money due them will 30 forced TO col
lect H. g, 10y ~ ~ mems al their |
disposal. NOBODY vii le inclined TO |
lend or an E.oney except uron extraor-
dlnarF Guilty. Ihv T. ik- viii nat
ulally coEsi q it H. 4 duty 10 keep |
Themselves s.rong, Gld lcrcf we 70 call |
IN loans 2,i l. ros; rict their iii lunts |
and advances 30 LuSinc Lien with the |
utmost caution. Business ea.aLiish-
ments, manufactures, mercantile !
houses, unao,r 70 -aJtecm0cov for meet
ln3 their obligations will by tnc tul-
dIcds succuHib 20 their oluU..41..s..4llnts
and tumble down like row Of bricks.
Others Will cautiously restrict their OBJ
erations to the narrovest possible limit,
and wage earners by the thousands will
lose their employment and be turned
into the street
How can | foretell these things with
so much assurance: Because they have
already cast their shadows before DO
you remember the crisis Of 1893, when
the silver basis was in sight? And
now again the mere apprehension of
a possibility of Mr.. Bryan's election
and of the consequent slipping Of our
country upon the silver basis has al
ready caused untold millions of our
securities 10 be thrown upon the
market in Europe as well as here.
scores of business orders are already
'ecalled, large number Of manufac-
uring establishments have already
stopped or restricted their operations.
enterprise Is already discouraged and
nearly paralyzed, many works of public
utility by industrial or railroad COM {
'anies have already been ordered off, I
thousands OF workingmen are already
brown out Of employment, gold is al !
eady being boarded, capital is already !
icing sent out of the country to be in
'ested in Europe for safety.
And WHY all tbiSg Not "a tbo c;l-or |