People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1896-09-17

d>SlSueu DIS Ul6 cause OF ndrQ times
we say that every panic, and every
period of financial distress in this
country has been preceded by a con-
traction of the currency, or by an un-
stable currency, such as bank issues.
The remedy he offered was protec-
tion. II we had protection from 1861
to the present time, and still have
come into the conditions that con.
fronted US in 1892, and confroutS us
today, how can protection be a
savior for us now?
The Senator says it will start the
mills, and they will manufacture
goods, but what will they do with the
goods? If the people cannot buy to.
day, how will they be more able to
buy when the mills make more goods?
But it will make more men who
can eat was the argument. TIE farm
ers all remember the prices of 1889
when we had the last Republican
administration, and was living under
the protective policy, how that corn
sold for 10 cents per bushel. They
were then told that it was over pro-
duction. They have heard such talk
as often under protection as under
tariff for revenue, and they cannot be
caught with such old bate. They
also know that the period from 1889
to 1893 was harder for them than the
period from 1885 to 1889. They know
that under the Mckinley bill times
grew harder and that the times were
harder under the Harrison admins
tratiOn than under the Cleveland
administration preceding it.
We are very much afraid his medi-
cine is an old dose, and has no efficacy
Tor these times. The patient is sick
and the medicine has proved inefec.
tual.
His argument against free coinage
was also very peculiar. la the
nrSt part of his speech he ridi-
culed the idea that the government
could create values, and that men
really outside of the asylum had ad-
vocated fiat or irredemable money.
Yet in showing how much silver they
mad put into circulation and the diff.
ference between their policy and free
coinage, he upheld the fiat theory as
strongly as any man has ever done.
de claimed that every silver dollar is
as good today as gold. because the
government is back Of 1t. And with
out a line of law today making that
silver redeemable in anything, he
made a good greenback argument.
With silver bullion worth 50 cents,
the government puts 50 cents ad.
ditioDal value into it, what is the
matter with it going as far as it
pleases?
He exploded the theory at COVER.
ment would rob itself by free coinage,
by what is saying what is true that
the coined silver would belong to the
man who presented it, and the gov.
eminent would take no greater risk
than to coin it. Then under his argu.
ment the silver miner would be the
loser. The man with silver assumes
all the risks.
Then if free coinage would still |
hold silver bullion down to debased |
price, the miner would be very foolish |
TO advocate such law for his pro-
duct.
But the silver men such as Senator
Jones, Teller and others have shown
US very clearly that if we give silver
the same privilege as we do gold.
silver will rise to a par value. The
Senators justification Of the acts of
1873 and 1874 was also quite peculiar
for one advocating the gold standard
today.
He said ''silyer had gone out of
coinage because it was worth more
than gold" we just stopped coming
it, and went to buying it. His prices
quoted show how clearly that silver
fell because Of the law killing its
coinage rights. II it was good policy
in 1873 to demonetize the dearer
metal, then why would not the same
policy be good today? His argument
that you cannot have bimetallism
with the tree coinage Of both metals
seemed strange in its conflict with
Ill the standard authorities of the
world, Take his argument as an
example that gold would 60 into hid.
ng. How could gold be valuable il
lot in use? How long would il he
Until it became the cheaper metal?
A useless metal would soon become
ieoased in price. We answer that
rec coinage would be the only way to
AID that the dearer
metal by failing to come to the mint
or coinage W0uld soon fa1 a. ,