Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1896-05-28
Until Secretary Foster surrendered

Until Secretary Foster surrendered
the option to redeem greenbacks and
treasury notes in "coin," only little
over 100000 of these notes were
presented for redemption from 1879 to
October, 1891. The general superstition
was that they were to be redeemed in
silver or gold, hence, being legal-tender
no one, or at least very few people, cared
to redeem them. They felt sure they
would get silver if they presented these
greenbacks, and they preferred to keep
their greenbacks. Until October 18th
1891 not one treasury note was presented
for redemption for the same reason.
Secretary Sherman said years before
that he reserved the option of the
government to pay in silver or gold, and
holders were not anxious to exchange
the convenient paper dollar for the
more inconvenient coin.
Under the present operations of the
treasury no relief may be expected, and
there is only one of two things left for
us to do, pay out silver as well as gold
in redemption of greenbacks and
treasury notes, OR retire these obliga-
tions and destroy them, thereby con-
tracing the currency to the extent of
S5O0,OO0,OOO. It is to say safe that the
people will never consent to.the retire
ment of the greenbacks and Streasury
notes until we get something to take their
place. President Cleveland wants to
issue long time gold bonds and take them
up. but why pay interest on bonds to
retire those obligations when they can
be redeemed in silver according to law?
Why retire them at all and contract the
the currency? They can circulate
longside silver and be redeemed in silver
and paid out again if the officers of the
government will enforce the law. This
scramble for gold is permeating every
gold-standard country on earth, and
they are all engaged in death struggle
for possession of what little yellow metal
is annually turned into the channels of
commerce.
To me it is evident that something
must be done, and done quickly. An
increase in the tariff alone will not
remedy the trouble. The imposition of
more tariff duties will not prevent raids
on the treasury. I know Republicans
says that high tariff will cure all evils,
but they will find that until we abandon
the single gold standard and give greater
use to silver, no permanent relief may
be expected. Congressman Mccall, of
Massachusetts, in the recent Republican
State convention there, throws the
gauntlet to the silver men in the fol-
lowing:
sit is due our silver friends to say
that 1T is time we were honest with them,
and give them to understand that we
will not depart from the present gold
standard, and that no further conces-
sion will be made to the white metal"
Every friend of silver, be he in favor
OF free coinage or not, can take issue
with this man who presumes to speak
for the Republican party on this ques-
ton. This may be Mr.. McCall's private
opinion, and it may be the opinion of the
Republicans of Massachusetts, but it is
AOo ohO oOuAouNO VI bA0 AoOpCOlICduS VI
Kansas, and I venture if this spirit of
prescription extends to the halls of the
Republican convention at ST. Louis the
nominee OF that convention may as
we'll chang his harp on a willow tree
No sane man would knowingly vote for
such policy, and do not believe the
Republicans of Kansas and the west
would endorse it.
Give us protection and free silver an
we shall be invincible. Enforce the
laws, and by such enforcement create
that parity that one legal-tender dollar
can be exchanged for any other legal
tender dollar. Anything short of this
is makeshift, and means death and
ruin to all enterprise.
w. E. CARR.