The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1896-09-18

QuOoulOb WHoTelH Vie IdrLuSr anu
wage Garner should get together. Un-
less precedent and example are to go
for nothing, there is something for US
to think about in all this.
Our adversaries are masquerading
under the idea that they are the only
bimetallists. 1t is an invariable rule
that the less valuable coin drives out
the more valuable medium of ex-
change. This is too well known for
anyone to dispute. If you have two
pieces OF coin, one worth two cents
less than the other, you will pay out
the cheaper dollar and keep the bet
ter one. If you adopt free silver, $780,
100000 of gold will drop out of sight
like the rain that fell in Mankato to-
day. That would be the greatest con-
traction of currency that ever &C.
Cured in the world. Where are you
going to get the silver to fill this void?
l disagree with many men, for l do
not believe that the bimetallic cOun-
tries will let their silver come to US.
The worlds product of silver last year
was but 5000, 100000. If we were to
take it all, there would be great tenn
porary distress for three years. Mr..
Bryan admitted this in his speech in
New York, but there are some dis
asters so temporary" that death
intervenes before they subside.
The mermaid ticket, with one head
and two tails, would Have paper money
issued to take the place of gold. That
would drive out silver, the same as
silver would drive out gold, and there
would be another gap to fill. This
latter must also beJilled by another
emission of irredeemable paper cur
rency, and with such start eXper-
fence teaches us that paper money
would be issued ia illimitable guam
titles. Where then would the country
be?
At this point. two election tele-
grams from Maine to L. P. Hunt
were received and read by Senator
Davis. They said that the Republi-
can majority was estimated at $4,000,
gain of 10000. The reading of these
was interrupted by applause. and
great cheering followed. Senator
Davis said that here was the verdict
of the intelligence of great farming
manufacturing and fishing community
on the important questions of the day.
Talk about aggregations of capital,
the most colossal gathering of this
kind in the country is that of the
silver mine owners. There was never
more astute political trick ever
played on people than that at the
dictation of the silver barons, when
they pushed down the tariff issue and
tried to bring about a condition where
by they can sell their silver product
worth &c cents an ounce in the market
to steady purchaser for S1.29.
Is any man going to turn coin bonds
into the treasury and receive certlfi-
Gates drawing two per cent less and
payable as these gentlemen would
have them? l say that there would
be another issue of bonds. Does any
one want to 60 back to the bond issu-
ing condition during the civil war?
Haven't you been told by every
Populist speaker that silver has been
demonetized, was demonetized in
1873? l say, that statement is not
true. Not single piece of money
since the days when Abraham with
300 sheckels of lverpurchased cave
to bury his dead, has had it's value
taken from it by legislation. A law
was passed that the United States
would cease to buy silver at $1.29
when it was onlyi.worth 66 cents in
the market. That is all the demone-
tization that has been done.
The speaker read an official state
ment from the director of the mint,
showing the great, increase in the
VALUE vi SllF0I COlIl III UllC WOl III SluOC
1873. From 1873 to 1895, the gold coin
in the world increased $780,, O00,0 900,
and the silver coin increased over 3d.
2OO,000,000. And yet, they say that
silver was demonitized in 1873. Why,
the increase in silver was greater than
all that was ever previously coined
since Noah left the ark. The act of
1873 was not Recommendation of silver,
but a statement to the silver mine
owners that their product was not
worth as much as it was formerly. 1t
was like any other overproduction in
it's results.
There is another kind of money so
great in extent that figures are almost
incapable of expressing it. 1t is the
system of credits, as carried on by
checks Ninety-five per cent of the
monetary business Of this country is
carried on by credit, and only five per
cent by money. In one week, the
clearing house business of the country
recently footed up over $500, ZOO, 900.