, 1896-09-04

stood unless these dollars were OF the
same inherent. Intrinsic value that
both of them could not be standards Of
value and both could not circulate.
Why everybody knows that it is essen
.ial that 1.-The length of his stills below
ehe tread shall be the same.
LAW THAT GOVERNS.
Where is she law THAT governs here?
Il is jmst this simple law of human sell
fshness and self-protection thai il you
have two Things. either one OF which
will pay a debt anr one is not ats yalu-
able as the other, You are sure to give
the least valuable one. It Is just upon
ahe principe that a man who can pay
a debt with 81 won't give uwo-preeise-
ly that. So that unless these two
things main ain approximately the rel
ative va1ue or that 165 ounces of silver
is worth I ounce OF gold. you can not
make such dollars circulate together.
The one that is more valuable the mai
will keep lin his pocket. or he will sell
it to a bullion broker. and everybody
will use the other. 1t rs an old law
proclaimed years ago in England by
Gresham that the cheaper dollar drives
the better one out.
1t has been illustrated in Il history
repeatedly. 1t has been illustrated in
THE history of every commercial ma
ton in the World, and anybody of
sense could see why it is so. You
might just as we'll say that if we had
two kinds of bushels the law would de-
clare hat 60 pounds of whaet was a
bushel and 80 pounds of wheat was a
bushel-well, what farmer would de-
liver wheat by the 6O-pound measure
N he had sold 1t by the bushel? Now,
SO nice were our people about this in
|erying to adjust this that they went in
to decimal fractions. We say 16 to 1.
In fact, THAT is not the ratio. 1t is
1898 plus. Now, THAT is the actual
ratio. 1t is SO near 16 that We call it
16, hut idhe men who made our silver
dollar and our gold dollar were SO nice
in their calculations that they went in
10 decimal fractions into thousandths
to adjust lit accurately. Now, what do
these people propose to do? To take
any account Of jthousandths? No.
When the markets of the world fix the
ounces of silver to 1 n of gold,
they propose to say 16.
Well, my friends, there has been
nothing more amusing. and yet I fear
THAT with the thoughtleas 1T may have
been in some measure misleading. than
che repeated declaration OF Mr.. Bryan
that everybody admitted that ,bimetal-
fism was a good thing-'there is nc
debate ON THAT subject, and that the
debate of the campaign has come down
TO this fine point. the republicans say
that we can not have this good dining
without the consent Of England, and
we say we can have 1t ourselves" and
he has endeavored to pivot this great
campaign with its tremendous issues
upon hat pinhole.
WEALTH AND POWER.
We hear a great deal about the great
resources and wealth and power of this
country, and l do not allow anybody tc
go beyond my appreciation of ibhem
But what is Nuhe use of talking about al
that when you do not propose to put
this wealth and power and influence
behind the silver dollar at all. As
things are now the silver dollars tina,
I'VE have are supported by the govern.
ment, and the government that sup.
ports this silver bullion has ISSUED
these dollars on hts own account-noj
for the mine owner-and it has pledget
its sacred honor 1T would make every
one of these silver dollars as good as
gold dollar. An that Is a powerful sup
Port. Without 1t disparity between
these metals would at once SHOW IT.
self in the markets and there would BIZ
some sense in the talk Of our populis'
tic friends indulge in when they SPEAK
of the power OF this government, d
they propose 10 pu. this power be[hinE
Their free coinage. But 'dhey do not
They propose that the men who dis
silver out pf the mines may bring it tc
The mint and have 1t stamped and
handed back to them ais a dollar. the
government having MO responsibility
abouttt. These men would reject with
Contempt the proposition that free
coinage was to some with a pledge on
behalf of the government to maintain
the parity of the two dollars.
But this feeling is well adapted to
touch that prejudice about England
which I'VE people have, but we do this
thing ourselvesa Is Ii a question
whether we do 1t or ask somebody's
consent wether we may. or ask the CO.
Operation of somebody? Not at all ]
win Tell you what this government can
do aEone. It can FIX its money unit.
It a declare by law what shall be the
relative value of an ounce of gold and
an ounce of silver. burt 1t can not make
that CAST declaration good. 1t Is un-
questlonably fully within the power ot
this government to bring this country
to a silver basis by coinang silver dol
lars and making them legal tender.
They can do THAT. Thts government
says you shall take one OF these dol
lars in discharge OF any debt owing to
you for . dollar. Notwithstanding you
may have soAned gold dollars, but 1t