The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1896-10-24
TRUE T0DEM0CRAcY
Continued From First Page.

the means to do it, but this government had
enacted law saying to the nations and the
peoples of the earth that when cur citizens
go abroad to bring from foreign lands the
capital that is necessary TO develop cur coun-
try. for every 100 cents of capital they Dor
row they shall receive in payment the full
value cent for cent and dollar for dollar zap
plause) and since 1884 have practically
adopted that standard of measuring the
value of money which has been accepted by
the commercial nations OF the world zap
plause) the gold standard. renewed APP
plause), and have said later. adopting
what has been practically the case, We have
said, in terms, sir. upon our statute books,
that the gold standard shall measure the
value of our money and all other dollars
shall be made equal in value to that. tAp-
plause) And in consequence sir. of this
pledge-fOr it is solemn pledge of faith of
the government-not only for the government.
but for the honest people Of this country.
mat when they go into the world and ask for
capital, for every dollar they receive in gold
dollar in gold shall be returned in payment,
with the interest stipulated to be paid in
the same coin. (Applause0
The faith of the government. the faith Of
the people, is pledged TO redeem these prom
1ses. And yet, sir we hear from today
from one end of this country to the other
We hear a party which is from amongst US
insisting that the government shall violate
Its faith. that ii shall diShonor itself before
the peoples OF the world and make this ma
uon by-word and shame before all the
nations Of the earth. They say sir that we
must not redeem the honest pledges that have
oeen made by our government; that the peo-
pie who ihave borrowed money with which
these railroads have been built, by means of
which your country has been developed they
say that those debts shall be repudfated and
mat our people and our government alike
ShaIi be dishonest (Applause) We hear sir,
mat doctrine preached from one end of this
country to the ether And when hear cries
as have heard. for the candidate who rem
resehts this idea. | say that it is natural that
the man who favorS dishonoring his country
should cry for the man who represents that
pEnelple. Great applauseD
-NOW, MT Chairman, in what way do these
~ Sn'leL lls propose to bring dshonor upon
lIiIS country and upon this people? Thev
sS9 mat we shall no longer have gold as
the STANDARD OF measurement: that we bavo
borrowed gold and have promised to nav dol
IA IoI uoliar, cent for cent but that instead
OF redeeming that pledge we shall mako
cheap dollar which shall be worth only hsIf
OF ina which he borrowed and shall paw our
SIeuiIofs IN this debased coin 80 cents only
Tor the hundred cents that we borrou-ad ~
99SEelop our country and improve our in
Not only that, sir but thew proDose that
ne honest working man of this country, who
Tolls and does a hundred cents worth of
tapoF, shaH De paid only 30 cents in value for
I'D IyV cents worth Of work. That is the
great benefit that they propose sir; to be-
STOW upon the people of this country
ana what does that mean practically? Who
are the benehciaries of this system proposed
n
QetaH, you will find this: They propose The
free and unlimited coinage of silver at the
ratio OF 10 to l. applause and hisses.) That
IS right, ! want you to see what YOU are
applauding. | will explain it to YOU all
daughter and applause, he who believes in
Del oe1ng a. dishonest as said just now ought TO
OF dishonesty. (Applause)
DEMOCRACY AND HONESTY.
When Jefferson discussed this question of
O UyhaO oil of a.
OF the country were discussing the question
OF the mint ratio Of silver and of gold it
was the opinion of every honest man at that
tIne-that when the government put its
stamp upon coin those coins should have an
equal value in all the markets of the world
(Applause) That was Democracy and hon
esJy then, 1t Is Democracy and honesty now
(ApplauSe.)
1t is now proposed when it is known that
the ratio of silver to gold, instead of being
TO to l is actually 80 10 l. it is now Dronosed
IN violation of the purposes attempted by all
honest people heretofore, to debase our coin
and stamp upon the dollar a lie (app!ause)
ana you gentlemen who advocate that, whose
voices near pronouncing in favor of it.
consider what you doing. You claim that
this is new question it is as old as cvili-
Zation the questions which you are discuss
ing today, the policy which you gentlemen
insist on forcing upon this people, was the
policy pursued by arbitrary monarchs who
boo years ago and later sought to- defraudL
their people for their own benefit. ZAP
plause.)
Those of you who read history and learn its
lessons, know that 500 years ago Charles V. of
france, finding that his people were corlplain-
ing because they had not honest currency
amongst them, finding that there were tumults
amongst them, and complaints and dangers
TO him.elf and his government because they
had not an honest money, called to his coun-
ellis some of his ablest men to consider the
condition of things and to teach them what
remedy to apply. Amongst Others he called
that able man, deeply studied in the sciences
OF that day, Nicholas Oresma who wrote
treatise on the subject of coinage and demon
strated fact which all subsequent history
mas proven to be true that it was impossible
to circulate side by side in the same country
TWO coins Of the same denomination but of
different market values; and, moreover, he
administered lecture to his prince, saying
that you, sir, with all your power. have no
right to place upon a coin a stamp which in
dicates a value different from that which it
possesses in the opinions of mankind zap
plause), for, said he Ito do so is to fasify
the stamp, which thus becomes a liar and it
Is perjury and bears false Witness" Ap-
plause.)
What was true then, sir is true today and
those gentlemen who advocate the Is to l
principle, the 50-cent dollar, insist that this
goVernment-which has heretofore been hon
est-shall stamp the lie upon that coin in the
interest Of the owners of the silver mines.
(Applause.) And those who favor that sort of
fraud ought to cry for the representative Of
that fraud.
Now, my fellow citizens. what does this
mean to me and what does it mean to others?
Of unequal market or commercial value can
not circulate side by side together the less
valuable always drives out the more valuable
of the coins.
France is country which has been pointed
to by bimetallic friends as a country
which has succeeded in maintaining the ratio
of values between the coins. 1t is a country
which has attempted to do it; it has honestly
tried to have the silver and the gold circulate
side by side with each other but they recog-
nized the principle of honesty ever since the
OTpSm9 cf
stamp the truth and not a falsehood upon
their coin, and in order that the might
circulate side py SIDE france IN the course
of the last 800 years. has changed its ratio
S9i times in order to maintain the parity. In
the course of ten years, in order to cure this
defect. they changed the ratio over 100 times
but with all those changes they have been
unable to maintain the parity between the
metals where there was not single standard.
WHAT FREE COINAGE MEANS
As l asked just now, who will be the bene-
fciarieS of this system of free coinage that
is proposed? What does free coinage at the
ratio of sixteen to one mean? There are diff
ferent opinions. My friend referring to one
who was disturbing in the rear of the halD
perhaps has a few. because they vary very
much-these gentlemen-in their interpreta-
tons of this doctrine. In part of my
state in one county, they had an idea (Which
some OF you, doubtless, entertainf that it
meant that the government, this
law was enacted would send pots and kettles
Of silver around to be distributed among
the people so that when they stumbled out
of their doors in the morning they would
stumble over this money pot which the
good paternal government had provided over
night So much was this opinion entertained
in one county in my state that some time
ago they had public meeting, and after
transacting other business, the people con-
sidered that they would provide for the good
time that was coming when this free coinage
law should be enacted. and selected an old
Baptist minister long a resident OF that
county, and who had a reputation for great
probity. as the agent to receive and distrib-
ute among the people honestly, the free