Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1896-10-13
apprehension OF a possibility, what
would be the effect of the event itself"
A PLAIN TALK WORkINGMEN
The A. h. OF the silver Question.


Let us not get mixed up with COM
pick matters in connection with the
free silver idea.
Let us not befog our brain with ar
guments about the crime of 1873 or
bother with the many theories which
the advocates of free silver are giving
us.
But let us take a common sense view
of the situation.
NOW, to start with:
Suppose Bryan was elected and the
free coinage act had been passed and
that free coinage was an actual fact.
Suppose that silver could be taken to
the mint and coined into silver dollars
at the ratio Of Is to /.
How would that affect us?
We haven't got any silver bullion.
A whole lot of people who own sill
yer mines have it, and so they could
have it coined into 16 to / dollars, but
not having any ourselves We could not
have a solitary, single dollar coined
under the free silver act.
NNo", oupptSc, uO"SNCl, tudl OH thS
silver mine owners and others who
had silver took it all to Washington or
Philadelphia or to some other United
States mint and had it coined into 16
to l dollars. and
Suppose so much had been coined
that all the silver in the world was
made into 16 to 1 dollars, and
Suppose that every one of these dol
lars was piled in one heap right on the
next block, and
Suppose every single one of them
was worth 100 cents here and every
where
What good would they do us unless
we had something we could trade by
which We could get one?
Well, we have something to trade;
everybody has.
Some have labor. so much for dol
lar.
Some have lumber, so much for a
dollar.
Some have sugar or potatoes or hams
or coal or something else, all so much
for dollar.
We have advertising and subscrip-
tons, so much for dollar.
When We want one of those silver
dollars, we cannot go and take it. They
don't belong to us. They belong to
the men who took the silver to the
mint to be coined.
If We took one, it would be stealing
If we asked for one for nothing. it
would be begging.
If the owners gave us one for moth
ing, it would be gift.
If we borrowed one, it would cost us
interest, and so
Most of us, to get one, must trade
labor. lumber, sugar, coal, advertlS-
ing or something to get it.
This is absolutely and honestly so,
isn't it.?
Well, being so, why do we take any
chances on the dollar?
We can get sold now.
1t is worth 100 cents on a dollar
everywhere.
So we have supposed the silver to
be, but
Suppose it isn't.
What then
What is the use Of taking chance
unless we can do better? A silver dol
lar won't be worth more than 100
cents, will it?
We are getting that now.
Let we'll enough alone.
Some say duty compels a democrat
to back up and vote for democrat.
You have Bryan's word that he is no
democrat. Let him deny that he said
it.
Some say it is pretty bad now. We
might as we'll take chance. 1t can't
be worse.
What kind of tomfoolery is this?
Are things bad in business way?
Let us tell you something to try.
Vote down this crowd of regulators.
Tell the world in trumpet tones in
November that we want the best
money, that we will take no other, and
business will revive.
Let the capital out that Bryan and
his followers have scared under cover,
and prosperity will come.-Lumber
Trade Journal.