The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1896-10-26
MIR. BRYAN TO WAGE FARMERS.

Az through this campaign the stumbling
block which the Populists have had in
their attempt to corral the labor vote for
the cause Of free silver has been In the
natural inquiry addressed by the inteiIi-
gent wage Garner, IF free coinage doubles
the price of everything I buy. wherein do
benedt?" This inquiry has been stu
diousiy evaded. The inquirer has been put
of with some rhetorical flourish about be-
he has been warned that his employer will
attempt to coeree him; he has been told
that there II to be q magical form of pros
perity which viii follow free coinage, by
means OF which the wage earners wiz all
get rich and their employers all get poor,
but the question as to how he will benefit
by having the purchasing value OF his
wages cut squarely in two has never been
answered. The nearest approach to an an
swer. however. is that made by Mr.. Bryan
In q recent speech at Hammond. Ind, In
which he said:
If under free coinage your dollars will
buy only half IS much. that means your
employers would get twice as much for
what they produce-twice as many dollars
as they do now-and IL your employers get
twice as many dollars as they do now.
then they can pay you twice as many
dollars for your wages as they do now"
Does 1t not strike the wage earners a be.
Ing somewhat singular that their employ
ers should almost to q man be enlisted
against q policy which. according to Mr.,
Bryan. will give them twice as much for
their product as they are getting now?
Under ordinary circumstances, would Il
not be natural to suppose that men who
business all their lives. who started as day
laborers. ard worked their own way I'D to
the ownership OF manufacturing plants
employing hundreds OF men, might be
presumed to know better whether a pro-
posed financial policy would double the
price OF their product. than a pennlless
country lawyer. withou. a days business
experience. and whose financial knowledge
mus: have como to him by intuition. IL at
all?
But leaving this question entirely to one
side. how does Mr.. BryGn's argument
strike them? Is II 10; exactly .antamoun,
TO saying that the first result OF free coin
age VIII be the cutting OF the purchasing
value OF wages one-haif. This vii result
in giving the vario-s producers so much
additional profit that they can afford to
pay their men better wages.
Has any la5orsng man. any wage Garner,
ever lived under conditions so nearly ideal
as those suggested by Mr.. Bryan. wherein
manufacturer. forced 20 pay doubls
prices for his raw material, but who Also
receives a double price for his product.
Immediately donates to the men working
for aim al the additional proas.
Precisely the conditions proposed by Mr.
Bryan could readily obtain. without. legls-
isiion, BY the simple process OF al thu
men in the United States agreeing TO work
for half wages Il makes no actual differ
ence whether the reduction be by cutting
the wages il TWO or by cutting In two the
dollar which pays them. Half the present
wages would buy precisely al much, under
thu present coinage system. as whoss
wages would under free colnag. according
10 Mr.. BFyan's own statement. " the en-
rloyes wish to make their employer. .
present of half taelr wages on Mr. Bryan's
theory that thereby ;hs employers would
voluntarily restore wages TO ths old figure.
.hey can Try me experiment. either by
voluntarily reducing their wages. or By
voting Tor Bryan and FIRE. silver.