The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1896-05-09
FOR SOUND MONEY.
Wisconsin Il Strongly In Favor of Hsnss,
Currency.

Currency.
The republicans of Wisconsin adopt
ed the following at their state conven-
ton:
The republicans of Wisconsin are un-
yielding In their demand for honest money.
We arc unalterably opposed to any policy
that will give to this country a depre-
ciated or debased currency. We favor the
use of silver as currency to the extent only
and under such restrictions that its parity
with gold can be maintained"
The financial plank in the platform
of the Wisconsin republicans is not a
slippery one. 1t is q straightforward
declaration in favor of honest money!"
not an equivocal utterance capable of
being construed to suit the views of
the free silver extremists. 1t comedies
nothing to the 16 to / heresy, the OBJ
ject of which is debasement of the cur
rency unit.
Nor does the declaration favor the
exclusion of silver from use as money.
1t is not gold bug" utterance, though
doubtless it will be Denounced as such
by those who hold that everyone who
is not for silver monometallism is an
enemy of the white metal. 1t is gold.
lite" only to the extent of demanding
that silver shall not be used for cur
rency in such quantities and in such
a way as to destroy the present parity
by which the purchasing power of
371H grains of silver in the United
States dollar is maintained at equality
with that of 1922 grains of gold. 1t
does not intimate that we have too
much silver money on hand now, that
the quantity ought to be diminished,
that it might not be increased under
proper restrictions, or that it would be
unsafe to agree ON the free coinage
of silver provided that the two metals
were accorded precisely equal terms
at the mint, the standard coins made
from each being intrinsically worth
their nominal value as expressed on the
face of the coin. So this financial plank
is not. in any proper sense of the term,
a declaration against silver or demand
for discrimination againstit
The republicans of Wisconsin do,
however, stand pledged in opposition
to the demand by the free silver ex-
tremists that the United States shall
adopt free coinage ut q ratio so very
far away from the commercial ratio
between gold and silver that only the
silver would be coined ard circulated,
which would plunge the American peo-
pie into the abyss of silver monometal-
lism, with an abandonment of the pres
emit currency unit and the taking up
with one of only half its value. They
object to such change because they
know the consequences would be de-
plorable, and they have the courage to
state their conviction and resolve in
terms which have no uncertain sound.
This declaration in favor of honest
money, and of honesty in dealing with
the money question, is all the more
praiseworthy as it is in strongcontrast
with some other state utterances, which
seem to have been framed On the plan
of catering to both sides in the hope of
obtaining support from both the friends
OF honest money and the advocates of
q debased silver monometaliism. This
declaration of principle should be fol.
lowed by the republicans of many 9th.
er states. There is no use in trying tc
dodge the issue. The frce-silver ex-
tremists are declaring fatty for free
coinage at sixteen to one, with all the
debasement. reputation, and other
consequences which the term implies.
Their intention is to have such plain
definition of their demand as to catch
the votes of all who are sufficiently I'M
wise to wish for currency debasement.
There is nothing to be gained by dubi-
ously worticd affirmations of desire
for sound money" which can be in
terpreted to read in some other way.
1t were far better to come out emphat-
ically, rs the republicans of Wisconsin
have done, for maintenance of the
parity without depreciation or debase-
ment OF the currency from the present |