The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1896-10-15
The Loss to Them Will
Be Many Millions if
Bryan Is Elected.
A BLOW TO THEIR WORK
The Great Shrinkage That
Would Come to Their Vast
Property Used For Be-
nevolent Purposes.

III free coinage of silver Is adopted, in
yestnlents in securities will bring much
smaller return, estimated at about one
half Of the present gold value. Bryan and
his followers, noting this fact claim it will
only hurt bankers and the rich, whom he
calls 'goldbugs
There Is another class of "goldbugs' Of
whom Mr.. Bryan has nothing to say who
will suffer disaster if the free coinage tick
ct is elected, and they are the churches
and their pastors.
The salaries of pastors, especially those
who are engaged in missionary work, are
fixed, not to insure luxury to the preacher
and his family, but upon a basis of mere
existence, and the sums thus paid many
preachers and missionaries in the Protes-
tant church only enable them to supply the
absolute necessities of life.
Ii free silver prevails, the cost of living
will probably be double what it is now,
All commodities necessary to keep life in
the human body will largely increase in
cost. Atthe same time church investments
will depreciate, and with contributions
falling off, it will not be possible for the
church to increase the salaries of preachers
and missionaries to correspond with the
increased demands made upon them by
the free silver prices.
( N0talone, therefore, will the "goldbug'
banker suffer from the depreciation Of val
ues which the success of Bryan and his
ticket viii bring upon the country. The
poor generally viii feel the panic that will
surely come 1000 times more than the
rich and well to do But no one or no class
will suffer greater distress, even to want
and poverty, than the preacher and mis-
sionary, whose lives are always self deny
ing to wonderful degree,
y The Methodist Church.
Let us, for example, take the effect up
ON the finances of the Methodist Episco-
pal church. The invested funds in the
United States in Methodist church prop
erty arc S109, 2S4, 066 and in church par.
sonages SIG, S4S, 1876, a total of S126, 1872,
561. In the shrinkage of values which
will come if the silver party is successful
next November in establishing its SO cent
dollar basis the loss to the Methodist
church in these two investments alone
would be over 63,000,000.
The net capital of the Methodist Book
concern is So, 1906, 952. The mission of the
Methodist Book concern is not to make
money, but to print religious literature
and send 1t to every part of the earth, to
shape thought and mold character after
the divine pattern Its profits are paid to
the annual conferences for the benefit of
needy preachers 1t has passed safely the
financial panics of the last 30 years, and
ats credit has been equal to any emergen-
cy. But if the free silver fallacy prevails,
the shrinkage in the value Of the invested
capital Of this, the largest religious pub
Fishing house in the world, will amount
to $1,69S, 476, and its work will be para
lyzed, If it is not thrown into bankruptcy
According to the report in the Metho-
dist Year Book for 1896 the contributions
from that church in 1895 to missions,
church extension, hospitals, homes for
aged, womens home and foreign missions,
freedmen's aid, educational and endow
ments, etc., were s20,059,4 40.
Under free coinage the shrinkage from
these various charitable funds would bt
over $40, 900, 900, This vast sum of ovel
$4,000, 600 was raised by contribution!
from church members, the average being
about $40 to each member. If this CRANE
missionary and charitable work is kept up
each contributor will be called upon, unde
a free coinage administration to give S2t
yearly instead of $40
The Baptist Churches.
The Baptist church. as well as all otho
religious denominations, would feel thi
shrinkage if the Bryan ticket should win
The invested funds of the American
Baptist organization for ministerial re
lief, educational institutions. home ant
foreign missions, etc, in 1895 W 22,
$50, 629 In the shrinkage of V 1h
nmcoinak 1Iarty is successfX q