The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1896-08-26
REED ON COINAGE
Opening Of the Republican
Campaign in Maine at
Old Orchard.
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PRICKS COINAGE BUBBLE
The PallaCieS Of the Bryan Craze Are
Pointed Out in Simple and Com
prehensiVe Language by the States
man from Maine-The Cry Of
False Prophets Interpreted.

Old orchard, Ne. Aug. 2j.-rhe politi-
cal event in this part of Maine was the
speech delivered here today by Hon
Thomas l.. Reed. 4 large crowd had
assembled to hear the distinguished Re
publican leader and his speech. which
was followed throughout with close at
tentiun. was received with many out
bursts of applause.
Mr.. Reed said in part:
IF this nation follows the silver peo-
Ole what sur" fOnthold is there any
where? Has any nation ever succeeded
in what We are asked I" undertake? No.
Has any nation ever failed? Mexico,
supported by the great empire of China
with 400. 100000 of people has failed to
lift silver above its market value.
am we'll aware that we are mishtier
than Mexico or China or both com
bined But we ar" not omnipotent We
are only part of the world. We tried TO
fix the price Of sreenhacks by calling
hem Il dollar. but never one of them
was dollar until 1879. when we prom
Used To give II dollar and back up the
promise with a hundred millions Of
gold
fHlltl me SllNtT I'Ii fNlF'i SiiN''
under free coinage to go to par or they
Ito not. IT they do. the have not one
single fact on which To- depend. All hu-
man history is not only against it but
overwhelmingly 50. Re- over-valuatioh
of silver by three cents on a dollar drove
all the gold ont of the country for sixty
years once in its history, what will
Hfty cents of over valuation do" Why,
il Is clear as mathematics. We shall
then be ON Il silver basis, whatever that
may be, II We get there, the basis will
either be stable or unstable If ii Is
stable what Improvement viii that
be? Are there any more potatoes in
four pccks than in one bushel? Are 1873
75-cent dollars worth any more than
100 lOO-cent dollars? Does a dollar gat
amy more valuation by changing it into
coppers? But suppose the new stand
ard is unstable what will happen then"
Well, human experience is here 10 tell
you.
TALK DOESN'T CURE HARD TIMES
Neither loud Indignation nor howery
speech. neither great promises nor wild
haraneues will help any man out of
disaster or any nation out of hard
times. Temper will not even unite
shOestring. and the harder you push u
What are the causes of prosperity,
and what are the causes of panics? Are
they mysterious things beyond human
ken? If you will analyze you will find
that whatever the remote causes are
and they are different every time, the
immediate cause of prosperity is the
confidence of all the people in each
other and in the situation in the flu
ture. When the people all work to-
gether. when they all have faith in
each other. then prosperity reigns.
After prosperity reigns for some time,
longer or shorter, men think hard times
are permanently done away with, and
get wild and over-prOsperity sets in.
Then some wise men earlier than
than others see that the world cannot
permanently support the enterprises
which the over-conidencc of men has
set in motion, and begin to doubt, to
refuse discounts. to hoard money and
call Il halt to speculation. Then the dis
trust spreads. and panic and hard times
follow. Then We set to work to climb
out of our troubles and the process is
slow. While we are climbing out we
suffer. What lovely period the climb
out season is for quack doctors in fin
ance and professors of oratory.
How they swarm. Haven't you and
| seen them in this very state of
Maine in this very county OF York?
How did they pour in upon us in 1873!
What great career Professor Leo Mil
Ter had under these very skies, Where
Is Professor Leo Miller now" His name
has perished from off the earth. and
with him have passed into oblivion
many hundreds of stout orators. who
veXed the air with the cry that fiat
money alone could save this ruined
Il AZ
then just as we will be saved now, not
by orators or professors. but by the
sound sense of an honest nation These
things are not without a parallel His
tory is full of just such situations as we
find ourselves in now.
WE MUST Do OUR OWN WORK.
Is il not clear as MONDAY why men
do not lend capital and why men do
not undertake enterprises? / do not
say that silver agitation is the only
lion in the way. | believe that the laws
must be SO made that the American
people shall do all their own work.
In due time ! mean to discuss that
Just now our first duty Is with the silver
question. My friends. 7 have said many
times and | cannot repeat il too Of
ten. experience is the teacher Within
this very twelve months We have had
, W
and what distrust will do
In December. 1895. this very year.
there was i revival of business hope
The iron business. one of the great in
dices of prosperity. having in many re-
spects good tariff schedule began to
revive. Some other industries followed
suit and a temporary hope went Owe.
the community. One great steel COM
pany had orders six months ahead. Its
stock rose from 40 TO 50. Men who
knew best purchased II at 80. and
thought It worth 125. Confidence be-
| gan TO show itself. Then came Vene-
zuea, and then what Senator Brice
! called the petition in bankruptcy fol-
| lowed. Confidence died. One day the
| iron mills had business beyond power
| of suppling wants. The next day they
| had none. Reasonable certainty makes
! business: uncertainty Daralyzes IL.
| In 1879 we resumed specie payments.
| We had suitable tariff laws. The found
| alton for certainty was laid. Capital
lists. savings banks. all who had capital