Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1896-10-16
BRYAN. WAS HERE.
He Makes a Short Speech
at the Ball Grounds Near
tho N. p Depot.
Bare Assertion That is II
Contradiction OF Existing
Conditions.

The Bryan special train t~4achel
here Mt IL as Tuesday furenst'es- and
the Popocrat caudidate for president
spoke from a stand erected ON the
base ball grounds near the depot.
Judge Sha " intruduced him.
He at once called attention. t. the
fact that ma@y gold men had Il"
gold The statement that many
silver men had no silver wtmald have
been equally true.
He then said that the quantity Ut
money was az important AZ the
quality. He naturally left the I'M
preston that free silver coinage
would make more money in the
country. No free silver country has
or ever had rs much money per
capita as the United States has now
and Mr.. Bryan knows it. There il
no ground for believing chat free
coinage will make more money In
circula ton. aud he did not attempt
to show that it would. He declared
that free silver was in the interests
of the masses. He has always de-
clared the same thing about free
trade, yet the people are adj suffer-
ing now from the wrongs II his pet
Wilsoaf~ German bill. But free trade
promises are at discount ROW, and
the lavish promises are based Oh free
silver this campaign.
He claimed that the opponents OF
free silver said it would provide a
lOO-ceut dollar for the mine owner
for his bullion, while the dollar
would be worth only so cents to the
man who took it from the mine
owner. His own position is no bet
ter, as it is his argument that it will
be u cheap dollar for the man who
sells products for it, but it will be a
good buying dollar for the man who
receives it for wages. lift represents
a small proportion OF products to
the seller of products, it Will repre-
sent a proportionately small pur-
chasing power to the man who &C
cepts it for wages, and buys goods
with it. The method by which the
silver mine owner will profit is PLAIN.
even if silver does not increase at all
in value. Now the silver mine . owner
has TO use 74O grains uf silver to get
a dollar to pay his labor with. With
free coinage of silver half that
weight of silver, or 371A grains will
be 4 dollar. The bulk u expense for
silver mining is for labor, and when
it only takes half as rluch Of the
silver mined to pay the miners
wages as it does now. the other half
that he now pays will certainly be
added to the profits.
He appealed to the masses to note
that the "capitalistic classes" were
against silver. He might have also
observed that the "capitalistic
classes were opposed to panics,
destructive CONGREGATIONS, business
depression and closed mills. All
members of the community are
equally interested in prosperity and
good times, but Bryan would ques-
ton the advlsability of any harmony
with the 'capitalistic classes"
He said that while his opponents
claimed that there was 100000, 900
of gold in the country, the treasury,
banks and known trust companies
held but $3OO,OO0,O0O, and the rest
was 'invisible." Any money that is
not in a public repository is Gin
visible" The same is true Of silver
or paper. The Pcpocrats declare
that if money is in bank it is out
OF circulation, but if it is in the hands
of the people it is "lnvisible.'
What position can any money oc-
cupy and not be acting contrary to
the desires Of these men.
He declared that gold was our
master in time OF peace and enemy
in time of war. During our great
rebellion both gold and silver were
entitled to free coinage, and during
the years from 1861 to 1865, inclusive,
$175, 100000 of gold sought coinage
in our minis, while during the same
time only $195,0OO Of silver sought
our. mints for free coinage. Which
was the metal to most avoid in our
times of trouble? There We're nearly
1000 times more gold than silver
willing to receive the stamp OF
Uncle Sam free when Uncle Sam was
in trouble. Which was the coward
metal; the enemy Of the nation? If
such rant as that from Bryan is
argument. he is using the wrong
metal. During the war we had free
coinage at 16 to 1. and silver then,
before and after refused to he coined
for circulation, and was rightly
dropped from the free coinage laws
in 1873.
Bryan said not one word that
would logically satisfy any man