Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1896-08-05
An Organization Effected at
the Court House last Satur-
day Evening. Room too
Small for the Crowd.
HON. JERRY SIMPSON
Makes a Winning Speech in
Which he Successfully Elk
plodes Longs False Theo-
ries of Friday Night.

A Bryan Silver League was organized
IN this city last Saturday evening, Au-
gust LIST. The organization of the
League was not proposed before our
last issue and therefore a notice did
not appear in the INDEX. But the
matter was well advertised by hand
bills and the result was an attendance
greater than the capacity of the court
room, offices and halls of the upper
story of the court house.
The meeting was called to order at s
O'Clock by Hon. Harry Lands who, in
few well chosen words. stated the
purpose of the gathering. He said it
was not for the purpose of landing or
worshlppIng man or party, but for
the purpose of promoting a principle
for the benetit of all the people-free
coinage of silver and the enlargement
of the circulating medium. Above the
roStrum and facing the audience was a
large sized portrait of Hon. VIM. J..
Bryan and whenever the speaker would
refer to this parsonage as the gallant
leader OF the people it was received
with almost deafenlng applause.
After Mr.. Lands concluded these in
troductory remarks, the organization
was perfected by electing DR.. [. w.
Stout president, E. Youmans vice. pres.
ident and Fred Ellis secretary. Presi-
dent'Stout made neat address in &C.
cepting the responsible position as
president of the club and then intro
duced the Hon. Jerry Simpson as the
orator Of the occasion and the man
whom all wanted 70 hear.
Mr.. Simpson was received by the
usual yociferous applause and held
the audience for two hours. He
said he had heard the Hon. Chester 1.
Long make a speech the night before
and he would devote his time chiefly to
answering the arguments advanced by
that gentleman. We cannot give as
much attention to Mr.Simpson's speech
as it deserves but we can touch briefly
on some points. He took up Mr.. Longs
statements one by one and refuted
them so effectually that even republi-
cans admit that many of Mr.. Longs
arguments are too weak to bear inves-
tigation. One of the first of Mr.. Longs
statements was that he would favor
the free coinage of silver if he thought
that the price of silver would be re-
stored to $1.29 per ounce or if he
thought other nations would agree to
the scheme and JOIN with this country
In silver coinage. In reply to this Mr..
Simpson showed that silver, up to 1873,
was worth $1.29 per ounce and that it
was demonstration that deprecated it
and if legislation took away it's value,
legislation in the opposite direction
would necessarily restore that value.
The universal law of supply and de-
mand regulated prices. If there is no
demand for product it is worthless;
II there is demand there always is a
price. In proving this Mr.. Simpson
wanted no better example than silver.
Before decentralization there was a de-
mand for silver and consequently it
was at premium over gold at ratio
of l6 to l. but after it was demonetized
there was no demand, or at least the
demand was very limited, and the price
fell to 6S cents or less. He then took
up Mr.. Longs international agree
ment" scheme and was not long in
showing the abSurdity of such propo-
sition. He thought it was poor patri-
OtiSn for onnnroccvoon 70
such scheme when we remember that
this is the greatest nation on the face
OF the earth, nation of boundleSs re-
sources, a nation which does 9S per
cent of its own commerce and a nation
which conquered the most powerful ma
ton on earth when 1t was composed of
comparatively few trappers and forest
clearers. He asked the question as to
where this country would be today If
the fathers had waited to declare for
freedom until an international agree
ment" could have been obtained; and
why not ask consent of other nations
whenever public improvement is to
be made. He said if this matter of in
ternatlonal agreement were carried a
little farther the republican party would
not only prohibit the increase of our
circulation but they would stop the in
crease of population without an inter
national agreement. This provoked
considerable cheering and laughing but
it was very appropriate way of show
ing how foolish and weak this interna.
tlonal agreement scheme is. Another
of Mr.. Longs arguments was that in
vention and machinery make low prices
for labor and products, but Mr. Simp-
son pointed out the faet that economic
writer's say that inventions open up ay-
enues for the employment of more la
Dor as well as consumption of more
products. He proved this by referring
to railroads and factories, saying that
railroads and factories employ thous-
ands of men now where the less facil
itated industries employed hundreds
then. Mr.. Long said that prior to 1873
1t was a common thing to hear men in
business discriminate between gold
and other forms of currency, that is,
gold was always worth much more than
any other money, but now we have ey-
cry dollar as good as any other dollar.
This. Mr.. Simpson showed to be false;
ii, Il