The Philipsburg mail. [volume] (Philipsburg, Mont.) 1887-current, 1896-06-25
LABOR AND FREE SILVER
The Plan Outlined by the Workingmen
of Montana.
AIM TO SEND ORATORS EAST
To Lecture on the Benefits to Accrue
to the Laboring Glasses and Property
Holders Throughout the Coun-
try by Bi- -Metallism.
I'M TO SEND ORATORS EAST

Miners Union, has been spending
several days in this vicinity in the in.
terest of the Trades and Labor Bureau
of Finance, of which he is president.
This is a new organization of the work
ingmen of Butte, and in fact the whole
state, in which everyone will co.
operate. The plan outlined is to send
free silver orators from among the
wOrkingmen societies throughout the
west to meet in the labor organizations
all over the country with their fellow
workmen and explain in pesron the adj.
vantages of the double standard and
to show how by the concentration of
wealth by the single gold standard the
people Of the country are growing
poorer and poorer and the bondholder is
growing commensurately wealthier and
more and more autocratic at the eX-
pense of the general people of the
country.
The plan of organization is outlined
in a circular, as follows:
Believing that the urgent need of
the country at this time lies in the
direction of monetary reform, because
it is principally through the med
lum OF our present monetary system
that business is depressed and labor is
being deprived of its just reward and
realizing that concerted effort on the
part of the people in every section of
the country is absolutely necessary in
order to secure the inauguration
through legislation of that monetary
system which would incline to secure
to labor more just reward, and which
consists in an expansion of the circulat-
ing medium and in the extension of
primary money from the gold to the
bi-metallic standard by admitting sill
yer to the mints coinage free. ana
thereby restoring it to it's full money
function and at the ratio with gold of
16 to one and realizing that great agi-
tation is necessary i'll order to accom-
plish such general and common un-
derstanding of these facts as will secure
this concerted action and as the most
important work to be done to effect
this desired result must be done in
those localities outside of the silver
localities, because those To-
calities are the most populous and be-
cause all the agencies of opinion there
are under the direction of the money
power and as the best means of cOun-
teracting the influence of the gold ora
tors and press is, we believe, to send to
those localities men whose good stand
ing in our own labor unions will be Gre
Dental as to their character and quaifi-
cations and will seure for them re
spectful and attentive hearing.
Therefore, calling upon all members
to consider the justice Of this cause,
the merits of these recommendations
and the necessity for immmediate ac-
ton. we declare the objects of this Or
ganization to be, as far as possible to
provide means for securing and main
tanning members who are qualified to
lecture upon this subject to lecture and
and annex this Bureau of |
Finance as headquarters for the receipt
Of bi-metallic literature in as many
labor headquarters as possible these |
lecturers to be furnished by their union !
with such cards and credentials as will |
secure for them an entry into their re-
spective organizations throughout the
"The board of directors shall outline
4 plan Of operations and direct the
of the lecturers in the field.
They will require of each lecturer
under their supervision that full re-
port Of his work and experience be
made to them not more infrequently
-han once a week. They shall hold
meetings at least once week and re-
port the progress of the work from
week to week at each meeting of the I
Trades and Labor assembly.
In an address to the people they pre-
sent the following:
"The sole aim and purpose of this
lppeal to you is for the common good
md welfare of our country. We have
naugurated plan to call the attention
II the workingman to the only means
We can see to restore prosperity to our
country, and that is through such
monetary legislation as will restore sill
'er coinage to its former place as
primary money, working side by side
With gold on equal terms. This can
,nly be accomplished by the demand of
he workingmen. They have the
'ower and must exercise it if we are to
'e relieved from the foreign financial
ondage that is enslaving us.
THE workingmen are the producers
t all wealth, and money is the measure
f its values. The workingmen are
ot only the producers of wealth, but
through them is the channel for the
istribution Of money and wealth cre-
ted by their genius in brain and
rawn. I
AS money is concentrated into the
ands of the money trust, the rich
assessing gold desire to make it dear
y making money scarce, and as a con-
equence increase its purchasing power. !
"They have succeeded in doing this {
y the demonetization of silver.
"By enhancing the purchasing power l
money all commodities must be cor {
cheapened The principal ]
actor Of cost in commodities is the I
,bOr producing. 1t it evident. when S