Evening journal., 1896-10-02

standard? Ought you not to make it
plain to them that they will receive
back as good money as they paid in,
and not a deprecated money worth
only half as much? (Applausel
But this Is not all: 1.530.O00 persons
have on deposit S1.30O.OOO,OOO in state
banks, trust companies, and private
banks; 100000 persons have on de-
posit in national banks 81 200 900, 900;
] 1857 men and women have $780,
667 900 invested in shares of building
and loan associations. These sums
combined with the savings bank de- .
posits aggregate $4,000, 900 900, and the
number of depositOrs and shareholders
is in the aggregate 10,141, ,244. Even
making some allowance for these
counted twice, by reason of duplicate
holdings, here is a goodly number of
those who make up the bone and sinew
of the country, and who are interested
in its prosperity, who have the right
to demand some reasonable assurance
that their savings will not be cut down !
to one-half or near it of their present J
value by the cheapening of the dollar |
AN UNWORTHY APPEAL.
It is an insidious and unworthy ap-l
peal that Mr.. Bryan makes to the pa |
triotic instincts of an American audi !
ence when he seeks to arouse their I
prejudices in favor of a financial poll !
icy. which it seems he cannot otherwise J
defend. 1t is an appeal to the greatest
ignorance of the greatest number. Be-
cause all of his intelligent countrymen
know that, however strong and brave
and patriotic a people may be, however
ready they may be to give their lives
and fortunes in defence OF national in
tegrity or national honor there are
some things which are not committed
to national keepings, and that a recOg-
milton of that fact in no wise involves
national independence or national
honor. Modern civilization, of which
commerce and trade and intercourse
are the handmaidens, is a growth. It,
was not created by law of one nation or
of many. Laws may hinder or Obstruct
but they never will entirely or in the
long run at all prevent the aspirations
and activities OF a free people from
working out their own results. Such
an appeal will do in China, to whose
monetary standard Mr.. Bryan would
assimilate that of the United States.
(Cheers.)
FARM PRODUCTS AND FREE COIN
AGE.
How prices of wheat and corn and
food are to be raised, if free coinage, as
Mr. Bryan says in his speech already
quoted, will make silver bullion worth
S129 per ounce throughout the world,
he at no time has sought to explain.
He and the other advocates of free
coinage of silver at 16 to 1 have GER
tainly proclaimed to the owners Of
mOrtgaged farms, and other debtors,
that it is in their interest that a cheap
dollar was to be created by law. that
the present standard made a 200-cent
dollar, and that debts contracted to be
paid on the present gold standard could
be paid in cheaper dollars They say
we are a debtor nation and that by free
coinage we will diminish the tribute
we are paying abroad. How can all this
be true, IL, as Mr.. Bryan deliberately
says in the written statement referred
to, the free and unlimited coinage by
the United States alone will raise the
bullion value of silver to its coinage
value, and thus make silver bullion
worth S129 per ounce throughout the
world?" tApplause.)
Falling prices is the burden of their
complaint The cause of falling prices
is said TO be the appreciation of the
gold standard. But if free coinage of
silver at a ratio of 16 to / is, either by
the operation of the law OF supply and
demand or by the mere force of legis-
lative fiat. to bring silver bullion up
from &C cents per ounce to S1.29 per
ounce in gold then the silver dollar will
conform to the gold standard as it does
now, and no cheaper dollar is furnished
with which the debtor may cheat his
creditor, or by which as a standard OF
value prices of agricultural and other
commodities may be raised. (Cheers)
A SILVER MONOMETALLIC BASIS
I assert that the free coinage Of silver
/ at the ratio of 16 to / would at ono,
put this country upon a silver mono
metallic basis. That silver at its pres
ent, or little above its present bullior
value OF about SO cents per ounce
would become the monetary STANDARD
of the country. Gold would disappear
! from commerce and become a commo
f., dity. And all the attendant conse
| Quences of panic, commercial disaster
and painful readjustment to new con
I ditions would be matters of actual ex
perience. The price of all the neces
saries of life would enormously in
crease when measured by the silve
standard while wages would lag in tn
rear, as they have always done in lik
situations
Assuming that the law of supply AM
demand cannot apply in the case of fre
coinage to raise the price of silver Is
worth while to discuss Mr.. Bryan
I ether proposition in his Madisoi
Square Garden speech. that it follow
that legislation can fix the ratio be
tween them" that is, between silve
and gold? No reason or argument i
adduced in support of this absurd prop
osition. (Applause)
You can't transfer by legislative edic