The Louisiana populist., 1897-09-24

contemplated Wy OLleT nOStS. But we
have not the fever. or we, too, would be
preparing a grub stake" for Klon-
dyke
There must be some all-powerful mo.
tive to account for this wild craze,
There can be no result without an ade-
quate cause. Men will lay down their
lives for various reasons. But for this
rest from the winter cold by Ginning
widespread frenzy many causes and
those the most powerful must have
combined And there is reasonable ex-
planation. The people have been read
Ing the literature of the Reform club
and Sound Money league. They have
learned tat civilization depends on the
maintenance of solid basis of gold.
They have heard Bynum say that the
national honor depends upon gold
basis They read appeals from the
sage OF Princeton that all followers Of
Jefferson should stand together for the
protection of the national honor
against TIC assaults of those blind ia
natics and theorists who would destroy
the gold basis" And there are many
patriots. They love their country and
account him coward who reckons the
cost of its defense And these pa
tfiots know there is gold up in the
klondyke regions. They have seen
wan faced pilgrims returning, hugging
lnelr thousands and boasting of the mil
lions left in sight, The increasing
multltudes of the earth must have a
SOUND basis for their money, lest
bynum and statesmen of his ilk be
torn IN spirit because of impending
national dishonor. Here lies one i'm
portant factor in this Klondyke craze
And there are others.
onoer a civilization biased on gold"
nonors must necessarily be heaped up
on those controlling a generous share
OF the basis" Desire for ease and
comfort is natural to man. Love of ad-
mlratlon is its fellow. All laws are
irksome to some people. The power Of
defying all law Is, therefore, a potent
FACTOR In influencing the action Of man.
kind. 1t has happened that under the
civilization Of the nineteenth century
the very rich find no limit to their
powers. They command the nomen-
clature OF the hour. Soft phrases are
mace to dignity their doings. If they
would rob their fellows under cover of
law, they secure the passage of new
tarln. and ca" their plundering PRO
tectlon.' Or if they would prosper un-
aer more dainty industry than vulgar
manufacturing. they bribe legislators
TO give them exclusive monopoly O.
public rights and flourish as bankers,
or owners of trunk lines of railroads,
and call it "inanciering." And with
the wealth thus gained they guide the
consciences of judges and priests, break
Ing ties that bind the pauper class.
Ihey trade wives and part with a por
tlon OF their gold in the purchase for
their daughters Of foreign dude with
title. and the world calls both tran
sactions marriage" They build char.
nel houses of civilization and install
L
therein learned men whose reason
must not operate, and whose eonvic-
lions must be stiaed, and call these in.
stitutions universities. Heat and
cold are as nothing to those favored of
providence who have contributed to the
support OF the nations gold basis"
IN the winter they may seek the ever.
glades OF Florida and give many of
their less intelligent fellow beings a
chance to work by cutting up into small
holdings the monopolized natural on
portunities Of that region. Or when
summer heat spoils the zest of the
opera or of bestfal dinners. they can
cross the ocean and dazzle foreigners
with the magniflcence of the defenders
OF the honor and prosperity of this re.
public.
The whole system is a miserable
fraud. Unless we may gather grapes
from thorns, and figs from thistles. un-
less wrong Is right and right is wrong
then system that unsexes woman and
unmans man is established in iniouity.
Unless there be fault in every natural
law, 1t is the grossest absurdity to SUD-
pose that the more scarce the commod-
ity the more necessary it is for the
welfare Of mankind and the honor of
nations, or that civilization may not be-
save as 1t rests upon an exploded the
ory and barbaric fetish. It is doubt
less true that invention of money has
been of great benefit to the world in ex-
tending productive possibilities. But
the maintenance of the gold basis bv
nations has been productive
Of more misery and injustice than any
other single cause. 1t is a system de-
tended only by false statement and
absurd sophistry. But its most ardent
advocates admit that the world will
outgrow it only when peopled by citi-
zens who equal these wiseacres in
economic lore. This is an assumntion
not sustained by facts. The great plain