The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1897-12-30
GOMPERS REPLIES TO GAGE
SECRETARY NOT CHARGED WITH
IGNORANCE NOR EVIL INTENT,

"We," Says President of American Feder-
alton of Labor, Addressing Mr.. Gage,
"Have the Greatest Respect for Your
Probity and Integrity"-Gage Currency
Plan Held TO be Hardship to Labor.
Washington, Dec. 29.-,Samuel Com
pers, president of the American Feder-
alton Of Labor, has replied in an open
letter to Secretary Cages recent letter
taking exceptions to the resolutions
passed by the federation in reference to
Mr.. Cages financial bill. Mr. Gompers
in substance says: I'VE do not charge
you with ignorance, or allege any evil
purpose on your part as implied in your
letter. We have the greatest respect
for your probity and integrity. The
Wage-earners of America represented in
the American Federation of Labor be-
lieve that the position you have taken
in regard to the retirement of our
their interests and they are opposed to
your plan to more thoroughly commit
ting this country to the gold standard.
The evils which have resulted from our
adherence to the gold standard are
those that ever must grow from a dis
honest measure of value.
ANY measure of value that forces an
unjust distribution of the products of
labor, that deprives producers of the
fruits Of their toll and cuts down wages
and profits, thereby destroys the incen-
tive to enterprise and leads to indus
trial stagnation, enforced idleness, dis
tress and public suffering. Anything
that reduces the total money value of
the products of labor must increase the
share of the money lender and creditor
and decrease the share to be divided
among employers and wage-earners. To
increase the value of money must de-
crease the value of the products of la
Dor.
eff our adherence to the gold STAN
dard has caused money to grow dearer
you must admit that the gold standard
has done injury to our people, brought
distress to wage-earners and employers
and discouraged enterprise. 1t is not
alone to a cheapening of the labor cost
ol Dut dlSO 10 dll dCludl dp-
probation of gold, that the fall In prices
since 1872 has been in great part due
AS this appreciation has grown out of
the demonstration of silver, it has in
creased the demands for gold. You
must abandon the advocacy of gold
monometallsm unless you can show
that the demonstration of silver and
the doubling of the demand for gold
resultant therefrom has not caused gold
to grow dearer and prices lower to the
great injury to all the producers of
wealth.
"The retirement of our national
greenback currency and all government
paper money, and the substitution Of
bank notes, would make the banks
guardian over our volume of money,
and SO of our measure Of values; it
would enable the banks working in the
interest of the spectators to cause
movements in prices with great GER
tainty; enable them to depress prices
by contracting the currency and raise
prices by expanding the same, 1t
would make the banks the masters, the
men slaves, and would enrich the few
and impoverish the multitude. Your
plan involves the proposition of the re-
tirement of our national paper currency
and greenbacks, upon which we pay no
interest at all, and the issuance of
bonds in it's stead in the sum of $780,
900, 900, upon which we shall be required
to pay interest"