The Cape Girardeau Democrat. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1876-1909, 1897-10-30
RIGHT or
20 % ASssdssd By 1Eyan and HIs PeSs-
DeRe Party.

AUG NSkuoSS 4EOoO SooEnAA Va w
tober 1 discusses Q part Of the Chicago
platform which has not thus far -
ceived the attention which t. merits
that part which proposes to take away
the right Of private contract TheJour
nal says that no industry Of any siz,
can exist without the use Of contracts
agreements for the purchase, sale, de
livery Of and payment for goods. II Il
hardly necessary to point out what thii
means in the cordage business"
It then explains how rope manufsc
turers make contracts with brokers
and brokers with foreign growers o.
MANILA, or sisal, for their raw mate
rails. Having made these contracts
they + in a position to make contracts
with large jobbers and rope dealers
Continuing, the Journal says:
Contracts are necessary to the sue
cessful transaction of business upon
any scale above that of the very small
retail trade, where goods and money
pass between buyer and seller simulta.
neously. Mr.. Bryan would, if presi-
dent, give his approval to laws which
would prohibit business men from
specifying what they shall sell goods
for or what they shall pay for goods,
thus seriously restricting the right OF
contract. His first nomination-in Chi
cago-was based upon his acceptance of
a platform which contained the follow
ing plank:
1--WE demand that the standard silver
dollar shall be a full legal tender, equally
good with gold, for all debts, public and
private, and we favor such legislation as
will prevent for the future the demoneti-
zation Of any kind of legal tender money
by private contract
His populistic nomination in st.
Louis carried with it this plank:
I'VE demand such legislation as will
prevent the decentralization of the lawful
money of the United States by private
contract
POSSIBLY the United States supreme
court will uphold such legislatioo-it
sustained the validity of the legal ten
der act-and-what? Mr.. Bryan does
not tell the people whom he addresses
~tri-daily. When he gets near the sub
ject it is only TO say something like
this:
when anyone tries to give you ar OBJ
ject lesson with a Mexican dollar, tell him
thai the Mexican dollar is not legal n
in this country and that our silver dollar Is,
and under free coinage will continue to be,
and no one will be allowed to contract
against it.'-W. J. Bryan in Newark. Sep
TENDER 2S.' .
This not only shows the purpose of
the man, but also gives an intelligent
man a very clear conception of Ar.
Bryan's skill as q logician. If he knew
anything at all about commerce-the
likelihood of which he so glibly talks OF
interfering with-he would know that
the execution of his plan would cause
an instant cessation of commercial ac-
tivity, which would be followed by d
resumption upon 4 restricted and an
tiaue basis Methods which the COM
mercial world discarded generations
ago world have to &c brought into use
for carrying on business under the cnn-
ditions which the adoption of Mr.. Bry-
ans two absurd propositions would i'm
pose.
Where would thu hemp come from
for next years binder Irvine to tie the
farmers wheat? The United States,
where silver dollars worth less than 100
cents woa1d be legal tender. could not
furnish the material All prices now
quoted are for gold No matter How
much farmers wanted Irvine, wien it
was no longer possible TO make u con-
tract TO Fay gold or its equivalent fDr
hemp. they would fnve to go without
II until some cumbersome method of
barteriDg was devised TO get around
the law. Of course. in time the hemp
would be secured and'the farmers sup
T!ied. but the new way of doing bust
ness would BE more costly. In the end
The consumer pays all costs. Hencethe
farmers would have tosubmit to higher
prices for binder tuine, as for every
thing else they buy. And yet Mr.. Bryan
claims 10 BE the particular friend Sfag-
J~iru!turisTs,
1T is 70 b, hoped that the business
y q OF irr country VIII carefully-lon-
>;i.ler what the prc70sed interference
With the right to eater into a contract
20 pay andrk;nd of money would result
in and then vote FOR a candidate" for
presi!enrwho will preserve the frSsdbn1
of commerce."