The times., 1897-12-30
He Points to Evils Caused by a
Gold Standard Policy.
BANKS ARE THE MASTERS
The +, dcraiion President Says That
the :, cre;ary's Currency Bill Will
Enrich the Few and lmpoverish
the Multitude, and Disputes His
Movement of Prices Theory.


by Secretary Gage, which took exception
20 the resolutions attacking the Seeretary's
financial r!;n. passed at the recent Nash
vile convention.
Mr.. Gompars's letter is as follows:
washington, ID. c., Dec. -, ~
"Hon. Lyman ]. Gage, ) ,cretary OF the
Treasury, Washington, n c. Dear Sir l
have the honor to acknowledge receipt Of
Your eourteou. and interesting favor of the
22d inst, IN which you quote the resolG-
tons adoptedhy the Nashville conventionof
tha American Federation of Labor in re-
gard TO the financial bill which you pre-
pare,, and which, at your suggestion, was
introduced in Congress.
You take exception both TO tfTc posi-
ton which our organization has taken
upon youl l,il, as well as the language
employed. Even If you are JUSTIFIED III
the one, YOU certainly misapprehend The
other.
"The resolutions de clare ours elves
most positively opposed to the Gage
financial i,ii.,' and we pronounce the
Gage Till an undisgGised effort to retirc
our greCnback currency and all 6oVern-
ment paper money, with vie" TO inc
substitution Of national bank notes In Their
stead | submit that you VIII seek III
vain fer a single denunc!atory word
either in regard to your motives, Your
plan. or vour bill. We realize that de
nunciat:on is not argument, but to ue-
clare ouI position ana the statement oil Il
fact i'm regard To a most important anu
far-re;. ching measure, affecting anu
changing the financial system oil onr
country. can by no means be construed rs
dennnciatioI,.
..Those resolutions declare against yoir
plan for more thoroughly Committing our
countr, to the gold standard, plan
for destroying our greenback currentJ
and subs tifutlng bank notes, plan, III
fact f,r weakening the control or the
National Government over that most Ina
portant Of all measures, the measure ol
values, aul strengthening the banks,
plan aiming at what YOU call cur
rencv reform and which we call bank
MONOPOLY.
THAT You should Ia ke uffcDse at these
resolutions | regret, for the right to cN-
press Dis approval cf the acts OF their
servants is enc OF the nights held sacred
by the american people, and one you will
freely accord. To deny that right is 10
deny the people voice in their own gov
ernment. We do not question your right
to give expression to your views, neither
shoulc you question our right TO dissent
from Il em.
we do not charge You with ignorance.
relative or absolute, or allege any evil
purpose or a rerversity OF motives on
Your part, n implied In your letter, nor
rereading the resolutions Will You find
them either cuIfaennatory or denuncia tory
as you say they are. The resolutions are
deciaratcTy OF the, views OF the American
Federation OF La bor, and are entirely i'm
personal, for of II men in public life we
have tho greatest respect FOR your probity
and inte gritty.
1T is tue that the resolutions referred
to contain nc argument in support OF cur
declarations But would remind you that
it is not customary to look to resolutions
for argument, any more than il is custo-
mary to look in our statute BOOKS for ar
guments il. support Of the laws contained
therein. Resolutions are meant to announce
the opinion of the body adopting them
The wage earners uf America repre-
sented in the American FEEDER alton of
Labor believe that the position you have
taken il. regard to the retirement of our
greenback currencyis antaeonistic to their
interests, and they are opposed to your
plan for more Thoroughly committing this
country uf ours to the gold standard
THE first Of tue resolutions of which
yeu complain declares that your currency
bill is a measure that, il adopted as a
law. VIII only the more firmly riSet the
gold standard on the people 1f tie coun-
try and perpctuate its disastrous effects
in every ruIm.' 1t is only the Latter part
of this resolution to Which you can take
exception. You deny that tie perpetul-
tion Of the gold standard at which yOu
aim would hive any disastrous effects,
YOU declare that If IL can be shown to
yuI. that the maintenance OF the gold
standard has been initnicai 10 Jhe inter
eSts of our people you Will abandon yoIr
plan fuI peTpetuatlng this system, yoi
ask what evils have res llted from our
adherence 20 tie gold standard. l answer
that the evils are those that have grown
and ever must grow from a dishonest
measure of values, a measure of values
that interferes with the just distribution
of wealth, that deprives some men of 4
part of their earnings that is rightly
theirs and confers IL upon others who
have eart. ed il not. Any measure Ol
values that tirus forces an unjust distribu
tici. of the products OF labor, that de
prives producers of the fruits of their
tot, cuts down wages and profits, ere
By destroys the incentive to enterprise.
leads TO Industrial stagnation, enforced idle
ness. distress and public suffering.
The products Of labor are divided into
three general shar res. One share goes as
interest and rents to the none y-lenders
and Landlords; to the capitalists who d"
not productivity Use their own capital,
wh) seek to void the risks of production.
A second share goes as profits TO era,
ployers: 4 third share goes as wages to
w3ea-ea rners. The interest charges and
rents, in short, the shares of the mo ley-
lender and landlord are to a great degree
fixed, fixed il terms of dollars and profits
and wages, the shares Of employer and
vagc-ea rner are subject to great flucy1
ations. This being so, il is clear that
ANYTHING that reduces the total money
value of the products Of 10 bor must in
cfease the share OF the none y-lender and
creditor, though nominally fixed, and de-
crease the share TO be divided among
employers and wa ge-earners- 1t is equally
clear that to Increase the value of none Y
must decrease the value OF the products
Of labor, a nd, therefore, enrich the creditor
at the expense Of the debtor unjustly en-
rich the muney-lender at the expense of
employer and wage-earner.
Now, il our adherence to the gold
standard has caused money to grow dea-er