Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1897-01-06
PRESTO CHANGE.


scheme by which he thinks he will CON-
promise with the free silver forces of
the country. He proposes to retire the
greenbacks and treasury notes and par
TALLY supply their place by coming
limited amount of silver. This, he
says. will increase the value of silver
because of increased demand. This is
a remarkable statement coming as it
does from the chief mogul of the repub-
lican party. He here admits PROPOSE
ton to be true which he has most siren
uously denied during the campaign.
The bimetallists have always contended
that free coinage would so increase the
demand for silver that it would force
the bullion value up to its old and nor
NAL position and every free silver
speaker and newspaper has been dill
gent in Offering proof to substantiate
this assertion. But the opposition con-
tended that silver was too cheap, that
free coinage would not enhance its val
ue, that silver dollar would be worth
no more than so cents and that free
coinage would result in business stag
nation, disorder, bankruptcy and disas-
ter in general. We were told that the
silverites might leglslate the minis
open but that they could not legislate
value into silver. But as soon as the
campaign IS closed sudden change ov-
ercomes these theoretical sages; we are
now told that larger use of silver will
really enhance its value and that the
free silver men were right during the
late campaign so far as this proposition
is concerned and that the republican
educators were wrong. What are
the ranks of the republican party going
to do about this matter Here comes
the greatest man IN the party. Mark
Hanna, and says that the republicans
occupied a wrong position and their
campaign must therefore have been one
of deception. Hanna is right when he
says that a more extensive use of silver
will increase its value but when he pro-
poses to sacrifice the paper currency in
| order to give place for limited amount
of silver he engages IN scheme equally
diabolical as the one he has just put in
to effect at the late election. The cap
italists and their agents will never be
satisfied until they have gotten COM
plete control of this government. They
have almost an endless number of
schemes by which they hope to accom-
plish their purpose and they are shrewd
enough to secure measures step by step.
When they went to work to defeat BIZ
metalllsm they used all kinds of finely
spun theories and for the time being
succeeded in quilting majority Of the
voters. They are now engaged in re-
firing the greenbacks and in order to
partially suppress public indignation
they propose to supply the vacancy by
coming certain amount of silver. 10
do this they find it necessary to aban-
don their ante-election argument, i. e.,
increased demand will not enhance the
price of silver" and we are now told
that this is just what it will do. This
proves that the republican leaders will
do anything to accomplish their de-
signs. They will say one thing at one
time and deny it at some future time.
But we don't believe for moment that
this little bait thrown out by the Han
Mates will catch a single sucker in the
bimetallic streams. The free silver
people are opposed to the shrinkage of
the currency in any form and the prop
osition to retire millions of dollars from
circulation in the shape Of paper mon
ey and restore few thousand in the
shape of silver will not meet with the
spontaneous approval in silver sections
that the republican leaders expect.
The bimetallists are agitating the free
and unlimited coinage of silver at the
ratio of 16 to because they believe it
will increase the circulating medium.
and consequently increase prices of la
Dor and products, and they will not con-
sent to any measure which seeks to
farther shrink the circulation even if it
would add more silver to our monetary
circles. Republicanism IS very
smooth piece of workmanship but it of
ten makes itself appear ridiculous.
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