The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1897-09-02
SENATOR CHANDLER
SAYS IT'S NATURAL.
Interview With the Rank New England
Republican Upon Wheat and Silver.
Fall of the White Metal Was the Inevitable
Result of Decentralization.

Fall of the White Metal Was the Inevitable
Result of Demonstration.
Washington, D.. c., Aug. 2O.-Sena-
tor William E. Chandler, republican,
of New Hampshire, is out in another
letter, in which he declares gold mono
metallism impossible, and claims only
in bimetallism is the nations safety,
and that the republican party must
realize this fact if it is to remain in
power. The senator says:
"All the one-sided clamorers seem to
be wholly unmindful of the fundament-
al principle upon which all reasoning
and monetary science must be based,
namely, that the test of any system
must extend over many years of its
operation and must be applied to many
varying conditions, acting and reacting
upon each other, many times with con-
fusing and troublesome apparent re-
suits.
THUS, when, prior to October, 1897,
wheat fell in price to an unprecedent-
edly low figure, the silver men claimed
that the cause was progressive demone-
tization, and the gold men were more
or less confounded. But when in that
month October wheat rose in price the
republicans took their turn and claimed
that the argumentfor silver based upon
fall i'll prices of commodities was re-
futed, and doubtless many votes were
thus saved to Mr.. Mckinley. Now,
again, when in August, 1897, wheat has
further risen in price, while silver has
continued to fall, the gold men renew
ely and loudly proclaim that the rise
in wheat and the fall in silver have for
ever silenced the bimetallists, and that
the silver question is dead issue, of
which we shall hear no more in our
politics.
"The simple truth of recent events
seems to be that wheat has gone above
the prices lately prevailing only be-
cause of short crops in certain coun-
tries, as it always will under such con-
ditions, while silver continues to go
down because it is yet in process of
decentralization, as every human being
knew it would. But the great question
still remains for solution, whether,
through the years to come, with silver
demonetization still progressing, there
will not be, as a consequence thereof, a
steady fall in the average prices of the
commodities and the lands, buildings
and ships which make the wealth of the
world.
If this question is to be answered in
the affirmative the reconciliation OF
silver is sure to follow. The world can
not be held to the single standard OF
gold merely because of the rise in
wheat, which helped the election Of
Mckinley in the autumn of 1896, and
the continued rise in wheat and fall in
silver, which has caused the temporary
confusion and silence of Mr.. Bryan in
the summer of 1897 The presidential
election settled the tariff question, and
also decided that the United States
would not by immediate free silver
coinage at once break the parity be-
tween silver and gold money, but it did
not decide against bimetalljsm. On
the contrary, it pledged the republican
party anew to efforts to establish that
monetary system.
1t is true that small class of repub.
lican gold monometallists, and also the
Cleveland democrats, insist that Mr.
Mckinley should break his solemn
pledges, cease to make efforts for bi
metallism, and commit himself and hi
administration unreservedly to perma
nent gold monometallism. Hon. E, J
Phelps, Mr.. Cleveland's minister tt
England, hopes that before long eth,
administration will be ready to take tn,
side they were elected to take ON thi
question" The constant wall of th,
gold democrats who deserted Mr.. Bry
an and by voting for Palmer and Buck
ner, or by direct ballots, aided in tn,
election of Mr.. Mckinley, is that tn
latter as president is bound to advocat
the single gold standard, They seen
wholly to forget that the republican
party has affirmed that the use of bot
gold and silver as standard money i
important to the world, and that tn
free coinage of silver ought to be ador
ted by international agreement, Will
both the great parties, the one castin
1900, 600 votes, and the other $500, 90
> votes declared by law in 1890 that
+ was the policy of the governmer
steadily to pursue the object of bimef
! allism by any other method than inter
national agreement which " ould insur
the maintenance of the parity betwee
the two metals at a fixed ratio, onl
: t35, 900 voters declared in 1896 for IL
single gold standard, and the leaders
r this handful can hardly expect to ru
IS according to their peculiar ideas eth,
!, = of the old parties. They were patriot
a in their action, and were cordially il
5 yited to ride in the Mckinley Wagon