The Republican journal., 1897-10-07
Editorial Notes.

Editorial TNOlcS.
Is there famine in raw hides?
There has been an increase of over thirty
per cent. in the price of that article since
the framing Of the Dingley law.
And now cotton seed has joined the pro-
cession of the farm products which are ad.
vancing in price. Indeed it is pretty hard
to find any article of farm production
which has not advanced during the time
that silver has been falling and the Dingley
law going into operation.
Some curiosity has been expressed to
know how it was that ex- candidate Bryan
failed to materalize at that Ohio silver
camp meeting. The managers of the
camp meeting are not taking the public
into their confidence, but there is sus-
picion that Mclean and Chapman conclud-
ed Mr.. Bryan's price was too high for the
result they would get.
Those dreary and depressing statements
SiiON iuS tllO CuOl IlOuS utHUcI VI uuSlutSS
failures all over the country during the four
years of the Cleveland administration are
rapidly disappearing. The business fail
ures during the second week of the pres
ent September were only 169 while those
OF the corresponding week of 1898 were
BAG, and they range in that vicinity during
the corresponding week in each year of the
Cleveland term
Tie Ohio Democrats, who are running
away from their silver PLATFORM have
plenty Of company now. Chairman Jones
has recommended to the New York Dem
ccIats that they drop silver, and Senator
German is also engaged in the delightful
occupation in his State of advising Mary
land Democrats to perform the same act
The proposition to make something out of
nothing was too thoroughly tested last
year to make it safe one this.
The contrast between the gold surplus
since the new administration came in and
that curing the Cleveland administration
is very remarkable. Mr.. Cleveland was
compelled TO sell hundreds of millions of
dollals' worth of bonds to keep up the
"Ieselve,' while the Treasury Depart
New olz that it has all the gold it needs
and that he need not make any effort
whatever to add to the accumulation
1t was very thoughtless on the part of
those Georgia Democrats to bring about
that little affair in which a colored Re-
publican was Shot from ambush because
he was an office holder, without consult
ing the Ohio Democrats 1t has placed
the latter in very awkward position, for
they hoped to get the support of large
element of the coiored Democrats of that
State on local issues this time, but, of
course, this Georgia instance absolutely
destroys that prospect.
People who have any doubt about the
return of business prosperity will probably
be interested in the figures on bank clear
ances which are of course the most accu-
rate business barometer that can possibly
be produced. The reports from the great
financial centres show that the clear
ances for the week ending September
18th are larger than at any time since the
closing months oft the Harrison administra-
ton, are fifty per cent. greater than those
OF one year ago, and seventy five per cent
greater than those of two years ago.
''While newspaper stories have been
somewhat exaggerated it is an absolute
facJ that the Western farmers financial
condition is wonderfully improved Dur
ING the past three years he practised such
economy that with a slight Improvement
Of Wheat prices last fall and fair values of
cattle, sheep, and hogs, the thrifty farmer
gradually reduced his debts. With good
prices this fail, lie is indeed paying off the
mortgage. The fall in the interest rate is
as remarkable as the other features of the
rising tide. From the American Agricul-
tulist
Nobody has called attention to any great
anxiety on the part of the public to know
the result OF the interview of Senators
Pettigrew and Mantle with the Mikado of
Japan on the cause of the decentralization
of silver. The fact is everybody except
Pettigrew and Mantle understood all about
it before they left, CT if they did not they
could easily have learned it by an examlna-
tion of the official report of the Director of
our mint, which shows that the Japa-
nese silver yen, which in 1887 was worth
1913 cents, had, by July, 1897, dropped to
AS, while the gold yen had not changed
particle, the prices of 1888 and 1897 be-
ing precisely the same, 99.7.
democratic orators, who last year were
trying to convince the public that the
clique of tinanciers in Europe whom they
Il