The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1898-10-14
Why They Fight Silver.

N-N~ANA sAA$ Os'h0S ohN N1AtLOl luOSC LuGY 10
not own outright, have by the apprecia-
ton of gold and lowering prices, while
the purchasing power of the debts they
hold has increased, got the most of the
property in their hands, but the gold
standard by which they were enabled 10
consummate the robbery and despoilment
of the people still keeps prices down and
going lower, so that they are unable to
realize on the property that this system of
robbery has placed in their hands. There
fore they want to change the system so as
to give them entire control of property
and prices. Aiming at this consummation
they have prepared banking bill and
had it introduced in the House the last
session. The object of this bill if it can
be made law is to enable the banks to
suspend specie payments at will and issue
almost limitless amounts of currency,
which would send prices of property up
by leaps and bounds, when the speculative
cliques could make sale of the property
they have gathered in, and start the
makers of wealth anew, get them in debt
again and by systematic contraction of
the currency and curtailing loans by
claiming they were preparing to resume
specie payments, produce an era of hard
times and bankruptcy.
This is the policy the ciques pursued
under the old state bank system, but that
system has been destroyed and cannot be
again resuscitated if so desired. But the
speculative cliques do not desire its 1e-
vival. The national system they aim at
gives them far greater power. They can
use the credit Of the government while
lifting themselves above the power of the
government, controlling government and
people and the entire business of the
country. And this is what the gold
standard, sound money, honest dollar
and all the money clap-trap utterance of
their subsidized press means. An unre-
stricted issue of bank paper and bank
credit at the option of the bankers and
the speculative cliques, is the true mean
ing of the gold standard in the United
States.
A real, true gold standard means
never ending fall in price of property.
This will not suit the speculative cliques.
They want temporary rise in prices in
order to get the unproductive property
they hold off their hands, but they desire
to have control of the raising and lower
ing of prices. This they would secure by
the passage of the bank bill they have
concocted and introduced in the House at
the last session.
So crushing has been the gold standard
which the cliques have been enabled to
work on the country by having willing
tools in the treasury for the last twenty
years that the price of every farm in the
entire country, with few local exceptions,
has been cut in half, and large numbers
of them are in the possession of the spec
ulative cliques. All other species of
property is likewise largely in their hands
and has become unproductive on account
of the low range of prices.
The reconciliation of silver would |
stimulate prices and revive business per-
manently. This the cliques do not de-
sire, hence the bankers war on silver. |
No others wage war against silver save
these speculative cliques and their banks.
They cOu1d not control the price Of MON
erty which received its impulse from the
creation of new money by the free coinage
of silver, and their gold standard would |
lose its power to rob labor throughout the |
world.