Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1898-11-04
WHERE 1T WILL END
IF THE GOLDBUG DEMAND is SUC-
OESSfUL.

IT IH6 GOIDBUG EMAND Is Sue
OESSfUl.
1t is a Battle of the Greeks The
Trail of the Serpent in the Chi.
cago platform-Itis is Everywhere
That Thorough Organization Can
Leave Its Mark-Somc Facts tu
Ponder Over.
Anticipating the full rcmonetiza
ton of silver by the United States
the great creditor classes have foi
years past been STIMULATING that theii
debts be payable in gold coin. They
have induced the executive depart
mcnt of the government to adopt that
policy, in spite OF present laws to the
contrary, and they are bringing all
possible pressure to bear upon Congress
i'll order to force that body to crystal
ize their plan into law. AS said by
Mr.. Bryan in his recent article in the
New York Journal, "Thcsc leaders
know that if the Federal government
declares its purpose to pay all coin
obligations in gold, its example will be
used as an argument to force gold con-
tracts upon State and municipal gov
ernments and upon private citizens.
These leaders know that if their
scheme is carried out the very exist
ence OF these gold obligations will be
urged as reason why bimetallism
shall not bc restored"
Existing contracts aggregate bill
lions of dollars, and that aggregate is
being added to daily. Ii enforcible ac-
cording to their terms, they will con-
stitute a menace to the maintenance
of the parity between the two metals.
To the great Importance of this phase
of the money question attention was
called by that eminent iinancier and
silver advocate, the late VIM. p. st.
John, President Mercantile National
Bank, OF New York, in letter to 4
prominent leader of the Democratic
party, in which, referring to the Chi
cago platform, he said:
81 beseech you to move an amend
ment to the money clause of the plat
form, expunging the phrase: "And
we favor such legislation as will pre-
vent for the future the demonetiza-
ton of any kind of legal tender
money by private contract"
"This phrase is supertluous, unless
Intentionally inserted to allow the
inference that existing gold contracts
are sanctioned.
"The admission that private con-
tracts can demonetize money prOvid'
ed by Congress is an an admission
that individuals can lawfully over
ride the supreme power of the people.
off the essential of relief demanded
by the people is to be given them, the
phrase must read: We
demand that the standard silver dol
lar shall be full legal tender, equally
with gold, for all debts, public and
private
al hold this to be vital to our pros
perity."
And he added that if gold contracts
are to be enforcible, al should dread
to contemplate the future. One re-
suit of free coinage of silver would be
a premium conferred upon gold. Gold
would become more profitable to
hoard than to circulate, because il
would then be the only solvent for
thousands of millions of debts. In
stead of aflording relief to the people
by granting them free coinage OF silver
you would then have riveted the
shackles of their poverty"
1t has been charged that the trail OF
the serpent crossed the Chicago plat
form, and that the words " for the fu-
ture" were inserpolated after the plat
form left the hands of the Committee
on Resolutions. Whatever the fact
be, the introduction OF these words
made material change in the mean
ing of the document, and is Trojan
horse, which should never have been
brought into our citadel.
The permission of the moneyed class
to contract against payment of any
legal tender money is not only against
the dignity of the commonwealth, and
menace to the equality OF our money,
but is a concession Of q special privil-
ege to a favored class not to be toler-
oted in a republic OF freedom.
In so far as such evil is permissible
under present laws, it should be cor
rected, and to be efiectual, the cor
rection should 20 to all contracts,
past as we'll as future.
The case at present stands in this
way:
Under existing laws as now inter
preted and administered, we have in
effect two kinds of money, of which
gold is class by itself. The policy of
the Treasury Department since the
time OF Secretary Foster, has been to
discriminate against all other money
in favor of gold. The Bland and
Sherman acts permit private credi-
tors so to discriminate, so far as
moneys created by said acts are con-
cerned. The Supreme Court has ex-
tended this permission by holding