The herald., 1898-01-25
THE PRELIMINARY GUN
IN THE CAMPAIGN FOR A GOLD
STANDARD
Delegates to the Monetary Conven-
ton Have Their Program
Thoroughly Cooked

| INDIANAPOLIS, Jan. 24.-The gen.
eral interest in the monetary convention
which meets in this city was shown by
the large number of delegates who ar
| rived today. AT 6 o'clock this evening
fully 100 delegates had registered al
the headquarters in. the Denison house
and nearly as many more came in on the
night trains. The convention will be-
gin at 8 o'clock tomorrow afternoon
| There appears to be no doubt that the
report of the committee on resolutions
will cordially indorse the plan of the
commission for currency reform in its
entirety. This was the tone of the in
terviews which were obtained today
from the delegates.
Judge Robert S. Taylor of Fort
Wayne, one of the members of the none
| tary committee, spoke tonight at the
Columbia club before a large audience
regarding the plan of the commission.
TAYLOR'S ADDRESS
Mr.. Robert S. Taylor of Indiana, a
member of the monetary commission
delivered an address in which he dis
cussed the plan recommended by the
commission. He said in part:
THE duty imposed upon the commits
sion was to formulate a monetary
scheme-if it could think of one-suit-
able to the habits and wants of the
American people and capable of adoption
in ha
1t was the belief of the commission that
the most serious evil of our political sit
uaton is the uncertainty existing in re-
gard to the standard. The last election
was a verdict against the silver stand
ard; but nothing has been done to carry
| that verdict into effect. The question is
still open. Events have shown that a
solution of the question by International
free coinage is impossible. No nation
except France has indicated any will
ingness to unite in such scheme. More
over, the changes that have taken place
since 1896 have made it impossible. The
whole world could not bring gold and
silver together in value at the ratio of
16 to1; and the moment we leave the
ratio we are all at sea. 1t is time to put
that dream behind us and face the sit
uation as it is. With the present enor-
nous gap between gold and silver
16 to l; and the moment we leave the
to whether our future standard is to be
gold or silver creates an intolerable con-
dition.
The first thing recommended by the
commission is an explicit declaration by
law that the government will maintain
the gold standard in the payment Of it's
own debts; that all it's obligation now
existing or hereafter created shall be
paid in gold. Such declaration would
in itself. go far to relieve the existing
uncertainty.
THE next recommendation is that
there shall be complete separation of
the purely fiscal functions of the treas
ury department, consisting in the col
lection of revenue and the payment of
expenses, and it's monetary functions.
The gold reserve should be transferred
to a division of issue and redemption
and there maintained by surplus reve-
nue. when it exists and by the sale of
bonds when necessary. This would put
at rest all anxiety in regard to the pay
ment of the government notes. AS
things now stand, the maintenance of
gold payments by the treasury depends
upon Observation-Disclosures of peace,
war, crops, trade and elections. William
Mckinley and Lyman J. Gage could send
the country to a silver basis with four
words-simply by telegraphing to AS
sstant Treasurer Jordan at New York
Pay greenbacks in silver There is no
danger that they will do it, but their
successors might
After outlining the position of the
commission in regard to silver currency
and the substitution of national bank
notes for greenbacks, Mr.. Taylor closed
by saying:
''The Republican party is called to face
tremendous responsibility, 1t espoused
| the cause of sound money in 1896. Sound
money now means the gold standard.
We are bound to have either the gold
standard or the silver standard. There
is no other alternative, and the silver
standard for use means all that is un-
sound and dishonest in money. The
pledge of the st. Louis platform in ref
erence to international bimetallism has
been performed. We have tried and
failed. Senator Wolcott admits the i'm
possibility of the undertaking at this
time. The free silverites must go it
alone. To a sound money man 1T Is a
conclusive demonstration that we must
not only keep the gold standard, but
strengthen and fortify it against all
possibility of assault. In that great
work the Republican party must lead
The gold Democrats are remnant of
Israel, destined, perhaps, to be the seed
of the great party to come; but they
are too few to carry elections now. There
is a great body of independent men who
are friends of the cause, but they can
do nothing effectively except through
the instrumentality of the Republican
party Once more the fate Of the coun-
i- iy, ia handSp