The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1898-03-03

more thoroughly establishing the
gold standard, the plan of the ad-
ministration is to retire the paper
money Of the government; to issue
gold bonds; and to increase the
power and profits of national banks
The retirement of the government
paper money must reduce the
volume of circulation. and while the
Secretary admits that the contrac-
ton Of the currency would be more
ruinous in two years than interest
on like amount of bonds for forty
years would be, he calmly informs
us that the national banks will proba-
bly, issue a sufficient amount of
money to prevent this enormous
suffering. The notional banks are
not to be required to redeem their
notes in gold, but it is arranged that
the United States shall do SO on de-
mand, and after having done SO the
government must be content to have
the national banks reimburse it in
''any consideration of legal-tender
money, at the option of the banks"
We are frankly told that lawful
money will be made 'relatively
scarcer than it is now," and that it is
intended that under the operation of
the bill it will be ''easier to get gold
than lawful money!"
Practically, all of the money in the
hands of the people now, as the Sec
retary distinctly admits, is silver,
chiefly in the form of silver certiti-
Gates. The avowed purpose of the
bill is to make it hereafter more
difficult to get these than gold,
INDIANAPoLIs PLAN.
The Monetary Commission, select
ed by the Executive Committee of
the self-constituted indianapolis con-
ventiOn, which assembled for the
express purpose of establishing the
gold standard, have also made a
report and promulgated bill, the
provisions of which are so strik-
ingly like the propositions of the
Secretary of the Treasury in all mate
rial particulars as to suggest that
they were compared and harmonized
before either was given to the public.
This report and bill are somewhat
more bold in the assertion of pur-
poses entertained than is even the
proposition of Mr.. Gage. They dis
tinctly propose that silver dollars
shall not hereafter be coined; that
standard silver dollars shall be re-
deemed in gold; ard that the silver
bullion on hand at present shall be
sold; and they suggest that silver
dollars may also be melted down
and sold as bullion. We are assured
that the notes Of the banks "cannot
fail to be SAFE because. being based
upon all the recources of all the banks
issuing them, they are based upon
the whole business of the country.
Certainly, no bank will become
liable for the note issued by another
bank over which it has no control
or supervision; hence this scheme
must contemplate the establishment
of some central bank authority,
having absolute control of the issue
of all paper money, a great bank
trust, pool, or syndicate, with powers
such as no man has ever before had
tIt auudCllS " SuSSeSl.
This committee has called upon
commercial bodies all over the
country to assemble and endorse
their report. Thus, the people are
put upon full notice of what is in
tended, and the means of its accom-
Considering all this, is it any
that the Spectator, one of
the great English newspapers, should
say, as ii did some months since:
Being audacious beyond any old
world experience, the great capital
lists of America are determined to
capture free opinion and to prevent
criticism. They subsidze pulpits,
they buy the press, they seat their
well-paid attorneys in the United
States Senate, and at length they
stretch their hands over the colleges,
which it is easy to capture by ex-
amples of generosity. Thus their
design is to prevent any effective
action which shallin any way weaken
their authority or undermine their
position. Their object cannot be
mere wealth making, for they al
ready enjoy wealth beyond the
dreams of avarice. Apparently their
intention is first to convert the
United States into a powerful oil
garchy over other lands
1t is reserved for the '.free" West to
dismiss from academic service tried
and competent teachers at the bid
ding of rings of millionaires, who
will not hear one single criticism or
questioning of the justice or neces-
sitv of their dOings, or of the charac-
ter and tendency of the trusts they
have built up with the aid and at
the expense of the public. The di-
vine right Of kings is to be succeed
ed by the divine rights of million
aires, who are to run everything in
Guiding the American Senate and
the conscience and intellect of uni
versitv professors.
PLOT AGAINST FREEDOM.
1t is none of our duty to say how
the American people shall deal with
the portentouS growth of that money
power which overshadows the insti-
tutions of the Republic. But we
think that the rich men of America
are revealing such a deadly plot
against all genuine public freedom
that. unless we are mistaken, the
opening years of the new century
will witness an outburst in the West
which will amaze the civilized world.
In view Of the great principles in
volved and of the dangers SO close at
hand. we urge the people everywhere
to arouse themselves. and at once to
take steps to save themselves and
their children from the fetters now
being openly forged to bind them.
In recent years there have been a
number of instances of congressional
districts where advocates of gold and
monopoly were largely outnumbered
h1- thpir nnnnnantS anH horp navpr-