The herald., 1898-02-16
TO THE PEOPLE
A Logical Presentation Of Conditions
Prevailing

A Logical Presentation Of Conditions
Prevailing
The Democratic address Is as follows:
To the people: The surrender of the Re-
publican party to the advocates of the gold
standard and monopoly is at last COM
plete. The present administration, called
to power on the solemn pledge of the Re-
publican national convention at ST. Louis
to promote bimetallism. has formulated
and sent to congress a bill. the leading pur-
pose of which, the honorable secret tary Of
the treasury avows. is to commit the coun-
try more thoroughly to the gold standard
The country has already. for twenty-four
years, been so thoroughly committed to
this standard. partly by law and partly by
the usurpations of the executive branch
of the governments, that it's effects are
seen and felt on every hand; wages are
reduced; work is harder to get; the weight
of debt is doubled; the value of land
and other property is reduced one-half or
more, until the lives of the people are
made bitter with hard bondage" 1t is
certainly not in the interest of humanity
to have this condition of things more thor
oughly established.
THE RISE OF GOLD
The continued rise in value of gold, or
which is the same thing, the continued fall
in prices, must inevitably transfer the
property of all those engaged in active
business. the actual creators of wealth.
whether by hand, brain or capital, to those
who, avoiding the risk and effort of active
business, only draw interest.
+ The increase of 145 per cent in the value
of money. caused by its increasing scarcity
from 1909 to 1Si9 admitted by leading
advocates of the gold standard, found ex-
preston at that time in extremely low
prices and conditions of unparalleled dis
tress.
The discovery of gold and silver in ex-
traordinary quantities and the great in
crease in the volume of metallic money re-
sulting therefrom relieved this distress
and brought in Its stead wonderful pros
perity. Prices rose, business dourished.
producers prospered. all were happy. Sub
sequently this condition would have con-
tinued If both the precious metals had
been allowed to remain in use as money
because they were being found in nearly
sufficient quantities to increase the volume
of money in proportion to the develop
ments of business. A wicked conspiracy,
however deprived one of them of the
money function. This was done with de-
liberate purpose of raising the value of the
other by rendering the supply of metallic
money relatively scarcer. as compared
with the demand. From the hour Of the
consummation of this crime mankind has
suffered commercial disaster and social
distress in almost constantly increasing
measure.
THE NEED OF MONEY
Just in proportion to the growth of arts
and civilization and expansion of COM
merce, business and industry the inade-
quacy of the volume of gold is felt its
scarcity is emphasized, its value increased.
The repression of life and happiness.
which is inseparable from a long course
of declining prices, has now checked de-
velopment and, if continued. will ulti-
mately stifle civilization.
An eminent American, President An
drews of Brown university some years
ago said: Our national debt on Septem-
ber l. 1865, was two and three-quarter bill
lions; it could then have been paid off with
eighteen million bales of cotton, or 25. .O0e.-
900 tons of bar iron. When it had been re-
duced to billion and quarter thirty
million bales of cotton, or thirty-two mil
lion tons of iron would have been required
to pay it, In other words. while a nominal
shrinkage of about So per cent had taken
place in the debt. it had, as measured in
either of these two world staples, actually
been enlarged by some so per cent
Although more than half the principal Of
this enormous debt and every cent of ac-
cumulated interest had been paid by the
labor of the United States. the holders of
the bonds still hold claim for more of the
labor of the people than they held before
these enormous payments had ever been
begun.
A STUPENDOUS CRIME
Tho cruel confiscation Of the lives and
liberty Of the laboring millions Of this
country is the most stupendous crime that
has over been committed in the annals Of