Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1898-01-14
MONETARY COMMISSION.
work and Report Of the Monetary
Commission Bury It's Work,
kin It's Plan.

,ventlOn. IhaC convent1On declaring
unequivocally in advocacy Of the gold
standard and announcing undying
enmity to our greenbacks. in fact to all
paper currency other than bank notes,
urged congress to pass resolution
authorizing the president to appoint q
monetary commission charged to for
mulate a plan for remodelling our
currency system along such lines
To further such action by congress
the convention appointed committee
to press the president and congress for
the enactment of such resolution. The
plea of this committee, when addressed
to congress, fell upon unheeding ears,
which is little to be wondered at for
men are not given to voluntarily abdi-
cate their powers or acknowledge their
incompetence and this is what this
request amounted to so far as the mem
bers Of the House committee on bank
ing and currency were concerned.
They deemed themselves quite as COM
petent to deal with the currency ques-
ton as any committee that might be
recruited from outside of congress
And this the irascible old gentleman
who was and is chairman Of the House
committee on banking and currency,
but who was present as q delegate at
the Indianapolis convention, did not
hesitate to avow. He declared that the
action of that convention in passing a
resolution urging congress to take out
Of the hands Of it's own committee the
task Of remodelling our currency sys-
tenn and put that task in the hands of
some outside committee was an indig-
nifty to him and his committee, an
impugnment Of their competence that
could and would be resented. But IN
needing the protest Of the chairman Of
the House committee on banking and
currency the Indianapolis convention
passed resolution calling upon con
sgress to authorize the president to
appoint what this convention chose to
call non bipartisan business mems
monetary commission to virtually
supersede the House committee
OF course, the House committee was
not overpleased and gave no special
attention to this plea that it abdicate
when urged upon it by the committee
appointed by the Indianapolis conven
tion to urge such action. But to this
plea and pressure brought to bear by
the committee delegated at Indianapo,
lis by the so.called Business Mems
Monetary Convention" Of January a
year ago the president yielded in July.
Just before the day fixed for adjourn
ment of the special session Of congress
he sent message to congress asking
for authority to appoint monetary
commission such as that contemplated
by the Indianapolis convention. Under
this pressure the House passed reso-
luton such as the president requested.
but the Senate took no notice Of this
resolution and congress adjourned with
out action.
Then it was that the committee
delegated at Indianapolis to press con-
gress to authorize the appointment Of a
national monetary commission, and. in
default Of congress giving such author
ity to appoint monetary commission
on behalf of that convention appointed
the monetary commission that now
gives out its plan for remodelling our
currency system, and will further re-
port to the Business Mems Monetary
Convention that is recalled to meet in
Indianapolis on the 25th of this month.
Whether the purpose of this commission
was to evolve a plan to force contrac-
tion of our currency, drive down prices,
decrease the value of property and
increase the relative value Of debts to
the profit of the creditor classes, or
whether their purpose was to force the
retirement of our national currency
and the substitution Of bank currency,
SO that the banks may be given control
over our measure of values and so
systematically raise prices at one time
and depress them at another, greatly to
the interest of the speculative cliques,
study Of the plan launched before as
does not make clear. But whether the
purpose is one or the other it is evident
that the plan submitted is conceived in
the interest of class engaged in ex-
plotting and thus enslaving their fellow
men, it is clear that it would work to
the detriment Of the Industrial classes,
of all those seeking to gain liveliho d
BY honest toll and not by despoiling
their neighbors, and, therefore, should