The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1899-11-17
ONE MORE CHANCE
FOR Thu; REPUBLICANS

At the coming session of Congress the
Republican party will have an oppor-
tunity to fulfill its ante election pledges
and establish the gold standard 1t had
the same opportunity at the last session
and failed to improve it. Again there is a
Republican majority in each house of
Congress to support the Republican EX-
| ecutive. Another failure and the people
will be justified in doubling the sincerity
of the party in its loud professions about
maintaining an honest dollar and the
honor of the Government. People will
be disposed to judge the party by its
fruits rather than its promises after op-
portunities to fulfill the promises have
been presented and neglected. At every
election we have the same campaign cry on
the gold standard and after the election
is over nothing is done.
People are not ignorant of the fact that
under existing law a large portion of the
obligations of the United States can be
paid in silver. These obligations are
made payable in coin, and if the Execu-
tive is SO disposed they may be paid in
silver coin as we'll as gold. The Sherman
act declares it to be the policy of the
Government to maintain the parity of the
two metals at the existing ratio. But that
is the only law which squints toward the
gold st ,ndarl. On the contrary, the laws
recognize the double standard, which has
been shown to be an impossbilty at the
present price of silver with its constant
fluctuations in value. What is now needed
is law making obligations of the Govern
ment payable in gold at the option of the
creditor and establishing the single gold
standard. The enactment of such law
would establish confidence and avoid the
danger of panic upon the eve of the
Presidential election. With such law
on the statute book the election of Bryan
even could not greatly disturb the bust
ness of the country, because he would be
powcrless to bring the country to the
silver basis. The Senate is safely Republi-
can for the next four years at least, and
the House of Representatives can easily
be composed of majority of sound
money men at the will of the people.
Without law fixing the payment of Gov
eminent bonds and notes with gold, Mr..
Bryan, if elected, could at pleasure bring
upon the business of the country all the
woes of the silver standard and drive
gold from circulation. If -he Republican
party fails to avert this by appropriate
legislation next winter it opens itself to
the suspicion that it does not want to lose
an effective campaign issue by settling it.
In other words, that the party would pre-
fer to risk silver to parting with a party
advantage.
1t is all the more necessary to redeem
this, the principal pledge of the Republi-
can platform, because the silver question
may not avail to hold the Democratic and
Independent gold men to the Republican
party at the next election. Carl Schurz,
one of the most able and ardent supper
tiers of the gold standard, has recently
said that there are some things worse
than "16 to l." and McKinley's policy of
imperialism is one Of them. Bryan, with
all the tremendous odds against him, poll
ed in 1896 an enormous vote. If Mckin-
ley's policy of war, a standing army, war
taxes and imperialism is to drive such
men as Schurz and those whom he repre-
sents away from the Republican party,
gold standard Or no gold standard, it is
not SO certain as it was in 1895 that Bryan
can again be defeated. A patriotic re-
gard, therefore, for the best interests of
the country demands the settlement of the
currency question at the next session of
Congress.-Baltimore Sun"