Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-12-19
THE SILVER REPUBLICANS
Address Issued on the Passage of the Cur
rency Bill
Claimed to BE the CuImfnation of tb,
Program Drafted at the 81.
Louis Convention.

to republican bimetalists The address is
| signed by Chas. A. Towne chairman COM
| mittee; Henry NJ. Teller. r. h. Pettisrew
| Frank j Cannon, Edgar Wilson. Chas 5.
Hartman. John Shafroth. Fred T Dubois,
chairman executive committee.
silver Republicans Justified.
The address says:
| The passage by the House Of Represent
atves today Of the gold standard and
| bank currency bill. exactly as agreed upon
| by the republican caucus and without the
| opposition of a single repub lean vote
| marks the elimination Of a policy long
| carefully pursued 10y certain influences in
| control Of the leadership OF the republican
| party, and justties the action OF the men
who. in 1896. refused TO remain In that
| organization after the adoption Of the St
| Louis platform.
The republican national platforms Of
| lNSs and 1892 had been unequivocally in ia
| vor of bimetallism and the use OF both
! S"t0 ana SILVER as standard money. Never
theless IL was apparent several months he
| fore the assembling Of the national con-
Vention of 1895 that the machinery of the
| repuh lean party had passed wholly into
| the hands OF the banking and creditor
| interests, and that ii was the purpose Of
| the latter TO commit the party To the adj
| v"cacy and achievement OF the gold stand
| ard. Against this danger the undersigned
and many other republicans. bimetalltsts
| at that time vainly attempted To arouse
the masses Of the party The politicians
| ana newspapers privy to the scheme de-
nounced our fears unfouudcd or smu-
| 'ated, and by skillfui use Of catch words
| and generalities. succeeded I'm forestalling
| a widespread comprehension OF their de-
| signs. When the convention met a SIM
| liar ingenuity governed the framing 81 tho
| declaration on the money question
The st. Louis Platform.
The address then recites the platform
declaration of the latest republican national
convention and says:
1T is strange that so manifest an insin-
| certify should have deceived anybody.
! Clearly. if the gold standard was desirable.
| the free coinage of silver was undesirable.
however secured II the gold standard was
right. free coinage of silver must be wrong.
Nobody could intelliGently and honestly de-
mand the international free coinage Of silver
and at the same time express such em-
phatic satisfaction with the gold standard as
an alternative. AS matter OF fact. this
declaration was intended as a definite as
surance to the speculative banks and their
allies that the republican party. If success
ful In the election, would proceed, with all
| polite speed, to the establishment OF the
single gold standard in all its rigor.
The promise to promote the interna-
tional free coinage of silver was never
meant to be observed in good faith. yet II
proved "a good enough Morgan until after
the election Relying upon it, enforced as
IL was throughout the west and central poT-
atorS of the republican party, millions Ot
voters were held in line for the ticket: FOR,
as stated in the republican campaign text
book for 1892 the republican party was as a
bimetallic party.
What might have been the result OF the
election Of 80 had not many bimetaliists Of
the republican party been deceived is dis
cuSSed in the address,
| Discrediting the Foreign Commission.
Proceeding. it says:
Az -,
the fruits Of this ehicane had been gathered
the great republican newspapers began 10
| discard their convenient antiquities about
sound money and honest money and TO
claim the result definite verdict in IA
| yor of gold. These utterances increased in
volume and precision as the advent of thf
new administration approached. The Pres.
ident also, although not able at once 10
form the habit of directneSs IN speech
soon showed by his actions that he no longer
considered the prediction construction Of
the platform to be binding HIS aupoint-
ment as Secretary of the Treasury OF per-
maps the most conspicuous gold standard
advocate among the great bankers Of The
country was obviously not especially de-
signed 10 promote any kind Of himetallism.
To be sure there was sent abroad the alleged
International monetary commission Unless
the hoax was TO be openly confessed this
was the least the President could do But
for fear that, after all. foreign governments
might take the procedure seriously he
sent to Congress in july 1897 AT the very
moment when his commissions proposals
were before the English cabinet a special
message recommending the so-called In
dianapolis monetary convention plan with
its program of the single gold standard re-
trement of the greenbacks and extension
of the powers, privileges and immunities OF
the national banks
Meantime his Secretary of the Treasury
was declaring in interview after interviews,
most of which were carefully reproduced
in Europe. that hirnetalism of any kind
international or otherwise, was not onlv
impossible. but undesirable. OF course nq
serious negotiations were possible after AFT
this. The international commission became
an International Joke. 1t folded its tent
like the Arab and silently stole away Its
distinguished and discounted chairman
sought early opportunity IN the Senate ID
explain its failure in a speech, in which
neither his diplomatic articles of rhetorid
nor his denunciation of the Secretary OF
the Treasury could hide the responsibility
of the official head Of the administration.
Remainder of the Program
THE remainder of the program entered
upon at st. Louis has been obediently pur-
sued. The international agreement for the
free coinage of silver having failed to be
promoted steps are now taking TO insure
that the gold standard shall be preserved
The present bill preserves Il with VEN
geance. The vast bonded debt of the couu-
try now payable In coin that is either in
gold or silver, Is to be made payable in
ard silver dollars, heretofore not redeema-
BILE in anything not constituted a burden on
either the gold reserve or the credit Of the
government, but forming large percen-
tage of our basic money, are hereafter 70
be redeemable in gold, thus increasing ire
mendously the strain on that metal and be-
coming an endless chain with which to
pull gold from the treasury and affording
an excuse for the final destruction of the
silver dollars money. and their forced
sale as bullion, after the manner OF the
German procedure in 1872.
Destroys Greenbacks.
THE greenbacks. the best paper money
the world ever saw, the product of the pa
triotism and craftsmanship of the repubn-
can party In the days of Abraham Lincoln,
are to be virtually destroyed in being
changed into gold certificates, to be locked
up In the treasury and paid out only for gold.
The tax on the circulation of the national
banks is to be reduced and the amount of
the bank currency they may issue on gov
eminent bonds dep sited is to be increased
from 30 per cent TO par OF the bonds thus
making their business enormously more
DrOflta bile oORDinR ha IN