The Florence tribune., 1900-11-03
The Arsonaut's Argument Against Bryan.
[From the Saturday Post

harmony with the contract, pay all that part of the public debt incurred as u "coin" obligation in the lawful coin of the United States. The Argo- naut's position is that the contract of the United States with those lending the government meney gave the lawful option to pay the debt in either gold or silver at the lawful ratio of these metals. This is sixteen ounces of sil- yer to one ounce of gold. That is what coin of the United States was when the debt was incurred. It is the lawful ratio now. This is what the Argonaut says:
 'sThe bonded indebtedness of the United States amounts to $1 ,046, ,000,00 An of this vast sun is represented by bonds in which (with the exception of $200, 900, 900 of the war issue of 1898 re- funded atlower interest during the last year. the money of redemption is denominated scoin," which may be either gold or silver at the option of the government. The option of the administration is the option of the government"
 We should like to enquire why the government should not avail itself of it's lawful option?
 Is there any reason why the people should have the public debt increased by nulliication of the contract op- tion to pay in coin of silver or of gold at the lawful and established ratiol
 private contract in which there was an obligation by 8 borrower to pay in grain and in which grain was de- fined to be either wheat or barley and in which the ratio of each to the other was defined and fixed with the option of payment in the borrower would be paid in the cheaper grain. Such exer- else of the option would be honest. It would be valid in law. No court would nullify this contract option.
 Why should the people of the United States not have the advantage of their clear contract option? The reason is that the government is controlled by the bond holders and not by the people.
 In addition to the plain provision of the public debt contract that the debt was payable in coin, and that coin was silver or gold-l6 to 1-is the addi- tional strong fact that special bond holders legislation has diminished the value of one of the coin metals-silVer and increased the value of the other gold. Some of the legislation was secret and unavowed. The creditors movement was widespread to exclude silver as a money measure of value and to throw the whole burden of this measure ou gold. The result has been to increase the value of credits. It takes more to satisfy a debt incurred in coin with gold only as measure of product to pay with then it would with an option of silver or gold. Fixed values such as real estate most clearly show this result. Other things being equal, real estate has shrunk in value all over the world. The effect of the widespread conspiracy to demonetize silver has affected all countries. In the literal fulfillment of the contract hon. esty and good faith are all on the side of the people. In the change of the contract or attempted change, dishon- esty is all on the side of the creditor class.
 The interpretation and fulfillment of the peoples contract on the public debt has nothing necessarily to do with the present or future standard of value. A man may consider the sole gold standard best suited to present conditions. There is no.reason on this account to repudiate the original public debt contract. The bond-hold= CTS have sought to repudiate the cou- tract to pay in coin. By series of ex- post facto laws the agents of the bond-- holders seek to change the plain coin contract and to destroy the option of the people under that contract to pay silver or gold. The contract of the people with the bond-holders is clear and specific. It is to pay in coin of the United States. Coin was defined in the statutes at the time. There was DO uncertainty about any of the terms of the contract. A very large part of the debt obligations netted the govern ment less than fifty cents in gold on the dollar. All of the war debt bonds were heavily discounted. h an aver-- age of years and prices the products and property of the unprivileged and great mass of the people have been more nearly of similar value at the time the debt was incurred, and since the principal has commenced to be met, measured by the silver unit than by the gold unit. The totally unex- pected new discoveries and increased production of gold has diminished the difference and increase of money value. due to the demonstration of silver.