Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-09-05

Secretary Gage this morning made pub
lie his reply to Mr.. Carl Schurz, who as
sailed the recent interview given The Star
By Secretary Gage. The interview pointed
| out what Mr. Bryan might do toward i'm
pairing confidence in the governments in
tention to maintain the gold standard If
elected President. Mr. Gage has addressed
the following letter to Mr.. Schurz:
Secretary Cages Letter.
September 4, 1890.
Dear Sir: have the honor to acknowl-
edge the receipt of yours of the Sd instant.
| In which you utter some words of criti-
cism upon the statements made by me in
a newspaper interview published August
%, in which I expressed the opinion that
Mr. Bryan. if elected President, could, by
| the exercise of considerable "perverse In
genuity, put the government on silver
| basis, ruin it's credit and bring incalcula-
BILE disaster upon the business interests of
| the country.
| You deny that the dangers set forth by
me In that interview really exist, and that
| any President will be able to do what de-
| clare might be done, unless the republic
can party, in control of the government in
| both the legisla tive and executive branches,
proves itself utterly dishonest in its pro-
| fessed purpose to maintain the gold stand
ard You say your denial is not based
upon tie reasoning of those Of your critics
| who seek to show by figures that Presi-
| dent, desiring ever so much to put the
| country a silver basis. would lack the
means of doing So On the contrary, you
| admit 'for argument snake all l say on
that point 1t would not seem, therefore,
! that there is any particular difference be-
| tween us as to what Mr.. Bryan Pres-
| dent could do under the law or in spite OF
| the law as 1t now is.
| Mr.. Bryan's Probable Attitude.
| 1t ought to have been apparent to you,
| as 1t no doubt was, that l was speaking
| of ba of under cir
| cumstances and conditions as they now
| exist but you proceed to point out how, at
| the next session Of Congress, which will
| meet In December, legislation could be had
| which would completely forestall unfr1end-
| ly action toward the gold standard. even
! If Mr.. Bryan were elected and should still
| cherish the firm-set purpose declared by
| him on September Is. 1896, at Knoxville,
| Tenn where he said: 'If there is any one
| who believes that the gold standard Is
| good thing or that it must be maintained,
| / warn him not to cast his vote for me, be-
cause 1 promise him. it will not be main
| tanned in this country longer than am
! able to get rid of it..
You rebuke me in polite terms for sound
| ing false note of alarm, disquieting to
| the business community, and especially SO
when uttered by one in authority.
l am not at all skilled in controversy,
| and have had no practice in d!alectics, but
| | will indulge in few words in the way or
rejoinder to your criticism.
Quoting Mr. SchErZ III lS1O
In the first place, then, no more serious
disaster could overtake this country dn
this. l think. you will agree with mel than
| the breaking down of the gold standard and
the adoption of that principle of money for
| which Mr.. Bryan contends. In 1876 you
| yourself are quoted as having said:
THE mere apprehension Of n possibility
! of Mr. Bryan's election and of the conse-
| quent placing of our country upon the Sill
| as1t IL
! lions of our securities to be thrown upon
| the market. Scores of business orders are
| already recalled. large number of manu-
| featuring establishments have already
| stopped or restricted their operations, en-
| terprise is already discouraged and nearly
paralyzed. And if these are the eff
| fects of a mere apprehension of POSSIBLE
| ity what would be the effect OF the event
| itself? There is scarcely an imaginable
| limit to the destruction certain to be
wrought by the business disturbance that
Mr. Bryans mere election would cause.
l myself am unable to perceive why the
| same consequences, in minor degree per-
| haps would not ensue now, which you so
| forcibly foreshadowed then.
Proposed Remedial Legislation.
Now, when consequences SO great as these
| are involved, the forces operating to inau-
! gurate them should be resisted at every
| point Even the possibility of danger
should be avoided. 1t is familiar fact,
ana one dltOSelHeT 100 HluCi III
that an administrative officer filled with
hatred and contempt of particular law
can, by perverse ingenuity, practically null
| lily it's operations. You point out in your
| letter that if the course indicated by me
| in the interview referred to should be con-
templated by Mr. Bryan, the republican Con-
| gress which meets in December next could
| in advance restrain him by new and more
| effective mandatory provisions The propo-
sition that in case of Mr.. Bryan's election,
the present Congress can tie his hands so
| that he cannot give effect to his expressed
| intention, appears to me to be fallacious.
1t would require new legislation by party
| whose policy would have been rejected by
the people through their last expression at
| the polls. Further than this. the next SEES
sion will expire by operation of law on the
| 4th of March, 1901. The free silver minor
| ity would be justified by their constituents
| in using all the resources of dlatOry pro-
cedure to prevent such legislation, and
| against such tactics affirmative legislation
| such as you suggest would be probably I'M
possible. Can any one doubt that Mr.. Bry-
an would urge action by his friends IN
| Congress to prevent the further strength
| ening Of the policy which he denounces as
| criminal? Your remarks upon this point
| seem to indicate that you rely upon the eX-
erciSe of the power already conferred upon
the republican party to prevent the cOun-
try from experiencing disasters which Mr..
Bryan will, If he can, bring upon us. May
l not suggest that the way to secure safe
| ty is not to take power from those upon
| whom you rely for protection and confer it
| upon those whose action you may have
| good cause to dread?
Injurious Effect Upon Business.
| Since you have raised the question OF
| further legislation let us look a little far
| Their forward. If Mr.. Bryan is elected Pres
| ident 1t is Of all things the most probable
| that the next House will have democratic
majority, but even admitting that that
Congress, dating from March 4. 1901, will
| not be able to effect any change in our
present financial legislation, what, We may
| fairly ask will be the effect of the
| tinued agitation of the question upon bust
ness and industry, set in motion by a Presi-
| dent bent upon the restoration of free silver
! at the ratio of 16 to 1 and elected upon that
platform?
| lott NV hot T