The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1900-11-12

stockholders. They will BIO ruined TAe
large fish may live to incite the hope and
wreck the business fortunes OF another
generation. la this respect. the larger
FISH are generally more fortunate when
pay day" comes than the little fish Tne
ruin OF these small stockholders Will In"
duce one OF the most serious panlcs that
ever visited this country The panic VIII
spread until the whole country is Affect
ed by 1t. Every industry in the country,
be ng trust Industry, Will be effected by
II. ana the business wreck Will be com
plete and as far reaching as the country
is wide Shrewd republicans see the
danger ahead that faces their party and
aie moving heaven and earth TO avert 1t.
The Blankets who, in the matter OF leg
s.ation. have gotten all or nearly all they
wanted (they see the danger tool, have
grown conservative and 1t said that they
will use their power to subdue the evll
tendencies OF the stock exchange And
stay the spirit Of speculation. But
whether they will be able TO exert such
power and whether they possess Ii OF
net. the future lone Will disclose. The
bankers fear that another panic might
revive the discussion OF the money ques-
ton and having get a good thing now they
are more han willing to let well enough
alone
On the other hand, II Bryan had been
successful. the same evil spirit OF specu
lation would have existed, checked IN
some degree BY his success only, but still
rampant. The same tendency toward
trust consolidation would have gone on IN
the absence cf rigid laws TO prevent it.
The attempt to cripple the trust by, put
ting trust products on the free list
| though an effectual means of weakening
the power OF the trusts--would have had
decidedly bad effect on business and in.
dustrial interests and would tend in no
small degree to hasten the trust bust
up Bryan would get the credit for that
as did Cleveland for the business de-
preston that visited the country in 1898
| OF course, the people do not stop to con-
| slider that these periods of hard and
| good times follow each other in waves,
alternating with each other, and thai
hard times invariably follow periods oil
ver-speculation and that periods of over
speculate just as surely follow a recov-
cry from hard times. This may sound
rather strange to the initiated but 1t is
just as much so a part OF the law of hui
man progression as that the run rises in
the east each dav and sets in the west
Certainly these periods Of wild and ex-
cessy We speculation may be superinduced
| by bad or vicious legislation, but that only
| intensihes the suffering that must fol-
! low the collapse.
AS to the course the democracy should
pursue in the near future, that is a much
mooted and already beginning TO be dis
| cussed question. The democracy in twen-
ty years has nominated but two men for
| the presidency. One carried 1t to victory
twice and defeat once. The other has car.
ried it to defeat twice. Here is something
for the leaders to ponder long and dwell
upon. Free silver Is a financial and
economic corpse. Regulated in two pres,
idential elections 1t has ceased to be an
issue in the countrys politics. You cam
defeat prosperity, and the present COM
paratively high prices for the things the
| producing classes have TO sell have dem.
onstrated beyond perldventure that high
prices and the cumulative theory OF
money are not ccrrelative; that the latter
does not govern the former; that money
after all is but a standard or gauge by
which the value of commodities is meas.
ured; that the law which fixes the rela.
tive value OF pr ducts is supply and de-
mand. And the sooner we learn this les
son in economics the better 1t will bt
for us.
| But present prices have reached theil
| highest notch. The Boer war is practical.
ly over. Here Is a market for part of oul
surplus products that we have already
lost The war In the Philippines will still
furnish a stimulus to trade and continue
| 70 support IN some degree the present
rate of prices while 1t lasts. But the in.
PRODUCTION of negro labor into German
South Africa to teach the Kaffrs how Il
produce raw clifton at about a labor cos
of cents day is bound in the very neal
future to have a depressing effect on the
price OF the Souths chief staple of agri-
culture.
Japan is also becoming great cottor
manufacturing country. Labor is very
cheap in Japan. wages being about 2;
cents a day FIR common labor in tina
country. Their cotton manufacturing ma
chinery is quite up to date. Here is
market that will shortly be cut off from
us entirely,
still admire Mr.. Bryan. but in ms
judgment third nomination for him /;
out OF the question. Mr.. Bryan himsel
would not ask It. Therefore. the democ-
racv must look about for new leader In
1904. 1t has many available men for the
leadership, with David B. Hill OF New
York looming up very big at this writing
James Fitzgerald.