The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-02-02
Why Free Silver is Dead.
New York World.

New I0rk WOfi0. There Is general agreement among the American people-Mr. Bryan being the on- ly conspicuous exception-that the free silver issue is dead. It Is dead because tered 1t have pGssed away. These were; 1. That the country could not get money enough To transact its business without the free and unlimited coinage The nations supply of both gold and silver has steadily increased since 1896 until we now have the greatest volume Of
 money and the largest amount per capita exchangeabie value. We have sToO, QUO, ct more gold than Great Britain. next to the United States the greatest gold-standard nation. and $200.o0o0 o000 more legal-tender
 silver than France, the next greatest bi. metallic country. The circulation per cap
 ita in 1896 was $12.10. It is now above $SO g. ThaS silver regulated prices. and the denial of free coinage produced calamity and kept down the price of wheat, cot ton. sc.
 Since Mir Bryan proclaimed this doc Urine, and beginning immediately after his the United States has enjoyed tAe most remarkable and widespread period ol prosperity ever known in its history. We yer. nrd cotton has advanced from cents t9 s 1T; rho, ,a,,,r u,.s ,o,ns ~or.c,ao, m n crdSs of gold
  ployed and the highest average Ot wages ever paid has been reached since MT. Bryans defeat. The savings banks de puslts of the country have Increased from M,9 7,OOO,OOO in 1898 10 S29S5.O0O,0GC in 19lS-- ] gain of murr than billion dollars f. That the people demanded the dollar of the fatheis.'
 In 1894 Mir. Bryan had bulted the s ,und money Democratic platform upon which Grover Cleveland was elected in 1>q2, and free-coinagc platforms were adlpted in several Snuthern aNd Western States In the Congressional elections of that year. and in the four that have since been held. the Democrats were "bohtcn cut of sight" In the two Presidential campaigns | fought by and for Mr. BryHu the p4orI 1 trampied still more destruCtivC'v upon th, cheap-mOncy delusiau. The DAm0Crati.- 1 Populist candidatc achieved the Gisti7 .- ! ton Of being the W r t-beatrn man tIi.t | ever ran twice fnr the Presidency. And 1 in the three States where his pig.he9dcA- ness prevailed in securing "rcIfiirma- l ten" Q, the. rejected pl"tfN-ns last yeIr--
 Colorado. Nebraska and Ohio-the party
 was beaten worse than it ever WIS be- ! fore
 The final nail was driven in tn" co'',n of the dead issue when Co9grrsS on Ma oh
 l3, 1903 by a ma ,orit" of IS in the S"uate and 46 in the HoUsh-tne majority THp- | resen+ing more than three-flurt S of the
 population, wealth, manufactures anu
 commerce or the country-paSSed a l"W
 re-enactlng the gold standard established
 in 1g63 confirmed in lS73 and approved bv
 the country In seven successive general
 elections This law cannot he rnneIia
 without elccting concurrcnt,y a froe-s;lvcr
 House. Senate and Frrsident-un un-
 thinkable proposition.
 ! In a speech in Rhode Island in lSS9 Mir.
 Bryan said: "When the American 3t,'mie
 themselves settle the question dhc fire .
 silver issuel l will abide hy the G G-cisi3n.
 And yet, though they have sct,tcl il as
 declsively and definitely as any n ,ltiIn, : question has ever been settled. Mir Bryan returns alone tn the fray and attcmp,,
 10 play the role of q body-snatvher ti
 this dead and buried issue.
 1 Is it any wonder that the once popiIor leader had to hire a hall and introduce himself to New York audience, and thai one voice have repudiated him and re. tected his counsel?