The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-09-18
SENATOR LODGE CONDEMNS HIM.


 Senator Lodge was the chairman or the Committee on Platform at the late Republican National Convention. The platform reported by him and adopted by the Convention contains this decla- ration:
 They firmly established the gold stan dard which was then menaced "i'h destruction.
 The period referred to is the advent to power of the Republican Party In 1897. Of course Senator Lodge means that the gold standard was then menaced with destruction by the Democratic Party. But 1t sounds strangely to hear him uttering such q declaration. The Senator has made a record upon this most important and most disturbing question. He bitterly denounced the gold standard only a few years ago. He attributed to Its operation much of the business depres- sion throughout the world at that period This is shown by speeches made by him in the United States Sem ate. On March 8. 1894 he addressed the Senate upon a bill providing for the coinage of the silver seinorage in the treasury, then under consideration by that body. He then said, among other things the following:
 Last summer we repealed the last vestige of legislation which we had looking to any help towards silver. But the repeal of the sherman law did not settle anything. It simply put us in the position of trying the experi- ment, which those who are opposed to the free coinage of silver very largely if not universally believe in. That Is. the world has now entered upon the stage of trying whether 1t can carry on business on the gold standard alone. I mean the great civilized nations or the world. with gold as the single stan dard, and practically with gold as the only money metal. Every mint today of the great nations of the world is shut to silver. What has been the re- suit thus, far?
 strong terms the distress throughout the world which he believed had been mainly caused by the rigid adherence to the gold standard by the great nations especially; Great Britain. He cited the financial crisis in Argentina in 1890; the suffering in India and elsewhere, all of which he claimed had resulted from the gold standard. He said nothing could be worse than the condition in India"
 Senator Lodge had quite an original remedy, which he sought to have ap- piled. He brought his remedy for ward the next day when the Senate had under consideration the Wilson tariff bill. It was offered as an amend ment to that bill and was as follows:
 Except that when not in contraven- ton of any existing treaty, any article made dutiable in the following sections shall, if 1t is the product or manu- facture of Great Britain, or of any Of the colonies of Great Britain, pay duty double that herein proposed; and any article, upon the free list in the preceding section shall, If the product or manufacture of Great Britain or of any of the colonies of Great Britain pay duty of 35 per cent ad valorem; and such additional and discriminating duties shall remain in force until Great Britain shall assent to and take part in an international agreement together with the United States. for the coinage and use of silver, and shall cease whenever Great Britain shall assent to and take part in such international agreement for the coinage of silver.
 Senator Lodge spoke in advocacy of his amendment. Among other things he said:
 Politically trust that the Democratic Party will vote this amendment down They have paTaded in large sections of this country as the only friends of silver. l should enjoy seeing them discuss 1t with their constituents after defeating this amendment. Politically I should be delighted to see them kill an amendment which looks to d dis crimination against England in the in. terest of silver But as an American profoundly anxious fer the removal of what 1 believe is one of the greatest causes of business depression through out the world, l hope we shall not be content merely to say that we are the friends of silver and ready for interna- tional bimetallism, but to try to show our friendship and our intentions prac tically by extending favors to its friends and hostile discrimination to its foes.
 In replying to Senator Vest, who dis cussed the amendment, Senator Lodge said:
 differ with the Senator from Mis- souri as to the best policy of restoring silver to its proper place in the money of the world. He has advocated that we should do 1t by our own motion. believe that the true way to do 1t is by an international agreement, but he has never heard me UTTER ONE SINGLE WORD on this floor against bimetallism. If he has given me the honor of his attention he has heard me urge more than once the importance of taking steps to bring it back.
 Evidently, Senator Lodge spoke with knowledge when he reported that in 1897 the gold standard was "menaced with destruction" as he was one of the most ardent of the menacers.
 MUZZLING DEPARTMENT FOLKS