Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1904-11-02
WATS0N'S MASTERPIECE
LETTER OF ACCEPTANCE

winch produced the establishment of
the gold standard emanated from wiser
heads than those of Jefferson and Ham
1lton, may be doubted. Both of these
great men served their country a long
time and died poor In fixing bimetal-
ism as system, and the silver, dollar as
the unit of value, they had no selfish
motive: The lofty-minded statesmen
agreed upon that system as the right
system. 1t remained in force, giving
tull satisfaction, until the money power,
IN It's march of conquest, found it to be q
barrier. The money power demands a
standard which it can control; and one
metal is easier to control than two. For
the same reason, it opposes govern
mental issues Of paper money, and will
never be content until the greenbacks
are called in and destroyed.
TO establish the single gold standard.
winch sets the constitution aside, the
statute had to be violated. The word
"coin' had to be construed to mean
gold only" and the paper note, issued
on silver, had to be redeemed in man.
ner different from that prescribed nv
law. ~
Not Irrevocably Established.
ihere are at least five reasons whv
the gold standard cannot be considered
as fixed: - ~
~ 1t is unconstitutional;
~ 1t violates statute law:
20 The supply of gold might increase
beyond all the calculations of the money
power. Thus, the standard of value
would set eyond their control In that
event, the money power itself would
change the standard.
"a The supply Of gold might suddenly
cease. In that event contraction would
at once set in, because the country's ex-
pans1on IN business and increase in
population require a constantly increas-
Ing volume OF currency. If the horrors
OF contraction should again come upon
US by the selfish policy of the money
power the people would compel a
change In the standard. Wall street
gave US the panic of 1873; Wall
street gave us the panic of 1893. Let
wall street give us another s,nd it may
nnd that 1t has given us one too
many. The American people have about
reached the limit of endurance, We
nave heard much of "constitutionalism"
IN this campaign. The sincerity of the
cry Is shown by the fact that the gold
standard which violates the statute law
and the constitution, is not onlv sun
ported by Theodore Roosevelt. the i'm.
perialist, but by Alton B. Parker, the
chosen apostle of constitutionalism.
(o) The gold standard is not cir
revocaDly dxed," because it Is un-
scientific and wrong Nothing is more
certain than that the people of this
country Will continue their struggle
until they have national currency
wh1ch the money power cannot con.
trol, and which answers the purpose
OF perfecting exchanges without becom-
ing an armory from which the buc-
cancers of modern finance draw the ir-
resistible weapons with which they at
tack values and raid the markets.
The Bite Of the National Banker.
One OF the worst feat les of orr
financial system is the farming out to
the national 5alks of the power. pr,v.
llege and profit Of supplying the coun-
try with paper currency. Instead of
using Its own credit for the equal bene-
ut OF all the people, the government
lends this credit to the national bank
er to be useL 4cr the benefit of the
banker. Thus, the national banker be-
comes beneficiary of special privil.
eye; and, basing his notes upon the
credit OF the government charges his
fellow citizens for the use of them,
He, the privileged, fattens upon usury
at the expense # the unprivileged.
There are now aoout 5000 national
banks, which keep in circulation more
than $400,00O,OOO Of their notes. At
eight per cent. this represents a yearly
profit of more than $30,000,0OO which
they derive from the special privilege
OF using the public credit for their
private benefit. Clothed with the SOW.
eign power of creating what is prac-
tically legal tender currency, they can
CONTRACT 1t or expand it whenever thew
please; and, If they decide to give the
country taste o. their despotfc DOW
err. as in 1898, there is no power which
can protect the victim No class of
citizens should be clothed by law with
such terrible advantages over their
fellows.
Jefferson and Jackson waged war
against national banks, contendtne
that they were hostile to the spirit al
our government. The republican par
ty has always favored n~tional banks:
but the latter-day democrats have
sometimes opposed them. Thus, in the
national platform of the party in 1896
and 1900, national banks were do.
nounced In language strong enough to
have satisfied Thomas Jefferson. AT
this time, however, the counsels of the
democratic party are presided over by
Arthur German. who has always SUP.
ported the system, and by August Bel.
mont. who Is national banker. Ia
prove that both "the great political
parties" are now "irrevocably fxed''
in their support Of the national banks
we have only to remember that they
united hands and hearts to recharter
them two years ago.
Where tho Railroads Bite.
Another example Of class-legislation
is found in study of our TRANSPORTS
ton system. W. have given to the
various corporations which control ou1
telegraph, telephone, express and rail
road business such enormous powers
that the government itself is q dwarf
among these giants Their revenues
are greater than those of the govern
ment. Their power to ta2 falls not
only upon the public, but upon the
government itself. In the late conflict
with Spain, the manner In which they
preyed upon the government was some
thing frightful In its rapacity. And
the constant practice they have OF
charging the government for the an.
nual use of q postal car Q greater sum
chan tho cost OF the car. is but one evi
dence ( 10 undisputod fact. that thu
government dares not deny them any
butter beVOnd the shadow of a. doubt.