Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1905-11-29

WI IN Z r Il - UN H
SUBSCRIPTION pr,ce, q. 20 ! year.
WEDNESDAY,, NOVEMBER 90, 1905.

Il AecOno OlA1D matter 0nQer 0Ct Oh - u, 2, AotSJ
WEDNESDAY,, NOVEMBER 90, 1905
REFORM MOVEMENTS.
Our esteemed contemp orary,
the Gazette, studied the election
returns for q couple Of weeks and
then came to the conclusion that
the municipal ownership idea
would have it's day the same as
the free silver craze and the
greenback movement, and would
subside like them. It sees in
this movement a revival Of popu:
lism, which is not a very bad
guess for the Gazette. Populism
stood for government ownership.
Of such public utilities as We're
by their nature monopolies,
which of course includes mum:
cipal lighting and water plants
and street railways. The city
voters are beginning to see that
these monopolies should belong
to the people at large and not be
fused to create millions for a
favored few out of the necessities
of the masses.
But the Gazette's hope for the
death of this idea, based on the
passing of the greenback and
free silver movements, has little
foundation. It should be remem-
bered that these ideas did not die
because the people changed their
minds, but because conditions to
some extent changed. The green
hackers protested against the
contraction of the money volume
and the destruction of the green
backs. The destruction ceased,
and tho the issue of paper money
demanded by them did not come
the government partially pro,
vided for the increase of the
money volume by passing the
Bland silver bill, which gave an
addition of 24,000,000 a year to
the currency. This increase OF
the money volume brought new
life to American trade and manu-
featuring. Many people thought
the increase would be sufficient
to keep up with the growth OF
trade, and the greenback move
ment died because it had, as
most people thought, accomplish.
ed its purpose. Nobody at that
time had any idea that the money
lords would ever have the audac'
ity to reduce the silver money te
mere token money, redeemable
in gold.
The increase proved INSULT
Gent, and again the demand fol
more money arose. AS silver
had helped to bring back good
times in 1873, even under limited
/; coinage, many turned to that
metal as the most logical source
of supply, and the free silver
movement started How it was
defeated by bribery and corrup
ton Of the basest sort has been
lately told in the exposures made
by Tom Lawson and in the in.
vestigation Of the insurance com
panies. No well informed person
! now doubts that with a clean
campaign in 1896 the majority Of
the people would have voted fol
free silver, not because of any
particular merit they saw in that
metal but because they wanted
more money. Free silver was
defeated, but nature itself aveng.
ed the wrong done to the people.
The great gold discoveries TEN:
porarily solved the question Of
money supply. An incr eased
!. money volume again brought
+. good times: How long this will
continue nobody knows. But
the man who speaks of the free
silver movement as a e'craze'
j that died out shows that he is
Ignorant Of the fund amental prin
ciple Of that movement and Of the
cause that temp orarily settled The
question !. 4. I.
The question Of ownership q
the great public utilities CANNOT
be settled by any such cause as