Milford chronicle., 1908-10-09
BRYAN AND "THE MONEY TRUST"


There was nothing more spectar-
ular in the campaign of 1896 than
Mr.. Bryan's display of stage fright at
what he vaguely described as "the
money trust A characteristic ex~
ample was given in his speech in
Washington on September 10 of that
year, in which he exclaimed in tones
, tremulous with hysteria:
Talk about moaopolies! Talk
about trusts. My friends, our OPP
pOnents propose to establish the
most gigantic of all trusts, a money
trust, and let the few men who hold
the gold dole it out at such price as
they will to all the other seventy
millions OF free-born American poo
pie. l denOunce the policy as more
cruel AID heartless than political
domination by a foreign power"
The people listened to that direfur
foreboding, but they didn't scare
worth a cent. On the contrary, they
made rude faces at Mr.. Bryan and
cheerfully voted his opponents into
power, then sat down to await the
arrival OF the dreadful money
trust. It came, but in form and
makeup so different from what Mr.
Bryan had predicted that It provoked
cheers instead of shudders. Instead
of monopolizing the money of the Ma
tion in the hands of the few at the ex-
pense of the many as the prophet OF
evil gloomily said it would, 1t ef-
fected a colossal increase in the vol
ume of circulating medium, and in
the benefits resulting from that ex-
pansion every section of the country
has shared equally. The statistics
LEA - Ia D.. -.
structive that even Mr.. Bryan himself
might study them with profit.
It appears, for instance, according
to the Statistical Abstract, that in
1896, when Mr. Bryan was shouting
for a fifty-cent dollar and warning
the people against the money trust"
on June 80, 1896, the gold in cir
culatiOn in the United States amount
ed to S454, 905,064. A year later,
with public confidence restored by the.
popular reputation of Organism and
a specific declaration for the gold
the gold circulation had
risen to S517,5S9,6SS. Then began
an enlargement in the gold circula-
ton which is without parallel in the
financial history of nations, the vol
ume of the gold currency in the
United States rising year by year I'M
til on June 80, 1908, 1t reached tho
amazing total of S641,553,62S. Dur
ing this same period-1S96 to 1908
the gold certificates in circulation,
gold actually deposited
In the Treasury, have increased from
42,199,119 to $78S,464,309. The
of silver certificates has In
creased from $330,657,191 to S465,-
581,977. The greenback circulation
las risen from s224,249,86S to $780,
IS9, 83S, and the national bank circu-
alton from S215,16S,l22 to $685.
1871 $50.
The rise of the money trust so
greatly feared by Mr.. Bryan may be
Illustrated in another way. Since
1896, when he insisted that the way
o establish a sound money system
vas to force a forty per cent. reduc-
ion in the value of the American
Iollar, the total money circulation
n the United States has increased
rom S1.506,434,966 to $3,045,457,-
49, The per capita circulation has
isen from S21.41 to $34.S1. In
ther words, the money in circulation
las doubled and the per capita cir
ulation has increased fifty per cent,
ince Mr. Bryan began to howl for a
chased currency and attempted to
righten the people with his money
rust spook twelve years ago
How much faith will the people
lace in the opinions of any man on
reat public questions who was so
wrong as Mr.. Bryan has
cen on the money question? Can a
ian capable Of so misleading finan-
al conditions and monetary history
e regarded as a safe counselor in
her discussions involving vital ques-
ons of public policy? Mr.. Bryan's
ldgment on the most important pub
C question which has arisen since he
rev to manhood has been impeached
2 events. By that verdict the sound
sss Of the revolutionary policies
hich he now advocates will be
and condemned.