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THE SCBANTON TRIBTJNE--TUESDAT MORNING, MAY 21, 1895.
CARIISLE'SJREAT SPEECH
He la Given an Ovation al Coviugton,
, Kentucky.
THOUSANDS HEAR HIM TALK
Central Garden In Covington Is Crowded
with a Large Audience-Thousands
t'nuhle to Gain Admittance
' to the' Garden.
Concluded from Face 1.
one class of our citizens or one section of
our country against another, or by looso
and extravai?ant statements unsupported
by facts and reasons. The questions In
volved are too serious, the Interests to be
affected are too large, and the common
enBe of the people Is too strong to Juiit.'fy
or even excuse this course of treatment.
The allegation, even If It were true, that
a great crime was surreptitiously commit
ted in 1873, or at any other time, does not
prove, or even conduce to prove, that the
free coinage of sliver at the ratio of 16 to
1 would bo benellcial to the country under
No "Crime" Committed in 1873.
the conditions now existing.
Hut, gentlemen, It is not true that the act
of Feb. 12, 1873, which mado the gold dollar
the unit of value and dropped the standard
liver dollar from the coinage, was passed
by Btealth, or that its purpose or effect wns
to deprive the people of the use of any
coin then in use or then in existence in
this country. That bill was pending in
congress for neurly three years and was
under consideration during live sessions
of that body; it was distinctly recommend
ed in two reports of the secretary of tho
treasury, and ithe director of the mint,
and it was officially printed and laid on
the desks of the members of tho house and
of the senate thirteen different times be
fore the final vote was taken on It. It
was read at length In the open senate
several times, and In the house at least
once, as shown by ,lhe record; It was re
ported from committees seven times, and
the discussion upon it In the house tills
sixty-six columns of the Congressional
Olobe, and in the senate seventy-tight
columns. As llrst reported to the senate
and passed by that body in January, 1871.
the bill did not provide for the coinage of
any' silver dollar whatever, but expressly
limited the coinage of that metal to sub
sidiary pieces half dollars, quarters, and
dimes. In this form, without any provi
sion for the coinage of any kind of silver
dollar, the bill was passed In the senate
on the llrth day of January. 1S71. upon the
call of tho yeas and nays, and the record
shows that the two senators from Ken
tucky, Hon. Garrett Davis and Hon.
Thomas C. McCreery, the distinguished
Democratic senator from Ohio, Hon. Allen
G. Thurman, the present senator from Ne
vada, Hon. William M. Stewart, together
with all the other senators from the Pa
cific slope, voted In the affirmative, while
Senator Sherman, Senator Morrill, and
twelve others voted In the negative. The
reason given by Mr. Sherman for voting
against the bill was that the senate had,
In obedience to th demands of the sen
ators from, the Pacific coast, so amended
the bill, aiter It was reported from the
committee, as to abolish the charge of
one-fifth of one per cent, for coining gold,
thus making the coinage of that metal
entirely free. The bill went to the house
of representatives, but It was not disposed
of during that congress, and at the first
session of the next congress Mr. Kelly,
of Pennsylvania, Introduced It In the
bouse and it was referred to a committee.
So far as the coinage of the silver dollar
was affected, the bill introduced by him
was precisely the same as the one that had
passed the senate that Is, it made no
provision for such coin. However,
when the bill was finally reported back
from the committee to tha house it was so
amended as to provide for the coinage of
a subsidiary piece, to be called a dollar,
and to contain 384 wains of standard sil
ver, the same as the French 5-franc
piece, and it was to be a legal tender to
the extent of So, and no more. In this form
It passed the house by a very large major
f rom the committee to the house it was so
weak that the yeas and nays were not
even called. Tha. senate struck out tho
6-franc subsidiary dollar and substituted
for it another subsidiary coin, oalled the
tradt dollar, containing 4JI grains of
tstandard silver, and provided that it
should be a legal tender to the amount of
15, and no more. A committee of confer
ence was appointed, the senate amendment
was agreed to, and the bill became a law
by the approval of President Grant on the
12th day of Fetruary, 1S73. This brief
historical statement of" the proceedings,
which is fully sustained by the official
record, shows that it was well understood
In congress that the old standard sllvir
dollar of 412'4 grains was not to be there
after coined at our mints and that the
only difference of opinion that ever ex
isted, even temporarily, between the sen
ate and house was whether they would
substitute in its place a subsidiary coin
containing 384 grains, or a subsidiary coin
containing 420 grains of silver. No prop
osition was made In either body to con
tinue the coinage of the old dollar, or to
make any silver coin the unit of value or
a full legal tender in the payment of
debts.
No Silver In Circulation.
The truth is that this act of 1873, which
has been the subject of so much misap
prehension and denunciation, was simply
a legal recognition of a monetary condi
tion which had existed In fact in this coun
try for about thirty-five years, or ever
since a short time after the passage of the
coinage act of 1834. From about the year
1838 until after the pasage of the Bland
Allison act in 1878, no silver dollars were
in circulation In this country, and our
whole currency consisted of gold coinB
and bank notes, except from 1SC2 to 1S78,
when our active circulation, outside of
California and Its neighboring territory,
was all paper. There was during the latter
period about 125,000.000 In gold In circula
tion on the Pacific coast, and the United
States was collecting customs dues In
gold and using it In the payment of inter-
' est on the public debt, but there was no
silver in circulation anywhere in this coun
try, not even the light-weight subsidiary
coins. The value of the United States
note or greenback was always measured
by gold and not by silver, and the com
modities had a gold price and a paper
- price, but never a silver price, because
silver, except the half-dollars, quartern,
and dimes, coined under the act of 1853,
had been out Of use here for more than
twenty years before the commencement
of the war, and even these subsidiary
coins had not been In use for eleven years
prior to 1873. Our own monetnry history
bad already furnished two most striking
Illustrations of the operation of the nat
ural law under which the coins which are
' over-valued by statute always drives out
of circulation the coins which are under
valued. Our own experience had again
demonstrated what the history . of the
world already showed that whenever the
coinage laws of any country permit the
free coinage of both metals with full legal
tender qualities at a ratio of value which
does not conform substantially to tholr
Intrinsic or commercial ratio in the mar
kets of the world, both kinds of coin can
' not be kept In circulation at the same time,
' The reason Is that, both being full legal
tender, .the least valuable coin will always
be used in making payments, and will
become the sole measure of value, and the
most valuable will be hoarded or sent out
of the country Into the markets where Its
real value can be obtained.
Enrly Coinage Legislation.
Our first coinage law was passed In 1792,
and It provided for full legal-tender gold
and silver coins at the ratio of 15 to. 1;
that Is to say, 16 pounds of silver were to
be considered as equal In value to 1 pound
of gold, and the weights were adjusted to
that rule. In deciding upon . this ratio,
. neither Mr. Hamilton, who recommended
". It. nor tho congress which adopted It,
supposed they were arbitrarily establish
' Ing the relative value of the two. metals,
for no legislative authority could do that,
but it was supposed that they were simply
adopting and utilising in the statute law
the existing intrinsic or commercial ratio
between them. A brief experience, how
ever, showed that a mistake hod been
mado, and the Inevitable result followed.
It soon became evident that fifteen
pounds of silver were not in fact equal In
value to one pound of gold, and that no
matter what words were printed in the
statute book the people In the transaction
of their business wholly disregarded the
legal ratio and treated the metals accord
ing to tholr relative commercial value,
and that they would not exchange one
pound of gold for llfteen pounds of sliver,
either In coin or bullion, nor use gold coins
as money when tho amount of bullion In
the coin was worth in the market more
than tho coin Itself. In short, silver had
been over-valued and gold had been under
valued In the law, and the consequence
was that by the year 1812 gold had disap
peared from tho country, and from that
time on until tho passago of the act of 1834
the United States had practically silver
monometallism. In May. 1805, President
Jefferson stopped the coinage of the silver
dollar, and durlntf a period of thirty-one
years thereafter not a single standard
silver dollar was coined at the mints of
the United Stntes; but, under the act of
17!i2, the subslduuy coins were of full
weight as compared with the dollar and
wcio legal tender, and these coins, with
Spanish dollars, French crowns or 5
franc pieces, and bank notes constituted
our circulating medium. Gold having dis
appeared from circulation, congress de
termined, in 1834, to bring it back by
changing tho ratio. The act of 1834, sup
plemented by the uct of 1837. provided that
the legal ratio should be hi to 1; that la,
that 10 pounds of silver In the coins should
be equal to 1 pound of gold In the coins,
and tho effect of this was to drive silver
out of circulation and substitute gold In
Its place, because Bllver was under-valued
and Mold was over-valued In the statute.
One pound of gold, coined or uncolnod,
was not,, '.n fact, worth Intrinsically or
commercially IB pounds of silver, coined
or uncoined, and, therefore, the coins of
tho two metals could not circulate to
gether at that ratio. The authors and
supporters of this luw well knew what
the effect of such a legal ratio would bo
In caso It did not conform to the commer
cial ratio, but the great object In view
was the restoration of gold to the circula
tion, and all other considerations were
subordinate to that. Doubtless many of
them still believed thut the so-called
double Btundard could be maintained, and
that tho coins of the two metals could
be kept In circulation together at the new
ratio; but they were mistaken. Silver
went out and gold came In. The gold
basis was established in 1S34, by the prac
tical operation of the ratio, Just as com
pletely nnd effectively as If It had been
expressly declared in the statute. Herer
then, were two experiments In the free
coinage of the two metals in this country,
covering a period of eighty-one years, at
legal ratios very nearly corresponding to
the real relative values In the commercial
world, and they both failed 'n one case
because silver was over-valued, and In
the other case because gold was over
valued. A very small percentage of differ
ence between the legal ratio and the com
mercial ratio has always been found suffi
cient In modern times to drive the under
valued metal entirely out and substitute
the other, or paper based upon the other,
in its place, and no congress or parliament
can repeal or niter the natural law of
trade by which this movement of the
metals Is governed.
In 18R3 congress. In order to maintain
the circulation of subsidiary coins half
dollars, quarters, and dimes reduced the
weight of the metal contained in them
and made them legal tender only in the
payment of sums not exceeding 15 In
amount. Tinder this act the value of the
bullion contained In two half dollars, four
quarters, or ten dimes was not equal to
the value contained In either a gold or
silver dollar, and. consequently these Bmall
limited legal-tender coins went Into circu
lation and remained In use until expelled
by the cheaper paper currency Issued dur
ing the war; not being full legal tender,
they could not drive out the gold coins.
Gold Our True Meo-uro of Value.
This was the condition of our monetary
system at the time the act of 1873 was
passed. Our legal position was bimetal
lic, but our actual measure of value was
gold, and our actual circulating medium
was paper, with a purchasing power
measured by the gold standard. We had
no silver and It had no Influence whatever
on our prices, or on our ability to pay
debts. The act of 1873, therefore, did not
and could not take away from the people
of the United States any advantage they
then possessed, but It did prevent tha
coinage of full legal-tender silver dollars
thereafter, and the act of 1874 destroyed
the debt-paying power of the old standard
dollar coined before 1873, except In sums
not exceeding J5. If there had been any
such dollars In circulation or In existence
here this latter act would have abridged
the ability of debtors to discharge their
obligations, but as there were none It had
no practical effect at that time.
Thus we remained until 1878. We had
tried to keep the legal-tender coins of the
two metals in circulation at the same time
under a system of free coinage, but had
utterly failed. In 1878 a new policy was
adopted nnd It was determined to restore
the standard silver dollar to ,the coinage
and to circulation with full legal-tender
qualities, not by opening the mints to its
free and unlimited coinage on individual
account, as is now proposed, but by pro
viding for the purchase and coinage of not
more than 14,000,000 worth nor less than S2,-
000,000 worth of silver bullion each
month by the government Itself. Un
der this act, and the so-called Sherman
act, and the act providing for the recoln
age of the trade dollars, there have been
coined at the mints of the United States
and put into circulation during seventeen
years 1307.052,873 In full legal-tender stand
ard sliver, as aga'nst $8,030,000 coined dur
ing tho whole previous existence of the
government a period of eighty-nine years.
In other words, there have been coined and
put Into circulation among the people. In
coin Itself or In certificates issued upon
it, nearly fifty times as many full legal
tender silver dollars as were produded at
the mints of iie United State's from 1792
to 1878. and yet some gentlemen are writ
ing books and making speeches to con
vince their fellow-citizens that silver Is
demonetized in this country. There .was
never In our whole history ono-thlrd as
much legal-tender silver In use in tha
United States at one time as there Is now,
and It Is used without depriving us of all
our gold, which was never done before.
Silver Is not demonetized In this country,
but its coinage has been so limited and
regulatod by law and the financial affairs
of the government have been so conducted
that up to the present time Its purchasing
power has been preserved and Its circula
tion to a large amount has been main
tained concurrently with other forms of
money, notwithstanding It has been coined
at a ratio which does not conform to the
real value of the metal contained In It. I
repeat that silver Is not demonetized, and
the question presented to us by the agita
tion now going on Is not whether It shall
be demonetized In the future, but whether
the mints of the United States shall be
thrown open to all the silver In the world
that any Individual or corporation may
desire to have coined, freo of charge, into
legal-tender dollars that Is, legal tender
In the United States only at the ratio of
10 to 1. In order to discuss this subject
intelligently wo must understand distinct
ly what Is proposed by our opponents,
and fortunately there Is no difficulty upon
this point. . '
What Free Coinage Means.
Free nnd unlimited coinage of full legal
tender sliver dollars at the ratio of 10 to 1
means that our law shall be so changed
that any owner of silver bullion may send
It to the mints and 'have It coined, at the
public expense, Into dollars each contain
ing 412! grains of standard Bllver, the
dollars when coined to be delivered to the
owner of the bullion, and all the people
of the United States to be compelled by
law to receive them as dollars In the pay
ment of debts, although not Intrinsically
worth mora than 60 cents each. The
25 8-10 grains of standard gold contained
In a gold dollar Is worth 100 cents, or the
equivalent of 100 cents, all over the world,
In silver-standard countries as well as In
gold-Btandard countries, and It Is worth
Just as' much before It Is coined as aftely
wards ; but the 412V4 grains of standard sil
ver contained in a silver dollar are not
worth anywhere In the world more
than about 60 cents.' Or, to put the state
ment In a different form, 16 pounds of sil
ver cannot be exohanged for 1 pound of
gold anywhere In the world, but It requires
about 32 pounds of sliver to procure 1
pound of gold everywhere. But some one
may say that this Is not a fulr statement,
because it measures the value of Bllver by
gold. The answer to this objection Is that
the statement does not attempt to measure
the value of either of tho metals, but
simply to compare them, one with the
other, and that for the purpose of making
the comparison the value of gold Is deter
mined by its purchasing power In the
markets of the world, and the value of sil
ver Ib determined In the same way. Six
teen pounds of Bllver bullion will purchase
only about one-half the quantity of com
modities anywhere than 1 pound of gold
bullion will purchase, and ths purchasing
power Is the true test of their actual and
relative values. In the United States 18
pounds of silver, coined Into dollars, will
now purchase as much as 1 pound of gold
celns, but this would not be the case under
a system of freo and unlimited coinage on
Individual account. The coinage of sliver
dollars here has been limited by law for
the purpose of preventing an excessive is
sue, and they have been coined by the
government on ks own account and paid
out for public purposes as dollars of full
value, and consequently tho government
Is bound by every consideration of good
faith, to say nothing of the positive decla
rations contained in the statutes, to keep
them aa good as gold, or, in other words,
to maintuln the parity of the two metals;
and this it has done and will continue to
do as king as tho present system exists.
But, If the present system is to be abol
ished and a new one established, so that
private Individuals and corporations can
have their own bullion coined at the pub
lic expense and have the coins delivered
to them fur their private use, the govern
ment would be under no obligation what
ever, legal or equitable, to keep them as
good as gold, and, In fact, it would be Im
possible for it to do bo, because the coin
age would be unlimited and the volume of
sliver In circulation would become so
great In proportion to the gold the govern
ment could procure that the attempt
would necessarily fall. The most extreme
advocates of free coinage have not yet
ventured to suggest that the government
would be under any obligation to guaran
tee or maintain the value of silver dollars
coined without charge for private parties,
and without such guarantee It is clear
the dollar would be worth no more than
the commercial value of the bullion con
ta'ned In It, Just as the Mexican dollar Is
now. I admit that If the United States
could coin wlthout charge to the owners
all the sliver In tho world available for
coinage purposes, 412'i grains of standard
silver. In bullion, would be worth as much
In this country as a silver dollar; but the
real-question is, what would the sliver dol
lar Itself be worth? That It will not be
equal to our 'present unit and standard cf
value Is not only admitted but openly
urged as one of the chief arguments In
favor of Its free coinage. Everywhere the
people are being told that under free
coinage It will require twice as many dol
lars to procure any given quantity of com
modities as are required now, and this
means, of course, that the money will be
only one-half as valuable as It is now.
When the public judgment Is finally
passed upon this subjeot I think It will be
found that the people of the United States
are determined, not to have a depreciated
dollar, whether It be gold, sliver, or paper.
They are undoubtedly entitled to have for
use in their business just as good money
as any other people in the world have,
and no political party that attempts to de
prive them of it will ever enjoy their con
fidence or receive their suffrages.
Soys Ho Is Friendly to Silver.
Those who oppose the free coinage of
silver at the ratio of 16 to 1 are proposing
no change In the measure or standard of
value now existing, nor are we proposing
to discontinue the use of silver as money.
I have never been, and am not now, un
friendly to sliver In the sense of desiring
to see it excluded from the monetary sys
tem of the United States, or of any other
country, but I know that It cannot be
kept in circulation along with gold by
means of any ratio the law of any one
country may attempt to establish between
the two metals, and that the only way to
secure the use of both at the same time
Is to make one of them the standard of
value and so limit the coinage of the other
that the government which Issues them
and receives them for public dues may be
able at all times to maintain their ex
changeability, either directly or Indirectly
through the operation of Its fiscal system.
I am, therefore, In favor of the preserva
tion of tho existing standard of 'value
with such use of full legal tender silver
coins, and paper convertible Into coin on
demand, as can be maintained without
Impairing or endangering the credit or
debt-paying power of the money In the
hands of the people. This Is what I mean
by the terms "sound money," and, In my
opinion. It is what Is meant by an over
whelming majority or the opponenta of
free coinage at the ratio of 16 to 1. This Is
neither gold monometallism nor silver
monometallism, but It means that one
standard . or measure of value shall he
maintained, and that all forms of stand
ard coin's in use shall be kept equal to that
standard. In the purchase of commodities
and In the payment of debts. Any policy
which would discontinue the use of silver
as money, by direct legal enactment or by
under-valuing It relatively to gold in the
coinage laws, would certainly result In
practical gold monometallism, and, on the
other hand. It Is squallx clear that any
policy which would discontinue the use of
gold as money, by legal enactment or by
under-valuing that metal relatively to sil
ver In the coinage laws,' would result In
practical silver monometallism. Free and
unlimited coinage at the ratio of 16 to 1
would at once establish silver monometal
lism, pure and simple, for, as already
shown, the coins of the over-valued metal
will ultimately drive the coins of the
other out of circulation and out of the
country, even when the legal ratio varies
but a small fraction from the commercial
ratio, but the ' expulsion of the under
valued coin from circulation would be In
stantaneous when Its value Is really
double the value of the other. How long
do you suppose the (626,000,000 of gold In
this country could remain here and be used
as money under such a policy T The bank
ing and other great financial Institutions,
which own and .hold In their reserves
much the greater part of this gold, would
at once sell It at a large premium for silver
about two dollars for one dollar or they
wouiu exenange it (or silver bullion In the
market at the ratio of about 82 pounds
of sliver for each 1 pound of gold, have the
22 pounda of silver coined Into dollars at
the expense of the people, and with this
cheap money pay the demands of their de
positors and other orcditors. The masses
of the people cannot do this, for they have
no gold nor have they any silver bullion
to be coined at. the expense of the gov
ernment. . '
Would Moan Repudiation.
But It Is said that although the masses
of the people have no bullion, many of
them are in dobt and that the free coinage
of silver would Increase prices and give
them more money, thus enabling them to
discharge their obligations more easily.
The merit of this argument will be judged
by each Individual aocordlng to. the view
which he may take of the nature of his
obligations to the people who have loaned
money or sold property to him. If a man
who has borrowed a thousand dollars In
gold, or Its equivalent, and has promised
to pay It, or has purchased a thousand
dollars' worth of another man's prop
erty and promised to pay for It In the
standard money. recognised by law at the
date of his contract, believes that It would
be Just and honest to discharge his obliga
tion In a new standard worth .only half
as much as the money he borrowed or the
property he purchaser, he would appre
ciate and Indorse this argument and It
would be useless to discuss the question
with him. .But if , aa I have already en
deavored to show, the Immediate effect of
the adoption of a free-coinage policy at
the ratio of 16 to 1 would be to contract
the currency to the extent of about $G25,
000,000, by the withdrawal of that amount
of gold from circulation and from use as
the basis of notes and other forms of
credit, prices would not even nominally
advance. On the contrary, for the time
being at least, this contraction would
greatly reduce prices because It would
alarm tb country, destroy credit, and un
doubtedly produce the most serious finan
cial disturbance this country has svor wit
nessed. Every t depositor In the savings
and other banks, fearing that he would
ultimately be paid In depreciated sliver,
would Immediately demand the return of
his money and this would compel the
banks to call at once for the payment of
all the notes and other securities they nnd
discounted for their customers, and the
contraction of the currency would cause
an Increased demand for ourrency at tho
very time when It could not be obtained,
and thus the difficulty of the situation
would be Increased by both causes. The
banks would be compelled te either sus
pend payments themselves or drive their
customers, who are generally business
men the men who give employment to
labor In every ' community Into bank
ruptcy at once. Who would profit by this
condition of affairs? Nobody except the
holders of gold and the otyners of sliver
mines, (he holders of sllvor bullion and the
brokers and speculators In the stocks of
silver mining companies. The people who
owe debts and are unable to pay them
would be the ones .to suffer most, while
the people who owe no debts and have
money on hand would be the ones to profit
most. Every .man In debt would be called
upon to pay It promptly when due; thore
would be no more extensions of old debts,
or any new credits given, 'because no man
could foretell what the money would be
worth at any time In tho future. In this
crash the laborer would be thrown out o(
employment by tho failure or suspension
of his employer, the farmer would receive
less real money for his products, property
would be sold at low rates under judicial
proceedings all over the country, credit
would be destroyed, and all Industrial and
commercial enterprises would stand still,
awaiting the result of the new experiment
with the monetary system. Of course a
great country like this, rich in natural re
sources, would ultimately recover In some
measure from even such a disaster, but
how long a time would be required to do
so no man can predict. All the mints cf
the United States, If devoted entirely to
the colnago of silver dollars, could pro
duce only about forty million dollars per
annum, and, therefore, with free coin
age It would require more than fifteen
years to put silver dollars In the place of
the gold we now have and give back to
the country the same amount of metallic
money now existing. But. In the mean
time, We would have a depreciated stand
ard of value with nominally higher prices
after the first collapse was over on ac
count of tho reduced ptirchastng power of
the dollar, and at the same time we would
have for a long time fewer dollars to pay
with.' Common prudence would dictate
that, when any considerable change Is to
be made In our monetary system, some
provision should be made In advance of
the actual change for a gradual transi
tion from the old to the new order of
things; a transition period should be pro
vided for so as to avoid, as far as possible,
a sudden disturbance of business and con
traction of the currency; but the advo
cates of free coinage have no such pur
pose. They propose to make a sudden and
revolutionary change In the standard
upon which all existing contracts of the
people are based and by which all values
are. measured, and let the consequences
take care of themselves.
Other Effects of Free Colnago.
But, suppose the change Is made, and
that the business affairs of the country
have been finally adjusted to tho new
standard, what will be the effect on our
domestic trade? The' prices of all things
will be nominally increased that Is to say.
It will require a greater number of dol
lars to purchase a given amount of any
commodity than It required before. There
appears to be a singular delusion In the
minds of some upon this subject. Many
good people appear to think that In some
mysterious manner, which no one has yet
attempted to explain, the government, by
legislation or otherwise, can Increase the
prices of the things they have to sell with
out Increasing the prices of the things
they have to buy. If there Is any finan
cial necromancy by which this one-Bided
Increase of prices can be accomplished,
our free-coinage friends ought to explain
It to the people. The plain, cvery-day,
common-sense view of this subject is the
only correct one. If prices are Increased
solely on account of an Increase In the
volume of circulation, or on account of a
depreciation of the currency, without any
change In tho relation between the supply
and demand of the commodities to be
exchanged, the Increase In prices will nec
essarily affect all things alike. Jf, there
fore, the farmer or planter receives a
greater number of dollars for his crop of
cotton or wheat, he will be compelled to
pay a correspondingly greater number of
dollars for his agricultural Implements,
for his groceries, for his clothing, and. In
short, for everything he purchases. Con
sequently, his profit, If ho has any, will
bear about the same relation to his expen
ditures that It bears now that is to say, if
he now makes a profit of 10 per cent, he
will make a profit of no more than 10 per
cent. then. Now it Is out of the clear
profits of his business that he must pay
his debts, and it therefore remains to be
Been how much benefit he would ultimate
ly derive from a nominal Increase In the
prices of commodities. He cannot con
trol the prices of the commodities pro
duced by him to the same extent that
other producers can control the prices of
theirs, and It may be that the prices of the
things he Is compelled to buy will be In
creased in much greater proportion than
the prices of the things he has to sell, and
If so, he will be a loBor Instead of a gainer
by the change.
Silver and Prices.
It Is contended, however, that prices cf
commodities have fallen since 1873, and
that this reduction of prices has mado It
more difficult to pay debts now than It
was then. It Is true that the prices of
some things have fallen, but It Is equally
true that the prices of some things have
Increased. It Is not true, however, that
our people owe any debts contracted as far
back as 1873, but It may be that some of
our great corporations which Issued bonds
before that date still owe them, but they
have all been refunded at a low rate of
Interest, so that our free-coinage friends
need not be disturbed on their account.
The fundamental proposition of the ad
vocates of free coinage Is that all values
are measured and all prlqcs are fixed and
regulated by the amount of redemption
mojney In ' the country, ' and that the
amount of paper currency, or credit
money, as It Is sometimes called, such as
bank notes, government notes, and other
circulating media, exert no Influence on
the values or prices of commodities. Hav
Ing dogmatically asserted this principle,
they proceed without, further 'argument
to the conclusion that the legal demonet
isation of sliver In 1873 and the legal es
tablishment of the gold standard of
value at that time are- the causes of
the alleged decline In the prices of com
modities In this country, and then, upon
the theory that high prices for the neces
saries of life would be a- blessing to the
people, they appeal to the consumers of
agricultural and manufactured products
to unite with them In the effort to secure
the free and unlimited coinage of all the
silver that the owners of bullion may see
proper to present at the mints. Even If
we should admit the truth of their first
proposition, their conclusion that the de
monetization of silver reduced prices is
founded upon the assumption of a fact
which cannot be established. They have
wholly failed to allege, much less to prove,
that silver actually constituted any part
of the redemption money in use or In ex
istence In this country before or at tha
tlme of that legislation. If It did not, then
It Is clear that Us legal demonetisation did
not and could not In fact reduce the
amount of such money In this country,
and therefore cannot have reduced prices.
It Is well known personally to every gen
tleman In this audience who was old
enough to know what was transpiring in
1878 that there was not a dollar of silver In
circulation at that date. The assumption
upon which the argument Is based Ib
diametrically opposed to the historical
and official fact. The only metallic or re
demption money in use here at that time
was gold, which amounted to only $135,
000,000, Including what the government was
using, whereas we now have about 1625,
000,000 In gold, and 3J7.652,873 in full legal
tender silver, besides about 877,000,000 In
subsidiary silver coin. If, therefore, prices
have fallen since 1878, the decline has
taken place In spite of the fact that our
full lugal-tendor metallic money has been
increased until it now amounts to more
than seven times as much as it did at that
date, and consequently the alleged decline
In prlcos must be attributed to some other
cause than the demonetization of sllvor.
These facts prove not only that the de
monetization of silver did not reduce the
amount of redumption monoy In this coun
try, but they prove alBO that the funda
mental proposition of the advocates of
free colnugo Is orroneous and that prices
are not fixed or regulated by the amount
of redemption monoy alone, for, If so,
prices should have Increased since 1873.
False Assumption of Facts.
Substantially, the whole argument for
free coinage, so far as It Is addressed to
the honest people of the country, Is based
upon this flimsy foundation, upon an er
roneous principle and a false assumption
of facts. That the amount of money in
circulation, or available for circulation,
has more or less Influence upon the prices
of commodities Is not disputed by any
body, but It Is not the amount of metallic
or redemption money alono that exerts
this Influence. If all other conditions re
main the same. If the relations between
supply and demand are unchanged. If the
cost of production, transportation,' and
financial exchanges are stable, an In
crease or decrease of the currency In cir
culation, or available for circulation, will,
to a certain extent, increase or decrease
prices, as the caso may be; but by the
terms "money" and "currency," In this
connection, ' I meun every element that
enters Into and Is utilized In the compli
cated processes of buying and selling In
the markets for products in the' mercan
tile exchanges, whether It be gold, sliver,
bank notes, United States notes, checks,
bills, or other forms of credit, written or
unwritten. Credit or confidence Is an ele
ment of far greater Importance In fixing
or upholding prices than the mere amount
of actual money In use, or available for
use; and, In fact, about 95 per cent, of
the entire business of the country Is
transacted without .the actual use of
metallic money, or Its paper representa
tives; and as to metallic money Itself,
whether In gold or silver, it Is not used to
the extent of more than 1 per cent. In our
business transactions. In view of these
facts, which are as well established as any
other facts relating to our commercial
and financial operations, how absurd it la
to contend that prices are fixed by the
amount of that particular kind of currency
which does not constitute more than one
hundredth part of thai whole. In the
broadest and most comprehensive Benso
the business capacity and personal Integ
rity of each individual constitute a part
of the effectlvo currency of the community
In which he lives, because those character
istics enable him to become a .purchaser
of the commodities it has to sell, although,
at the time, he may have neither money
nor property. Credit Is a purchasing
power, and the man who possesses it com
petes In the markets with the men who
possess actual money, and contributes as
much as they to the maintenance of prices.
To assert that prices are fixed by the
amount of redemption money alono Is
equivalent to the assertion that If all the
silver dollars,' subsidiary silver coin, sil
ver certificates, United States notes, treas
ury notes, national bank notes, and every
other form of credit were destroyed, leav
ing nothing but the gold, prices would re
main the same as they now ar'e a proposi
tion so preposterous upon its face that I
presume no man with any regard for his
reputation would venture to make It ex
cept In a disguised form.
The Caso of the Wage-Earner.
The great majority of our people render
service for wages in one form or another
and they are compelled to purchase In tho
markets everything they eat, drink or
wear, and in most cases they are com
pelled to pay rent for the use of a home
for themselves and their .families. Like
the farmers, they have no silver bullion
to carry to the mints to be coined at the
public expense; they have nothing to dis
pose of but their labor and their skill,
and as a general rule all, or substantially
all, the wages they receive must be used
In procuring commodities for the personal
use of themselves and those dependent
upon them. They cannot eat, drink, or
wear the money paid to them for their
labor, and it Ib valuable to them only be
cause they can exchange It for the neces
saries and comforts of life; and there
never was a time In the history of the
world when the worklngman's dollar
would buy as much of the necessaries and
comforts of life as It will buy now, and
there never was a time in the history of
the world when the worklngman received
more good dollars for the same amount
of labor than he receives now in this
country. Any policy which reduces the
value of this dollar on the day It Is earned
or on the day It Is expended, by diminish
ing Its purchasing power in the markets,
has precisely the same effect upon the
holder as If the amount paid for his labor
were reduced. If, therefore, the favorite
argument of the advocates of free coinage
that the free coinage of silver at tho
ratio of 16 to 1 would double the prices of
all products is correct, the wages of the
laboring man would purchase under that
system only one-half what they purchase
now. This would undoubtedly be the case
unless wages should also be doubled,
which, according to the uniform experi
ence of the post, Is a most Improbable
thing. For more than a quarter of a cen
tury tho working people of the United
States have struggled earnestly and per
sistently, through their labor organiza
tions and otherwise, to Increase their
wages to a point which would enable them
to live decently and comfortably by ex
pending their earnings for commodities at
their present prices, and how long do you
think they would have to struggle In the
future to raise their wages to a point
which would enable them to purchase the
same articles when tholr prices have been
doubled? No man In this audience will
live to see such a result accomplished, and
the laboring man who supports the free
coinage of depreciated Bllver dollars must
be content to live and support hlB family
upon what depreciated sliver dollars will
buy. My position upon this subject Is
that when the laborer receives a dollar on
account of bis wages he has a right to be
assured that It will purchase as much In
the market as any other man's dollar, or
If he desires to lay It up for use in a time
of need he has a right to be assured that It
will be worth as much when ha wants to
spend It as It was worth on the day he
earned It.
Tho Poller Would Ho Debased.
But, gentlemen, the free and unlimited
coinage of sliver would not secure for the
use of the people at any time any addition
to their stock of actual money, but would
simply give them less valuable money
than they have now. To call a 10-cent
piece a dollar and declare It to be the
standard of value would add nothing
whatever to Its purchasing power; It
would still require ten of them to purchase
what a real dollar will purchase now, ahd
prices of commodities expressed In dol
lars would appear to have been Increased
ten-fold, when, In fact, nothing would
have happened except the debasement of
the dollar. An actual Increase In prices
resulting from an increase In the volume
of sound money In circulation Is quite a
different thing from a nominal Increase
of prices resulting from the ubs of a de
preciated currency, and no argument upon
the subject of prices can be found that
does not recognize the distinction between
them. The proposition of our free-coinage
friends Is to double prices nominally, but
at the same time to have thorn paid in
money Intrinsically worth only one-half
as much as It was before the prices were
doubled, and I confess my Inability to see
how this would help anybody.
You have been detained too long al-
' ' f '
ready, but In view of the determination
exhibited In some quarters to criticise my
personal record upon this question rather
than answer my arguments, I think my
old friends here at my home have a right
to expect at least a brief reference to that
subject. It Is proper. In the first place, to
say that my opposition to free coinage Is
not dictated by any prejudice against the
use ' of silver as the standard of value
merely because it is silver, nor by any
preference for the use of gold as the stand
ard merely because It Is gold, for. If the
conditions now existing were reversed. If
silver was our standard of value and gold
was depreciated In value as Bllver now Is,
I would be as much opposed to a change
from silver to gold as I am now to a
ohango from gold to sliver. The preser
vation of the existing monetary unit and
measure of value upon which the con
tracts of the people have been made and
the wnes of labor have been adjusted Is
the vital thing Involved In this contro
versy, for If the standard Is preserved ev
erybody Is wil'li.g to uso and will use eve; y
available form of currency that - can bo
kept equal to it in value. As long us
there appeared lo be reasonablo ground
for the hope that silver could be raised to
a parity of value with gold at the ratio of
16 to 1 by the separate action of the United
States, I was willing to make the experi
ment, but I was never willing to make it
by legislation providing for tho free and
unlimited coinage of silver at that or any
other ratio. The only speech I ever made
In congress on this Bubject was delivered
In tho house of representatives more than
seventeen years ago, at a time when the
value of the bullion contained In a silver
dollar was only about 7 cents less than
the value of the bullion contained In a golJ
dollar, and I, together with many other op
ponents of free coinage, believing that a
restoration of silver to our mints would
bring it to a parity with gold, supported a
measure providing for the limited coinage
of silver dollars on government account,
not on account of private individuals and
corporations as Is now proposed.
Tho Lesson of Experience.
Fifteen years' experience, however, dem
onstrated that those of us who believed In
1878 that a lnrger uso of Bllver by the
United States would enhunce Its price or
valuo were mistaken. Instead of Increas
ing the price of silver, it continued to fall
with greater rapidity than before, not
withstanding oil the efforts made by our
government to uphold It, until now the
bullion contained In a silver dollar Ib
worth only about half as much as the
bullion contained in a gold dollar. The
conditions have entirely changed since
1878, and I do not understand that even
our free-coinage friends in Kentucky place
sliver on a parity with gold at the ratio
of 18 to 1. On tho contrary, they Insist
that the free and unlimited colnnge of r.ll
ver at that ratio would give the people
cheap money, and I agree with them that
It would have that effect, but It would not
be cheep money If It were equal In value
to gold. The speech made by me on the
occasion referred to has been garbled and
twisted and perverted In and out of con
gress during the past two years with a
malicious ingenuity which has scarcely
ever been equalled In the discussion of a
public question, and yet no one has even
ventured to make the direct assertion that
it contained a single word In favor of the
free coinage of silver. It wns, In fact,
made In opposition to free colnago and In
support of the senate substitute for a freo
coinage bill, as can be seen by any one
who will take the trouble to read It. Cer
tain sentences, in which I denounced In
strong language the attempt to-"destroy"
silver as a money metal, have been sep
arated from their context and quoted
again and again In congress, on the stump,
and In the newspapers by men who never
read the speech and who appear wholly
Incapable of understanding the difference
between the total disuse of that metal ns
money and Its free and unlimited coinage
at the public expense for the benefit of pri
vate individuals and corporations. Some
of the opinions then expressed have been
modified and some of them have been
changed altogether by subsequent events
and by a more thorough Investigation of
the subjects to which they related; but
on the question of free coinage my convic
tions have never been shaken for a moment.
THE DEBTS OF EUROPE.
Every Child Born In France Is 922 1-2
Francs Worso Off Than Nothing Other
Great Burdens.
From the New York World.
It will probably be news to most people
that, according to the latest statistics, ev
ery baby born In France Is, from the very
hour of its birth, 922 francs 60 centimes in
debt. The national debt of France Is
greater than that of any other country In
the world, amounting In round numbers
to 35,425,000,000 francs, of which about
4.000,000,000 are departmental or communal
dobts, while the rest, strictly speaking. Is
owed by the state itself, of which each of
the 38,250,000 Inhabitants Is a part. After
France the gay nation of Portugal has
the largest per capita debt, each little
Portuguese being 009 francs worse off
than nothing when It comes into the world,
while every subject of King Humbert, of
Italy, Is burdened with 405 francs of na
tional obligations. It may be thought that,
as France carries a heavier financial bur
den than any other country. It Is nearer
the verge of ruin. But figures, which are
said not to lie, are sometimes deceiving.
Italy and Portugal, though their national
debts are much less, are more nearly In
solvent, for they are almost entirely in
debted to other countries, while the peo
ple of France are tho creditors of the
nation.
The German debt is only 2,131,000,000
francs, many times less than that of
France. Tho French pay an average of
88 francs 20 centimes per capita In taxes
for the Bupport of the government, while
the German contribution Is but 44 francs
for each Individual. This Is accounted
for by the fact that It costs the French
people 377,000 francs per hour to be gov
erned, while the monarchlal machinery of
Germany Is much less expensive. An
other reason Is the constant and rapid In
crease of population in Germany, despite
the steady and enormous emigration.
Statistics show that the Germans are the
most and the French tho least prolific peo
ples of Europe. The French are a nation
of stay-at-homes, and do not adapt them
selves in foreign lands so easily as the
QermanB, yet their population, Instead of
Increasing, Is slowly diminishing. When
Dr. Roux's discovery of antitoxin as an
antidote for diphtheria was made public
he was hailed as the greatest benefactor
of hlB age, as 3.0 per cent, of the popula
tion of France fall each year victims to
that disease, and the saving of bo many
lives means that the population will begin
to Increase, or at least hold Its own.
Morton's Steady Job.
From the St, Louis Globe-Democrat.
It Is about time for Secretary Morton to
take an hour off and solve the currency
problem again.
Qilmore's Aromatic Wino
A tonic for ladies. If yon
are suffering from weakness;
and feel exhausted and ner
vous; are getting thin and all
run down: Gilmore's Aro
matic Wine will bring roses
to your cheeks and restore
you to flesh and plumpness.
Mothers, use it , for your
daughters. It is the best
emilator and corrector far
ailments peculiar to woman-
hood. ' It promotes digestion,
enriches the blood and gives
lasting strength. ' Sold by
Matthews Bros., Scranton.
Wftv srsilssssssss
mm
UNEQUALLED AND UNRIVALLED PREPARATIONS
FOR THE HARAND SCALP.
hSUS!il01 from thB 8nih American palm
tree. Free from mineral i ehemlcsl com
! ?' ...An ,nf"IWs cure for Haldness,
alr-K.UIng, Dandruff, Thin or Delicate
5 if' K1"""' Tetter, and all dlwanmof tho
Hair and Scalp. PiLS-CsntSTi Shampoo for
beautifying the Hair) a delightful, eoel and
refreshing Shampoo exquliilte odor. . All
purchasers of tbo Paln-Crribti I'ref. ra
tios are entitled to free treatment of the
Scalp, Shampooing and Halr-Orossing.ataoy
of our lialr-bresBlng Parlors. '
PAL M-CH Rl ST 1 CO . ,
PniXA. I'AHLOHfli 04 CHESTNUT ST.
P. 8. Onr parlors are In charge of special
lits on atrectlnns of the Hair and Scalu. All
advice free. 5r Write for circular.
our Hair DruMixrs call upn them ca make
sppolatmetits by addressing
MATTHEWS BROS.,
Sole Agents for Soranton.
Moosic Powder Go
Rooms 1 and 2 Commoiealth Bld'f,
SCRANTON, PA.
MINING and BLASTING
POWDER
MADE AT MOOSIC AND RUSH
DALE WORKS.
Lafflln & Rand Powder Co.'s,
Orange Gun Powder
Eloctrlo flatteries, Fuses for explod
ing blasts, Safety Fuse and
Repanno Chemical Co.'s HighExplosim
SOFT SHELL CRABS
Frog Legs, Lobsters,
Large, Medium and
Little Neck Clams
and Oysters,
PIERCE'S MARKET, PENN AVE.
J
(Action
TO OUR PATRONS :
Wushhurn-Croshy to. wish to assure their marry pat
rons that they will, this yutr hold to their usual custom
of milling STRICTLY OLD WHEAT until the new crop
is fully cured. Newwhent is now upon the market, ana
owing to the excessively dry weather many millers aro
of the opinion that it Of already cured, and in proper
condition for milling. "Washburn-Crosby Co. will tako
no risks, and will allow the now wheat fully threw
months to mature before grinding.
This careful attentiou to every detail of milling has
placed Wnshburn-Crosby Co.'s flour far above other
brands.
1GARGEL
Wholesale Agents.
IRON A NO STEEL
Bolts, Nuts, Bolt Bads, Turnbuckles, Washers, Riv.
ets, Horse Nails, Files, Taps, Dies, Tools and Sup
plies. Sail Duck for mine use in stock.
SOFT - STEEL. - HORSE - SHOES,
And a full stock of W agon Makers' Supplies, Wheels,
Hubs, Rirns, Spakes, Shafts, Poles, Bows, etc,
TTE1I
ENDER
SCRANTOIN, PA.
- .:e' . :
HE PROPS m TIES
OAK BILL STUFF.
IHE COF.IMOHW&ALTH LUF.1BER CO
TELEPHONE 432.
' EVERY WOMAN
BoatHSMsnssds s nllsblt, mthly, isgnlaUai bmsIcIm. Only kiralsss OS?
Ito pnrsstdrup ssmiU ks BssdTlI 7a sst tn Ims, (!
Dr. PcaFc Pennyroyal Pills
Thar s sronpt, ssis sal esrtsss In malt Tk. rtonlne (Dr. Mtypsw ilssp.
For SslsbyJOHN H. PHELPS,
Sprue. Strsst, Soranton. Pa,-
DR. E. GREWER,
The Philadelphia Specialist, and his asso
ciated staff of English and German
physicians, are now permanently
located at
Old Postofflce Building, Corner Penn
Avenue and Spruce Street,
The doctor Is a graduae of the Univer
sity of Pennsylvania, formerly domon
strator of physiology and surgery at the
Medico-Chlrurgical college of Philadel
phia. His specialties are Chronio, Ner
vous, Skin, Heart, Womb and Blood dls
eases.
DISEASES OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM
The symptoms of which aro dlszlnesa.lack
of confidence, sexual weakness In men
and women, ball rising In throat, spots
floating before the eyes, loss of memory,
unable to concentrate the moid cn one
subject, easily startled when suddenly
spoken to, and dull distressed mind, which
unfits them for performing tho actual du
ties of life, making happiness impossible,
distressing the action of the heart, caus
ing flush of heat, depression of splrlts.ovll
forebodings, cowardice, fear, dreams, mel
ancholy, tire easy of company, feeling aa
tired in the morning as when rotUHng,
lack of energy, nervousnoss, trembMog,
confusion of thought,depresslon, constipa
tion, weakness of the limbs, etc. Those so
affected should consult us Immediately
ard be restored to perfect health. '
Lost Manhood Restored.
Weakness of Young Men Cured.
If you have been given up by your phy
sician call upon the doctor and be exam
d. He cures the worst cases of Ner
vous Debility, Scrofula, Old Bores, Ca
tarrh, Piles, Female Weakness, Affec
tions of the Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat,
Asthma, Deafness, Tumors, Cancers andl
Cripples of every description.
Consultations free and strictly sacred!
and confidents... Office hours daily frem
t a.m. to 9 p.m. Bunday, to S.
Enclose five 2-cent stamps for symtpom
blanks and my book called "New Life."
I will pay one thousand dollars In gold
to anyone whom I cannot cure of EPI
LEPTIC CONVULSIONS or FITS.
... . DR. E. GREWER,
Old Post Office Building, corner Pen
venue and Spruce street.
SCRANTON. PA.
ROOF THWWG AND MLDEHM6
All done away with by the use of HART
MAN'S PATENT PAINT, which consist,
of Ingredients well-known to all. It can be
applied to tin, galvanized tin, sheet Iron
roofs, also to brick dwellng, which will
prevent absolutely any crumbling, crack
ing or breaking of the brick. It will out
last tinning or any kind by many years,
and it's cost does not exceed one-fifth that
of tho cost of tinning. Is sold by the Jos
or pound. Contracts taken by
ANTONIO HARTMATN. U7 Birch St
22 Ctmmonwealtu
M Bld'g, Scranton, Pa.
Pfcsrmsolst, Cor. Wyoming Avonus ana
;v
GONNELL
I (ML
if-
i: