SENATORS FALL
HOW MONEY POWER RULES
REPUBLICANS.
SEN. ALLEN STANDS FIRM
WHILE REPUBLICANS SLUM
BER, ALLEN FIGHTS.
Description of tho Wind-up of the
Final Struggle In tho Sonato Ovor
tho Cuban Resolutions --Some
Facts tho People Should Know.
"Washington, D. C April 36. For
many days tlic opposition to the ropub
llcan party In congress, which was
moving heaven and eurth to faston
upon tho plucky little republic of Cuba
a Spanish gold bonded Indebtedness
of about BOO million dollars, u most
stubborn and successful light had been
made. But at the very tlint- when tho
battle had been won the few repub
licans who broke over the party traces
and Joined In the fight with the pop
ulists and democrats to prevent the
hclllBh crime were whipped bark Into
line by the party malingers and by their
votes declared that Cuba could not bo
free unless the 500 millions of Spanish
told bonds ore paid.
Senator Allen, like he hns always been
since ho first took his scat In the sen
ate, when the great crisis was reached
wan unshaken In his purpose of right.
When the republican senutors who had
heretofore pledged their faith, their
honor and their undying determination
to recognize the republic of Cuba be
gan to falter and cringe before tho
Spanish gold bond agents, the Wash
ington Post, a republican paper, said:
"Allen, the gigantic, Webstcrlun-fnc-cd
populist of Nebiasku, the man who
talked onco for fifteen hours on a
stretch, did not grow weary. When
Senator Davis moved that the senate
agree to a further conference asked by
the house, Allen enme down before tho
footllghtB and delivered a monologue,
which showed his determination unsub
dued. Afraid that the conferees would
yield to tho lost demand of the house,
he wanted new conferees elected by tho
senate, and proposed that program. In
cidentally ho remarked that there was a
scheme to saddle the Cubans with $500,
000,000 of the Spanish war debt, and
darkly hinted at other dubious things
which were back of the refusnl of to
recognize Independence. Ho took up the
Hug whclh the republican senators had
laid down, and waved It with renewed
ardor.
Around his towering form only twenty-eight
senators rallied. Forty-nine of
them refuted to support his motion,
and the conference asked for by tho
house was agreed to. Senators Davis,
Foraker and Morgan were reappointed
conferees, and forthwith they went to
do battle with the three members of
the house committee. Several hours had
passed while the changing scenes wero
being enacted, and It wus now almost
midnight. From the windows of tho
capltol the starlike points of light
which had mado the city beneath Bcem
like a bit of Inverted sky, were fast
disappearing, and told of rest and sleep.
In the capltol, however, there was nei
ther quiet i10r calm. All wns excite
ment. It wns the prelude to war, and
the ending of an historical day.
The conferees fesumed their struggle
and both houses waited for the result.
In describing the conditions as they
were In the tlnal hours of the struggle
the Washington Post eald;
"Signs of disintegration appeared In
the senate. The round, good-natured
face of Elklns bore a cheerful smllo.
'The conservatives will win,' he Bald,
as he passed through tho lobby. A mo
ment later his prediction was found to
be based on fact. The ten republicans
who had stood out for recognition of
Cubnn Independence begnn to weaken.
They conferred and ngieed to surren
der." Over In the house where the repub
licans had also been whlppe dlnto lino
a short description of one little sccno
lifts the curtain and allows a view of
the monopoly slavery that exists there
all the time. The Washington Post
again says:
"The scenes now shifted rapidly.
Once ngain to the house side of the cap
ltol, under the brillluntly-llghtcd ro
tunda, through the corridors throbbing
with an anxious crowd, into the hall of
the house.
"Speaker Iteed leaned his ponderous
form over his desk, smiling In cherubic
fashion upon two score of members
who had gathered around him to learn
their course of action In the lntest de
velopment. Many members were for
yielding to the Benate on the ques
tion of the reinsertion of the two words
but Boutelle of Maine noisily demanded
another round with the senate, assert
ing that that body could not hold out
much longer. The democrats sat quiet
ly and watched the conferences with
the speaker. McMIUln the next gover
nor of Tenessee added a touch of com
edy by suggesting that there was so
much disorder In the house that the
members could not hear what was be
ing said at tho speaker's desk. Even
Iteed laughed good-naturedly at tho
joke."
The battle had narrowed down to a
fine point In parliamentary law and
rules of the senate. The republican
majority In the house were solid for the
Spanish Cuban war gold bonds. Tho
democrnts and populists In the senate
with the help of ten republican sena
tors had been in the majority for rec
og nlzlng the republic of Cuba armed
assistance, some good square meals and
the compelling of Spain to take care of
her own war debt. Further success or
defeat was to be edtermlned by a con
ference committee, and as the nature
and outcome of the conference would
be determined by the complexion of
the conferees, the efforts of the con
tending forces necessarily had be di
rected to the choice of these conferees.
The republicans, of course, wanted
Vice President Hobart to appoint them,
while, of course, the opposition wanted
the conferees to be selected by the body
of the senate. It was at this Juncture
that Senator Allen again pushed to the
front and championed the causa of hu
man rights. The Congressional Rec
ord says:
The President pro tempore The sen
ator from Minnesota moves that the
senate accede to the request of the
house of representatives for a further
conference, and asks that the chair
appoint the conferees. Senators in
favor of the motion will say "aye"
Mr. Allen Mr. President
The President pro tempore Tho sen
ator from Nebraska.
Mr. Allen I ask for a division of that
question.
Mr. Gray and others Oh, no.
Mr, Allen Senator say "Oh, no;" but
I say yes. I do ask for a division of it.
The President pro tempore The sen
ator has a right to a dlvslon if he re
quests It. .
Mr. Allen Senators can outvote me It
they desire.
Tho President pro tempore Tho chair
wilt put the question on the first part
of the proposition, that tho senate
agree to tho further question asked
by the house of representatives. Tho
question Is on that branch of the mo
tion. The motion was agreed to.
Mr. Allen Now, Mr. President, so fnr
as the other question is concerned,
when It Is before tho senate, 1 desire
to amend tt by offering a substitute.
The President pro tempore It Is be
fore tho Benate now.
Mr. Allen 1 desire to amend It by of
fering a substitute under the rule to
the selection of conferees.
Mr. Mason Mr. President, If I under
stand the question
The President pro tempore Does tho
senator from Nebraska yield to the
Bcnator from Illinois?
Mr. Allen 1 do.
Mr. Mason I rlso to ask a question
for Information. If I understand tho
pending question, It is that the chair
shall appoint the confereos on the part
of the senate?
Mr. Allen Yes, sir but I suppose thnt
Is subject to amendment like any other
motion or nny other pioposltlon that Is
before the senate.
Mr. President, the rules point out spe
cifically and plainly the course the sen
ate shall pursue In a case of this kind.
I offer my amendment in the same
munner that I offered a similar amend
ment this nfternoon, not because I have
any doubt In my mind as to the fairness
of tho presiding olllcer I do not want
to be put In the light of reflecting upon
his fairness but becnusc the rules re
quire the senate, unless unanimous con
sent to the contrary Is given, to pro
ceed to the selection of tho conferees.
Mr. Clalllngor "Unless otherwise or
dered."
Mr. Allen Well, unless otherwise or
deied. That Is, tho ruloH require the
senate shall make tho selection. Thcro
Is no discretion about that.
Mr. Otoy "Unless otherwise ordered.
Mr. Allen I do not agree with the
senator from Delaware that "otherwise
ordered" means that we can select an
agent to do our work for us.
Mr. GnllltiRvr If the senator will per
mit me. It seems to me that the clauso
of the rule, "unless otherwise ordered,"
clenrly points out the fact that It Is
competent for the senate to order the
bUHlnof; sto be done in any other way It,
sees lit, and that In placing It In the
hnnds of the presiding olllcer the sen
ate 1ms ordered It otherwise tlinn Is
provided for In the first cIhubc of the
rule.
Mr. Alien No, Mr. President; that Is
not It. The rule Bays that we shall
proceed by ballot unless otherwise or
dered. Tho words "otherwise ordered"
Uo not mean that the senate shall aban
don Its power to mnke the selection to
some other person or delegate that
power. It means that the senate shall
proceed by ballot to discharge a duty
Imposed upon It, unless It sees lit to
adopt some other means, nnmely, a
yon-nnd-nay vote, or by a resolution,
or In some other form, to select the
conferees. The duty Imposed on us can
not bo delegated unless we sec fit to
nbnndon nil canons for construction or
less we see lit, ns we do ordinarily In
unimportant mntters, to let the chair
make the appointment.
Mr. Mason Mr. President
The President pro tempore Does tho
senator from Nebraska yield to the
Benator from Illinois?
Mr. Allen I do.
Mr. Mason If the motion Is carried,
made by the senator from Minnesota,
that the conferees be appointed by the
chair, la It not otherwise ordered In tho
language of the rules of the senate?
Mr. Allen Not In contradistinction to
taking It by ballot. "Otherwise ordered"
menus In some other way than by bal
lot. Mr. Gray That Is some other way.
Mr. Allen The senntor from Dela
ware says It Is In another way, but
that does not cover up the fact that we
have no power to delegate the selec
tion of the conferees by the chair. We
have io power to take that out of our
own bunds; the words "otherwise or
dered" do not go to that extent.
Mr. Spooner If that were true, then
we would have to do It by ballot, and
In no other way.
Mr. Allen Not at all. We can do It
by resolution. We enn do It by a vlve
voce vote. We can do It In n variety
of ways. That Is what those words
mean, if they mean anything.
Mr. President, 1 realize ns fully, I
trust, os uny senator here the necessity
and desirability of concluding this Im
portant matter as speedily as possible.
I trust I am not Insensible of the sur
roundings or of the grnvlty of the sit
uation or the Importance of the ques
tion; and yet, Mr. President. 1 am not
prepared to surrender my convictions
or my vote unless I am compelled to do
so. I am not In an attitude to sur
render without being captured, and I
am not In n frame of mind to be cap
tured without resistance, regardless of
what frame of mind other senators may
be In.
Mr. President, If we were right last
Thursday and Friday and Saturday and
until 0 o'clock tonight, we are right
now. If when the distinguished sen
ator from Ohio (Mr. Foraker) mado his
speech a day or two ago he was right,
then he Is right now. Right Is right,
and time nnd circumstances do not con
vert right Into wrong or wrong into
right. Has anything been offered by
way of argument on thlB subject to
change the minds of senators? Have
any new facts been presented? Not a
thing.
Mr. Gray The disagreement of the
house is a new fact.
Mr. Mason Mr. President
The President pro tempore Does the
senator from Nebraska yield to the
senator from Illinois?
Mr. Allen Certainly.
Mr. Mason There has been an argu
ment offered that has uppealed to many
gentlemen In this chamber, men who
have stood with you In all this contest.
Mr. Allen I urn sorry they do not
stand with me now.
Mr. Mnson The proposition hns been
made to your colleagues In this fight
that you shall not even have the privi
lege of carrying the food to the women
and children and the starving people of
Cuba unless you relinquish a certain
political demand In your resolution.
Mr. Allen And the senator from Il
linois surrenders to duress.
Mr. Muson I do not surender. I cap
itulate and serve notice that tomorrow
the light Is open again. You can enjoy
my right, if you are willing.
Mr. Allen Some time ago we heard
the senator's argument munana, ma
nana, tomorrow, tomorrow.
Mr. Mason We want what we can
get today. We will make the fight for
more tomorrow.
Mr. Allen Yes; If the senator from
Illinois wns right a week ago he was
right up to 6 o'clock this afternoon.
Mr. Mnson I am right tonight, ns I
was then.'
Mr. Allen I hope so.
Mr. Mason I nm for the aime pro
position, but I do not refuse half a loaf
because I can not get the full loaf. I
will fight for the other half of the loaf
tomorrow, and you will fight with me.
Mr. Allen Yes; I will keep on flght
intr with the senator as far as he Is
right, and against him when he
wrong.
No, Mr. President, there Is no excuse.
Every senator here understands and
the world understands that there 1b an
ulterior motive underlying this contest.
Does any man suppose for one moment
that the president of the United States
la standing on the question whether ho
on congress has the constitutional right
to recognize tho Independence of tho
republic of Cuba? I do not characterize
that too Btrongly when I say It Is a
subterfuge. Thcro Is no real contest on
that question. If It were a mere ques
tion of propriety, the president would
walco it.
It has been a contested question In
the history of this government from
Its organization aown to the present
time. In my humble Judgment, which
cotnrolB my nctlon, there can bo no
doubt thut congress, In conjunction
with the president of the United States,
Is charged with the duty and the re
sponsibility of recognizing the exist
ence of a foreign state. 1 am willing
to take the Judgment of great lawyers
upon some questions, but 1 am not
willing to be driven from that position
by the most eminent gentlemen In this
chamber or outside of It.
What Is It, then, that Is hidden be
neath this controversy or back of It?
Sir, It Is nothing but an organized at
tempt on the part of certain American
and European capitalists to saddle on
the government thnt may be erected In
tho Island of Cuba an Indebtedness
amounting to over $600,000,000. Senators
may pooh pooh It and deny. It Is nev
ertheless a living truth, and we will
not have adjourned this session of con
nnd gone to our homes two weeks until
that fact will be made to appear to
every citizen of this country.
Now, Mr. President, wo are to have a
surrender. One senator said the chang
ed circumstances were that the house
had Insisted. If the house Is right, wo
ought to surrender. If the house Is
right, we ought never to have tuken
the position we have tnken for the Inst
week. If the house Is wrong, Is that
any reason why we should be wrong
or any excuse for our being wrong?
That may satisfy the Judgment und the
consciences of some gentlemen. It does
not satisfy mine.
We have had some experience here
tonight. I speak and desire to speak In
the most respectful language I am cap
able or coining or collecting In con
nection with the appointment of con
ferees. A conference committee pre
supposes the selection of gentlemen, If
they enn be found, who have not fore
closed the question to be submitted to
them; who are In a Judicial frame of
mind, who nre willing to take It up and
consider It nnd debate It In all Its dif
ferent phuses until they reach a con
clusion such us a court ought to reach
after considering evidence.
We were Informed while we were de
bating thnt question that the house
conferees were already out here some
where waiting for the senate conferees,
standing, no doubt, out In the lobby of
the senute waiting for the senate con
ferees to meet them: nnd, sir. In the na
ture of things the conferees could not
have been In session when they did get
together to exceed half an hour. The
honorable senator from Ohio says I do
not propose to quote his language, but
simply give the substance of It they
hud been together but a moment or
two, at least a few moments, until
all attempt to sustain the senate
amendment recognizing the existence
of the Cuban republic was abandoned
by the senate conferees.
Two senators, a majority of the sen
ate conferees, who had opposed the
adoption of the amendment, were plac
ed In Judgment on tnt amendment, to
decide whether It should remain a part
of the lesolutlon or not. The honorable
chairman of the committee was opposed
to It. We knew that. He did not pre
tend to secrete the fact that he was
opposed to it. The distinguished sen
ntor from Alabama was opposed to It,
and addressed the senate against it.
He did not becrete or attempt to secrete
the met. iiow do you expect to obtain
a free and full conference from the
house of representatives when they
know senators are falling over one an
uthvr to get an opportunity to surren
der to them? Is the same farce to be
put on the boards again within two
hours from the time It llrst appeared?
Mr. Pettus Mr. President
The Piesldent pio tempore Does the
senator from Nebraska yield to the sen
ator fiom Alabama?
Mr. Allen I do.
Mr. i etuis 'Uie senator ought to
state thnt the senior senator from Ala
bama on that committee supported the
views of the senate to the end.
Mr. Allen Oh, the junior senator
from Alabama is altogether too sensi
tive. I am rot uylnr anything at all
derogntoiy to his colleague. He Is a
getitu r an fur . i m I nave the highest
conceivable tespeit and about whom I
k ec t if sppnK In language as polite
as my poor vocabulary will permit me.
Hut 1 submit, of course, to the Inter
ruption. Aie we to have this scene over again?
Are we to go to the world and say seri
ously that we made an honest struggle
to maintain this amendment? The
world will not believe us. Why, sir,
there Is not a man, woman, or child so
obtuse between the Atlantic and Pacific
oceans who will believe we were In
enrnest If we carry on this farce anv
further. There Is a clear majority In
the senate In favor of the amendment.
Why fritte away our opportunity and
the force nnd effect of the amendment
by permitting the appointment of con
ferees who nre hostile to It? Is it a
matter of delicacy with us? Am I to
abandon my sense of right nnd my con
viction of duty because some gentle
man may say I had reflected upon the
fairness of tho presiding olllcer? No.
sir; 1 will not do that. I will not aban
don my sense of duty nnd my convic
tion because some mun may elevate his
nose at me at an angle of 45 degrees
und sneerlngly say I have reflected
upon somebody. I can stnnd such re
flections. But I could never stnnd my
own consciousness of abandoning my
duty at a critical moment, nnd 1 never
would undertake to expluln It.
Now. what Is the condition here? We
said here a little over an hour ago that
we old not want any further confer
ence with the senate, and now we are
asked to confer with them again, and
I suppose we are to send out conferees
agnln us we sent them out an hour or
two ngo. We carried that motion by
simply one majority
Are we to repent
this
farce? Are we to finally surrender
lie dictates of the house and the
to tli
power, whatever it may be. behind the
house, or tnnt surrounus u uu umu
ences It? Are we to submit to a ma
Jorlty held there In the hnnds of one
man. who do not dare carry out their
honest convienuim.
No. Mr. President, the senate would
stain Itself with insincerity If It pur -
sued ac ourse of Hint kind nny further
whv not sav to the worm, w e stand
for the recognition of the Independence
of the republic of Culm, and If any
other branch of thN government doe-i
not set fit to accept Independence and
recognize. let that branch of the gov
ernment accept the responsibility to the
people of the United States?
The President pro tempore The ques
tion Is on the motion of the Senator
from Nebraska to amend the motion
iw utrlklnir out the words "by the
is! chair," and Inserting Instead thereof
the words "by ballot."
Mr. Allen On that question let us
have the yeas and nays.
The yeaa and nays were ordered
and the secretary proceeded to call th
roll.
Tho result was announced yeaa 23,
nays 49, as follows:
YEAS 23.
Allen, Bate, Butler, Cannon, Chilton,
Clay, Cockrcll, Daniel, Harris, Helt
feld, Kenney, Lindsay, McEnery, Mc
Latirln, Mallory, Martin, Mills, Mitch
ell, Money, Pettlgrew, Pettus, Itawllns,
Roach, Stewart, Teller, Turley, Turner,
Turplc.
NAYS 4D.
Aldrlch Allison, Baker, Berry, Bur
rows, Caffery, Chandler, Clark, Cullom,
DaviB, Deboe, ElkliiB, Falrbanks.Faulk
ner, Foraker, Frye, Galllnger, Gear,
Gorman, Gray, Hale, Hanno, Hans
brough, Huwiey, Hoar, Jones (Ark.),
Jones (Nov.), Kyle, lodge, McBrlde,
McMillan, Mason, Morgan, Morrill, Nel
son, Pasco, Penrose, Perkins, Piatt
(Conn.), Prltchard, Proctor, Quay, Sew
ell, Shoup, Spooner, Thurston, Warren,
Wilson, Wolcott.
NOT VOTING 12.
Bacon, Carter, Mantle, Murphy, Piatt
(N. Y.), Smith, Tillman, Vest, Walthall,
Wellington, Wetmore, White.
So the amendment to the motion was
rejected.
The President pro tempore The ques
tion Is on the motion of the senator
from Minnesota (Mr. Davis) that tho
conferees be appointed by the chair.
The motion was acreed to.
The President pro tempore The chair .
appoints ns conferees the senator from .
Minnesota (Mr. Davis), the senator
rrom Alabama tftir. Morgan, unu uw
senator from Ohio (Mr. Foraker).
THE W,Y UPWARD.
(By Hon. Geo. Fred Williams In Arena.)
Tho downward path of Industry 1b
hard. The muscle und the genius of (
mail struggle ukuuisi ii. ivi uie iuui iiu
all the Ills. Periods of business de
pression have ever brought physical
misery, unhapplness, und moral deca
dence. Pauperism, crime and tyranny i
do not flourish In the warm rays of .
prosperity. liberty weakens when free- j
men are discouraged und desperate. It
Is, therefore, the first function of tho
statesman to set Industry on the up
ward way; nor can the philanthropist
or moralist progress In well-doing whllo
mankind languishes.
Within the last month the wnges In
the cotton factories of New England, 1
already pitiably small, have been cut
10 per cent. Also, In the same month,
the milk trust of New York was or
ganized with a capital of fifteen mil
lion dollars; the International Paper
compjuiy was organized with a capital
of flfjty million dollars; the coal-dealing
trust was unnounced which Is to
comliine nil the great coal properties
of the east; enamel ware manufactur
ers capitalized a combination nt twenty-five
million dollars; and the Ameri
can Steel and Wire company started
with n capital of eighty-seven millions
of dollnrs. In our factory towns In
New England gaunt hands are raised
In prn-er for pennies, while capital j
gathers the properties or the land with
endless millions. In thl3 terrible di
vergence the props of our republican
institutions are spreading. The strength
of our whole superstructure rests upon
the fair distribution of wealth and
the equal opportunity of all men to ob
tain the Just reward of their toll. Surely
here Is cause enough to alarm and to in
spire the reformer and the patriot. Our
republic can no more bear the rule or
oligarchy than It can endure tho exac
tions of the despot.
The money Issue Is an Issue of prices.
The economic distress is due to prices,
and the social crisis arises from prices.
As the prosperity of the third quarter
of our century wns atl ended with ris
ing prices, so the pnth downward to
bankruptcy nnd depression hns known
only falling prices. In but two years
since 1874 have prices risen above tho
level of the previous year. While there
la no one so bold ns t assert that fall
ing prices can possibly bo of benefit to
civilized society, there are few who ap
preciate how mighty nre their Influ
ences upon human kind. It Is not ex
travagant to say that they may turn
civilization to decay.
Ono cannot realize the far-reaching
effect of falling and rising prices upon
debtor and creditor without figures.
Assume a farm, raising 2,400 bushels of
wheat, to be worth $0,500 and mortgaged
for $5,000 at 0 per cent, nnd that tho
cost of raising the wheat be $1,250. At
$1 per bushel, the wheat, less the debt
(Interest), Is worth $1,700; a profit of
$450 for the year. At $0.75 per bushel
the wheat less the debt Is worth $1,200,
a loss of $50 for the year's work. At
$1.23 per bushel the wheat less the
debt Is worth $2,200; a profit of $950.
At $0.7o and $1.25 per bushel the cred
itor receives for the annual Interest 400
and 240 bushels respectively, a differ
ence of 1C0 bushels, or more thnn one
half the entire annual Interest at $1
a bushel. At $0.75 a bushel the debtor
In the year loses $50; at $1.25 per bushel
he gains, the difference between ruin
and prosperity.
If the farm fall In value 25 per cent,
It will not pay the mortgage; If It rise
25 per cent, the equity will be worth
$3,125. or be doubled In value. If wheat
fall 25 per cent It will take the whole
crop for 3 1-3 years to pay the mort
gage; If wheat rise 25 per cent, two
years' crop will pay the mortgage. The
eastern investors who have lost by the
collapse of western mortgage securities
should realize that falling prices nnd
not lack of the farmers' thrift and In
dustry have brought the ruin; nor can
the farming properties be mnde valu
able airaln except through a rise of
prices.
It Is, however, in the liquidation of
debt that the consequences become the
most serious. If there be a mortgage
upon the farm the interest nnd prin
cipal must be paid from the products
of the farm. If these fall steadily in
price no one can dispute that each year
will demand more and more of the
fruits of Industry to liquidate the In
debtedness. If the farm Itself shall
fall In value to the amount of the mort
gage It Is clear that the farm must be
lost to him who tilled It. The same Is
true of the manufacturer, and the own
er of stock In railroads. If the property
r1l ttt hft mnrli'npp mnrMn tha mnviAtr
,,. ta ,mri fr, , ,.., j
u productive forces are deprived of
ossessIon, If the Inquirer will but
consider the Inevitable consequences to
the Individual debtor he may be able
f a Beneral aU ln the'last twenty-five
yenr3 wi,ich undeniably amounts to 40
per cent. guch n fall brings the value
0f nronertles below the average limit
1 OI redemption. When It is understood
tra the mortgage margin was reached
In the panic of 1893, and that since then
prices have gone downward with terri
ble rapidity, the business man should
not be surprised that railroads have
been transferred to the hands of bond
holder, that farms have passed under
the flng of the auctioneer, nnd that In
dustrial properties are now being gath
ered up at bankrupt prices by great
capitalistic syndicates. It Is. ln short,
a period of bankruptcy and liquidation
through which we are passing, and who
can deny that It Is depriving the Indus
trial forces of the country of their
nerve and muscle? It is thus that the
fair distribution of wealth is being per
verted; taking from the hands of tho
tollers, and giving to the creditor un
fair and Inhuman advantage.
Money, like all things else, rises with
scarcity and falls with plenty, and the
far-reaching results of a rise or fall of
money are due to the fact that human
ity has accepted money as a measure
of all the commodities and properties
of the world, and an increase or de
crease of that measure affects every
thing which Is bought or sold by man
Kind. Money names all values. You
have chosen It to denominate the stand
ing in the market of all goods and all
properties. You go over the market
returns to And, not how much wheat
you can buy with so much wool or cot
ton, but how muali of everything you
can buy with a dollar.
Now, let us "think of the matter;"
to raise the value of money Is to lower
prices. Prices' of what? All prices;
the prices of ull goods Is what General
Walker means. If, then, we find the
prices of all goods falling, nnd If Gen
eral Walker Is right we may, indeed
must, seureh for the cuuse In the rise
of the value of money; and If we will
but apply the inevitable law we shall
And that money rises In value when It
is scarce und fnlls when it Is plentiful.
Leave money out of the problem and
it will be found that matters stand
ubout where they did twenty years ago.
It Is true wheat Is cheaper, transporta
tion is cheaper, leuther, corn and Iron
nre cheaper; there is no exception; but
among themselves these commodities
exchange much ns they did before. Here
comes tho plain truth, which so few un
derstand, but which unlocks the whole
dlfliculty. Values of commodities have
not changed greatly, but their prices
have fallen over 40 per cent. Value Is
the power of a commodity In exchange
with other commodities; price Is the
value measured by money. In 1874 cot
ton brought IS cents a pound und fine
wool 55 cents a pound. In 189G cotton
brought C cents u pound und fine wool
18 cents u pound. In both years three
pounds of cotton would buy one pound
of flue wool; but the price bus gone
down two-thirds in euch case.
It is perfectly apurent thnt the thing
which we have taken to measure value
hus Itself risen ln value, and that thing
Is money.
If all goods are falling, It Is plain
that money is rising, or, to use the cur
rent phrase, appreciating.
To illustrate the effect of uppreelut
ing money upon the debtor, let us us
Bume that the owners of live commodi
ties, for tho purpose of Increasing pro
duction, borrow four of the live dol
lars. At the time of borrowing, four
of the commodities represent the debt.
If the money-owners should then de
stroy the remaining dollar the prices of
all live of the commodities would fall
to four dollars, and all Ave commodi
ties would be payable for the debt.
Thus the creditor, by throwing away u
dollar, Is richer In goods than he was
before1. Surely this Is unjust, and It
must be clear that decreasing the mon
etary rund has confiscated the debtor's
property. It is equally clear that if all
the live dollars should be loaned to
the commodity ow ners und they should
then increuse their commodities to six,
the six would measure the same in dol
lars as did the Ave before, and all six
must be delivered up in payment of the
flve-dollnr debt.
There are those who know full well
the results of an uppreclutlng money,
and these men are the most wicked,
rapacious, and ungodly who have ever
dared to call themselves respectable
among men; yet these very men spread
out their phylacteries und declure the
laws of morality. They own the press;
they govern the university chairs; they
even speak through the pulpit; they
hold the instruments for social torture.
So far do they govern public opinion
that It would now seem ns if there were
no honesty which the capitalist does
not approve.
This state of affairs cannot last for
ever. The debtor is a factor In the
problem of justice us well us the cred
itor. No one questions the right of the
manufacturer to uut down wuges If his
dividend Is threatened; but Is It "mor
al" to maintain the dividend and cut
down wuges? By whut luw? Or Is It,
rather, morality to maintain tho wage
and cut down the dividend. The wage
Is the return to labor for producing;
the dividend Is the return to the drone
for not lnborlng. In the university of
man It should not be taught that labor
which produces all shall take the bur
den of ailing prices, while capital,
which works not at all, shall bear none.
The argument of "the 50-cent dollar"
has gained the adherence to the gold
cause of many honest men; this Is an
other phrase which capital has coined
to coax the people Into the shambles.
But as It Is effective In politics it must
be considered seriously.
Let no mnn sneerlngly or lightly pass
by the greut fact, w hlch Is now stated,
namely, that from 1S74 to 1893 silver at
Its bullion value has been nearly a per
fect measure of prices. In this period
gold prices of commodities fell (by In
dex numbers) from 102 to G8, or Just
one-third. In this period sliver fell
from 95.8 to 63.4, or 32 per cent. Had
prices of commodities been measured
by silver bullion, there would have been
a fall of less than two per cent ln these
nineteen years. No more honest dol
lar ever existed than this depreciated
silver bullion would have mnde. The
gold odllar wns more dishonest than n
coin had ever been before.
While sliver had fallen almost step
by step with commodities during this
period, In 1893 the blows were struck In
India and the United States which
"broke the gauge" between commodity
nnd silver prices. Were silver bullion
now to measure commodities they
would have risen 31 per cent from the
prices of 1S92. Such a rise would not, of
course, be fair to the creditor, who has
to bear the burden of rising prices. In
this sume period, since 1892, the gold
prices of commodities have fallen 15 per
cent, to the debtor's terrible burden.
Upon the passage of a law for the
free coinage of silver, let us assume
that the bankers can bring about a
temporary premium on gold. What will
be the result? Gold, of course, will
not be used In pnyment of debt. Wheth
er It be hoarded or sent abroad, the re
sult will be contraction. Contraction
will make the existing monetary fund
more vnluable than it is now. It is
claimed by the U. S. treasury ofllclals
that one-third of our total money In
circulation is gold. If the banking and
commerce of the country be thrown
upon two-thirds of the present fund, so
enormous would be the contraction that
the rise In Its vnlue would be enormous.
It Is Inconceivable that the gold premi
um could prevail against the demand
for other money, no matter what tls
character. If it could, only pay debt. In
other words, gold would be drawn Ir
leslstlbly into circulation nt par with
other money; the premium would disap
pear. Belief could only come from one other
source, silver. But where Is the sliver
to All the gap? There Is none In the
market; tho annual output has been ab
sorbed every year, no matter what Its
prlceh as been. The bugbear of a flood
of silver need not be feared. If gold
should dlsappear.as some claim It would
we would be paying for silve-, which
would not come. If gold stay3 and
does the money work, then It will
have no premium; in other words, the
silver dollar will be equal to the gold
dollar. That is bimetallism estab
lished. Many believe that Europe would flood
us with silver; but Europe is a steady
buyer of silver for coinage. No one
can bo found who claims that any na
tion In Europe has more metallic money
than It needs. We run into paradoxes
when we test such a theory. Europe's
coinage Is at the ratio of 15ft to 1
There Is a loss then In selling Bilver to
us at coinage rales; three cents on the
dollar. As silver already coined ln Eu
ropean countries Is as efllcient as gold,
why should they incur a loss of three
cents on the dollar ln exchanging it for
gold? But ln this estimate we are as
suming that silver Is at par with gold.
Suppose now that gold Is at a premium;
then the sacrifice of European nations
in sending Bilver to us wlh clearly be
three cents on the dollar plus the gold
premium. As silver coins are doing as
well as gold in all tlw countries, In the
name of fair reason where Is the mo
tive to replace it with gold at a heavy
loss?
It Is highly probable that all the ter
rors of free coinage will culminate llko
Secretary Sherman's awful prophecies
In 1878. But with silver restored we
shall have broken up the gold monop
oly, and with the annual supply of both
metals from the mines, some measure
of steadiness In prices will be attained.
Whether there will be much rise Is
doubtful, but the fall will be stopped.
Then prosperity will be possible; It is
now impossible.
We do not realize our power as a na
tion. England had only to hear Ol
noy's "No," and her grip loosened from
Venezuela. England is now holding the
world ln the grip of the gold standard,
and our "No" will free us and the whole
world.
We, poor fools, go on paying 100 per
cent of tribute, and when Wall street
orders her statesmen to shout "nation
al honor," "sound money," "repudia
tion," "anarchy," etc., we tremblingly
return to the work of digging out
enough to pay double next year, thank
ing heaven that we are honest. Alas,
It is not even honest; when the debtor
fails, suffers, starves under such a pro
cess, honesty has become oppression,
inhuman, no longer a virtue.
There is not a silver dollar in circu
lation which is not equal to a gold dol
lar today. Why Is this so, even when
the bullion In the dollar Is worth by
gold measurement less than 50 cents?
Clearly because of the debt-paying
power. With free coinage the debt
paying power will not be changed.
But the value of money is regulated
by the quantity and the work It has to
do; free coinage will only change the
quantity ns It brings more silver to do
money work. Experience proves that
the world demands nnnually within a
few million ounces of the largest re
corded output.
Some honestly believe thnt the work
of raising the prcie of silver bullion In
volves lifting the vnlue of every silver
coin In the world; but when silver rose
25 cents an ounce ln 1890 no one thought
that there was anything involved ex
cept the amount of bullion then in the
market for sale. This was and Is tha
fact, and free coinage has only to con
tend with tho future output of the
mines. As a fall In silver undoubtedly
weakens the credit of silver money, and
mnkes the gold fund more valuable, so
a rise to the coinage rate will lift tha
whole burden from international cred
it and be a boon to the civilized world.
The democracy, with Its Issue of free
colnnge, makes no attack on capital,
but merely nsks from It Justice to tha
debtor. With the addition to the coin
age of the annual sliver output to do
the work of trade and commerce there
will bo no destructive rise ln prices.
Reason would indicate that the remon
etization of silver will operate ln tha
same degree upon prices as did the de
monetization. Demonetization was ac
complished from 1873 to 1877, yet the fall
of prices was gradual, amounting up to
1880 to only 12 per cent.
In 1879 Sir Robert Glffen, discussing
the ilse in the value of gold, faatd: "Now
we mny witness a gradual increase In
the burden of debts to the loss of th
debtors, and the immediate advantage
of creditors." That process has gone
steadily on to the present day, and thi
democracy proposes to reverse It.
The bankers must now appeal, over
the heads of the bankers, to the busi
ness men, who are suffering from a
false system. Fairly und dispassion
ately we shall argue our cause, not
heeding abuse and misrepresentation,
because if we can rescue humanity, the
glorious results of our work will bring
lasting honor to the disciples of the
faith. It Is said a bullet which has
been dipped ln the marksman's blood
will surely hit the mark. Jefferson said
truly, "The patriot, like the Christian,
must learn thut to bear revllings and
persecutions is a part of his duty."
In 1900 we shall close the awful path
downward which has brought us to the
end of the greatest of centuries in mis
ery and suffering. Bimetallism Is not
a Anal reform, but It is The Way Up
ward. When through rising prices hu
mankind again gets courage, other re
forms will come. This must be the first.
Force of Habit.
He was deeply absorbed In his after
noon paper.
She sat admiring their two little chil
dren playing happily on the floor,
"John!" she called.
He did not reply.
"John." she repeated, "I am talk
ing to you."
"Yes," he mumbled.
"Aren't the children just too sweet for
anything?"
No reply.
"John! I say. aren't the children Just
too sweet for anything?"
"Yes," he drawled, almost uncon
sciously, "but they're nothing com
pared with those mother used to"
"John!"
"Mnry."
Half an hour later John realized fully
the meanlg of the war scare, and fox
the remainder of that evening the as
pect hovered wherever he chanced to go
nbout the house.
When you're out. with your sweet
heart or your wife.
And you hear some one murmur: "On
my life!
There's the best-looking woman on the
street!"
Oh, the moment Is ecstatically sweet.
But 'tlsn't half to splcasant when you
hear
From the lips of nnnther fellow nenr,
As he answers: "Yes, she Is rathex
trim
What the deuce do you suppose she
sees In him?"
The Honorable Mr. Swellup (bustling
ln)Good morning. General Workaway;
good morning.
General Workaway (scarcely looking
up) Howdy, sir; howdy? Take a seat,
sir. Be nt leisure In n moment.
The Honorable Mr. Swellup (Krnndly)
I see you do not recognize me, sir.
I'm the Honorable Mr. Swellup.
General Workaway Ah. Mr. Swellup;
delighted, I'm sure. Take two seats,
sir!
.
Y