The Athena press., August 28, 1896, Image 2

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THE
CLEARANCE SALE
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and Eoad Carts,
McFADDEN
ATHENA PRESS
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he PRESS, Athena, Oregon.
ATHENA ..... .AUGUST 28 1896.
for president:
WILLIAM J. BRYAN,
OF NEBRASKA.
FOR VICE rRE8IDENT:
ARTHUR SEWALL,
OF MAINE.
'Wo Crown of Thorns,
No Cross of Gold."
SUPPLY AND DEMAND.
As a rule, says the Times Mount
nineer, those who advocate a single
gold standard refuse to take into
consideration the laws of supply
and demand as being an element
in fixing values, and base their
argument solely upon the com
mercial values of metals fix9d by
legislation. In this they become
decidedly confused. They re
cognize only gold as a money metal,
or the baBis on which values are
reckoned, instead of viewing both
gold . and silver as convenient
mediums of exchange, and on this
account confound their statements
in a manner to confuse rather than
enlighten the ordinary 6eeker for
knowledge. For instance it is
stated that free coinage of silver at
the ratio of 16 to 1, means that the
owners of silver will make a profit
of 87 per cent, by taking silver
bullion to the mint and having it
coined into dollars. On the other
hand, it is claimed that free silver
coinage means a debased currency
and a reduction of the present pur
chasing power of the dollar to one
half. Now. if the latter statement
be true, the former is untrue.
If the coinage of silver adds
nothing to its purchasing power,
then its owners can make no profit
by passing such a measure. If, on
the other hand, free coinage raises
the purchasing power of Bilver, so
that silver owners make the ptofit
ot 87 per cent, it follows that the
assertions of silverites that coinage
. governs bullion values is correct.
Hence the charge that free coinage
means a depreciated currency is
unsound.
When the law declares that so
many grains of gold or silver shall
constitute a dollar and become
legal tender, it at once opens an
enormous field for their employ
ment and creates for them an
almost unlimited demand. Hence,
market values are governed by
coinage laws. Of course, if the
coinage of a metal were fixed below
what its bullion value was before
the coinage law was passed, the
law would be inoperative, for no
one would wish to sacrifice part of
the commodity value of his pos
sessions. That gold owes to legis
lation its high value to-day, no
One who has studied the question,
nnrl wlin understands the law of
supply and demand, will deny.
The value conferred by law upon
& GORMAN,
gold, is a monopolistic value, by
which it is given an exclusive
privilege of settling debts. To
illustrate this proposition more
fully, let us suppose that the
government could pass a law de
claring that corn should not be
used as an article of food and that
wheat alone should be consumed
as a bread stuff. What would be
the result? The demand for wheat
would increase, and in consequence
the price of wheat would advance,
while the price of corn woull go
down to the level of the demand for
it as a commodity other than a
bread stuff. Thus the law of, sup
ply and demand would govern the
price of each grain. From wheat
having been declared the only
bread stuff, the demand for it
would increase and consequently
its price would advance, while the
demand for corn having been de
creased the price would fall. Then
to carry this supposition further.
Suppose this state of affairs to exist
for twenty-three years, for instance
from 1873 to the present time.
The holders of wheat would be
able to demand whatever price they
chose, and the consumers of bread
Btuffs would be forced to submit to
their demands, while the holder of
corn could only get what was offer
ed for his grain, since its consump
tion is regulated by legislation.
Then suppose the discrimination
against corn were removed, and it
were allowed to be used as an
article of food, the price of corn
would suddenly raise from an in
crease in the demand, while the
price of wheat would fall, since the
demand for it would be lessened.
When the same laws of supply
and demand are applied to gold
and silver as money metals, sim
ilar results will be witnessed. In
1873, by an act of congress, silver
was demonetized, or in other words,
was no longer recognized as a pri
mary money metal. At that time
a silver dollar of 371.25 grains
pure silver, or 412.5 grains of
standard silver, was worth $1,004
in gold. But by that act the de
mand for silver, was decreased,
and its price gradually declined
until a year ago it was worth only
49.1 cents in gold. Or perhaps
more correctly speaking, the de
mand for gold having been in
creased by legislation, its purchas
ing power was increased to the ex
tent that it would buy twice as
much silver as it would before the
latter metal was relegated from a
money metal to a commodity.
Now suppose this embargo against
silver shall be removed and it shall
bo recognised as a primary money,
what will bo the result? The de
mand for 6ilver will be increased
and its price will advance, while
the demand for gold will be lessen
ed and its purchasing power will
fall. The price of both these met
als will then be governed by the
law of supply and demand. They
will tend to regulate each other
and as the demand for one increas
es or diminishes its price, will rise
or fall. The final result will be
that the two metals will circulate
side by side, each governing the
price of the other, and as the sup'
ply of silver in the world at the
present time is some sixteen ounces
to one of gold, that is the price the
laws of supply and demand would
dictate if it were recognized as a
primary money, without any legis
lative restraints. Hence with leg
islative discrimination in favor of
gold removed, the price of the two
metals would speedily adjust itself
in accordance with the supply and
demand, resulting eventually in a
most perfect system of bimetallism.
These Vehicles Must he Sold at Once
(Successors to Knapp, Burrell& Company)
Two facts stand out prominent
in considering the probable effect
of Mi. Bryan's first excursion into
the "enemy's stronghold." The
Nebraskan had an enormous audi
ence, which, whether it had come
from motives of curiosity or from
admiration for the candidate, cheer
ed him vociferously. And his
speech, which was not of the rhe
torical order, did not set his audi
tors agape with astonished enthu
siasm. No doubt a very large per
centage of the people who heard
his address came with the expecta
tion of witnessing such another ex
hibition as flamed up on the day
of his speech in the Chicago con
vention. The fireworks were not
forthcoming. It is evident, how
ever, that Mr. Bryan had a delibe
rate purpose not to be oratorical
and not to arouse a frenzy. He
wished to show himself not as an
orator but as a logician and man
of affairs, and, incidentally, to re
move the New York public's im
pression that he is simply a speech
maker. If this was his purpose he
has reasons to be satisfied with the
result of the notification party. If
he did not set his audience afire he
impressed it with a sense of his
earnestness and a feeling that he
can be cautious and argumentative
when occasion demands.
A Washington paper says: It
is to be regretted that John L
Shurpstein has been the means of
depriving his father of being the,
next supreme justice in this State.
The attitude of John on the fin
ance question raised a doubt in
the minds of many of the delegates
at the late convention at Ellens
burg as to the soundness of Judge
Sharpstein's views on silver, owing
to the stand his son had taken on
the gold side. This caused Hon. B.
L. Sharpstein to miss the nomi
nation for supreme judge. We do
not blame John to resign his po
sition on the central committee of
his county. He should kick him
self for being the means of defeat
ing his father, one of the best men
and ablest jurists of this State, for
the supreme bench on the fusion
ticket.
The Oregon State Journal, pub
lished and edited by Harrison R,
Kincaid, the present republican
secretary of state of Oregon, refuses
to sail under the colors of McKin
ley and Ilobart. It comes out
strongly for the free coinage of sil
ver, and prints some very able edi
torials on the subject. Col. E.
Hofer, editor of that staunch re
publican paper, the daily Capital
Journal of Salem, is state commit
teeman of the new Silver party for
Oregon. He will have the direc
tion of the Bryan and Sewall cam
paign in this state as far as the
Silver party is concerned and
promises to make it a hummer.
While the concession made to
the populists by the democracy of
Oregon in the electoral ticket goes
somewhat against the grain, it
must be remembered that the pop
ulists have made far greater con
cessions in other states to demo
cracy. Since they proved a great
balance of power over the demo
crats in Otegon in the last election,
it is not at all surprising that they
should dictate the terms of fusion
in the silver campaign. It's a little
bitter, but anything is better than
McKinley.
Congressman Ellis has suddenly
come to the conclusion that tariff
is of more importance than money.
Ferhaps he wants a tariff on of
INSURANCE
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For sale by Osburn.
The Democratic Platform.
The platform which has been heralded
to the people of these United S totes by
the democratic party in convention as
sembled, on which it is predicted the
brilliant Bryan will be swept to victory
by a tidal wave is as follows :
We, the democrats of the United States,
in national convention assembled, do re
affirm oar allegiance to these great essen
tial principles of justice and liberty upon
which our institutions are founded, and
which the democratic party baa main
tained from Jefferson's time to oar own
freedom of speech, freedom of the press,
freedom of conscience, the preservation
of personal rights, the equality of all
citizens before the law, and the faithful
observance of constitutional limitations.
Recognizing that the money question
is paramount to all others at this time,
we invite attention to the fact that the
federal constitution names Bilver and
gold together as tbe money metals of the
United States, and that the first coinage
law passed by congress under the consti
tution made the silver dollar the unit of
value and admitted gold to free coinage,
at a ratio measured by the eilver dollar
unit.
We declare that the act of 1873 de
monetising eilver without the knowledge
or approval of the American people has
resulted in the appreciation of gold and
a corresponding fall in the prices of
commodities produced by the people; a
heavy increase in the burden of taxation,
and of all debts, public and private ; the
enrichment ot the money-lending classes
at home and abroad ; paralysis of indus
tries and impoverishment of the people.
We are unalterably opposed to the sin
gle gold standard, which has locked fast
the prosperity of an industrious people
in the paralysis of hard time:. Gold
monometallism is a British policy,
founded upon British greed for gain and
I write Insurance only with the very best Companies. When you
want Policies written on your house, barn, or grain, see that
they are in the Aetna, Palatine or Caledonian. ,
Represented.
J. W.
power, and its general adoption has
brought other nations into financial Ber
vitude to London. It is not only un
American, but anti-American, and it can
be fastened upon the United States only
by the stifling of that indomitable spirit
and love of liberty which proclaimed our
political independence in 1776 and won
it in the war of tbe Revolution.
We demand the immediate restoration
of the free and unlimited coinage of gold
and eilver at the present legal ratio of 16
to 1, without waiting for tbe aid or con
sent of any other nation. We demand
that the standard eilver dollar shall be a
full legal tender, equally with gold, for
all debts, public and private, and we
favor such legislation as will prevent the
demonetization of any kind of legal
tender money by private contract.
We are opposed to the policy and practice
of surrendering to holders of obligations of
the United Mates any option reserved by
law to the government of redeeming such
obligations in either silver coin or gold
coin.
We are opposed to the issuing of
interest bearing bonds of . the Unitr-d
States in time of peace, and condemn
trafficing with banking syndicates which.
in exchange for bonds at an enormous
profit to themselves, supply the federal
treasury with gold to maintain a policy
of gold monometallism.
Congress alone has power to coin and
issue money and President Jackson
declared that this power could not be
delegated to corporations or individuals.
We therefore demand that the power
to issue notes be taken from the banks
and that all paper shall be issued direct
ly by the treasury department. We
hold that tariff duties should be levied
solely for the purpose of revenue and
that taxation should be limited by
the needs of the government, honestly
and economically administered. We
denounce as disturbing to business
the republican threat to reetore the Mc
Kinley law, which has twice been con
demned by the people in national
elections, and which, enacted under tbe
false plea of protection to home industry,
proved a prolific breeder of trusts and
monopolies, enriching tbe few at the ex
pense of the many, restricted trade and
deprived the producers of the great Amer
ican staples of access to their natural
markets. Until tbe money question
is settled, we are opposed to any agitation
for farther changes in our tariff laws ex
cept such as are necessary to make the
deficit in revenue, caused by the ad
verse decision of the supreme court
as to the income tax.
There would have been no deficit in
the federal revenue during the last two
years but for the annulment by the
supreme court of the income tax law,
placed upon the statute hooks by a demo
cratic congress. The obstruction to an
income tax, which the supreme conrt dis
covered in the constitution after it had
laid hidden for a hundred years, must be
removed, to the end that accumulated
wealth may be made to bear tta just share
of the burden of the government. We,
therefore, favor an amendment to the
federal constitution that will permit the
levy of an income tax. We hold that the
efficient way of protecting American
labor is to prevent the importation of
foreign pauper labor to compete with the
home market, and that the value of the
borne market to our American farmers
and artisans is greatly reduced by a
vicious monetary system which depresses
the prices of their product below the cost
of production, and thus deprives them of
the means of satisfying their needs. We
denounce the profligate waste of the
money wrung from the people by oppres
sive taxation and lavish appropriations
of recent republican congresses, which
have kept taxed high, while the laborer
that pays them is unemployed, and pro
ducts of the people are depressed in price
nntil they no longer repay the cost of
production. We demand a return to that
simplicity and economy which best befits
a democtratic governmett, and a redac
tion in the number of useless offices, tbe
salaries of which drain tbe substance of
the people. Confiding in the justice of
cur range and the necessity of its success
at the polls, we submit tbe foregoing
declaration of principles and purposes to
the considerate judgment of the American
people. We invite the support of all
citizens who approve them and who de
t;re to have them made effective through
legislation for the relief of the people
and the restoration of the country's
prosperity.
WaUa Walla, Wash.
SMITH, Athena, Oregon.
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