bury many people, one at a time, and so a little money will exchange a great many goods, but you say, there must be money enough to liquidate every transaction necessary, and you point to a panic, and when there is a money famive. You point to when there is a money panic, that is to say, when properties and securities are thrown on the market at once to be sold to get the legal means of paying obligations.

once.

It may go to
So the goods.

"Very true, but in ordinary times all goods are not at once offered any more than all people are dying at When a cholera epidemic comes people die, and die rapidly, and hearses are in exceptional demand, like money in a panic. But note this: Even if every corpse is no lucky enough to be carried in a hearse it yet can be buried some way or other. It may not be so stylish, but it gets there all the same. its grave in a cart or an express wagon. and money, if they cannot all be exchanged in currency for coin, they may yet be exchanged by other means, by clearing-house certificates, or, last of all, even by barter. All goods are not offered for exchange at once any more than a million men crossing a bridge are all on the bridge at the same time. A million men can all cross a bridge comfortably 100 at a time, but if they all cross at once there is a panic and some one is hurt.

"Now, I want to suggest in connection with the act of 1873 and with the general question very briefly one or two facts. Prices since 1873 have not fallen because of any lack of money, and I think I have shown you on general principles there has been no reason why there should be an increasing amount of money, and 1 intend to show you now by facts that prices have not

fallen since 1873 because of any lack in the quantity

of money.

"I have prepared on that chart the facts showing the most extensive movement of prices, the most exhaustive study of prices ever made in this country or any other. If the gentlemen can see across the room you will find that there is a straight black line crossing the middle chart and that that represents the figure 100, or the basis from which the figures move. Now, there is a line that starts from the beginning there in 1860 representing the movements of 223 articles quoted solely in the American market. That line rises up as you see it. It is marked 'C.' It rises up from that base line to 1865 and then it starts downward. It moves down and in 1879 strikes the base line again, so that the movement of prices shows that in 1879 we were exactly on the same level to prices before the civil war. Then the line moves slightly above the base line, showing that prices were higher than 1860. Then it drops a little under again to the figure 'C,' just under the line, and, compared with 1860, the prices of 223 articles averaged together in the American markets showed a decrease as compared with 1860.

"Now, let us compare with that the circulation. There is a line marked D'across it. Soon after the civil war it moved a little above the line, and then in 1879 the circulation of the United States advanced rapidly and moves to the right. There was a greater demand put upon the money with the increasing circulation, but I point to the chart to show you what the transactions were which you would appeal to as showing how much trade had increased. That might indicate the amount of demand put upon the circulation

of the country. That line up there in red is the line of the coloring which I just explained to you was the amount of transactions in the United States practically without the use of money, consequently the very thing that you will refer to as indicating an increased de mand upon money is the very thing which explains just to what extent we have economized the use of money.

66

Lastly on that chart there is a dotted line and red, which begins some distance from the base line. That represents the value of silver compared with gold. It travels along the '70s about the same ratio, 15 to 1. Then it goes down and up. In 1879 it was just crossing the line of circulation at 'D.' It keeps on pretty steadily until after 1885, and then it drops below the line, then rises, and now it is again down; you can just see it faintly at the lower edge of the chart, like a star in the winter just passing over the horizon. That is a significant story. That shows the relation of silver to gold, while the line 'C' indicates the relation of all the commodities in the United States to gold.

"Now I ask you whether there is any parallel show ing of silver relative to gold and commodities relative to gold? The price of commodities is 8 per cent. below what it was in 1860. Silver is 50 per cent. below. Isn't it perfectly clear then, gentlemen, that silver did. not have the same purchasing power in 1894 as it had in 1873 ?

"There is absolutely no correspondence. The purchasing price of silver is infinitely below the price of the purchasing power which it had in 1873. Therefore, it is not to day, in 1894, a just means of paying debts. But more than that, why should there have been any

change in prices in the United States after 1873 ? There was no more gold in circulation than in 1873, yet, May 1, 1895, there was gold in circulation in the United States $568,000,000, and silver $524,000,000, making a total of $1,092,000,000. More redemption money has been coined by the mint by $1,092,000,000 and yet prices fall. That is due, without the shadow of a doubt to any investigator, to the cheapened cost of production.

"Moreover, if it be associated with a fall of prices since 1873, with the demonetization of silver, I point to the fact that there is more silver in circulation in the very countries concerned to-day than in 1873. Germany has still 110,000,000 thalers of her old silver and the five franc pieces of France are more in circulation than in 1873, and they are all legal tender.

"The United States, after the Latin union ceased to coin silver in 1878, tried this experiment, and now the United States has added to the circulation of the world something over $600,000,000. That is, there is more today, in 1896, than there was in 1873. Therefore, why the use of talking about the fall of prices having been due to the subtraction of the money of the world when there is more silver in circulation and more gold in circulation by hundreds of millions.

"Moreover, it may be said that commodities had fallen because of the subtraction of silver from the circulation. In 1873, compared with earlier years, the exertion of the average laborer had risen 8 per cent. The laborer to-day commands more gold than he ever commanded in the industrial history of the world. Not only have wages risen all this time, but because of this great cheapening in the cost of production of commod

ities, which has caused the falling of the prices of commodities in general, wages have risen in money, in gold, and his purchasing power has increased double. Not only has money risen but commodities have fallen. The laborer has got double since 1873. For heaven's sake let us have more of 1873 for the laborer.

"This persistence in saying that the fall of prices is due to silver is like the story of the grandmother, who said there was something good in everything, and the daughter said: I really believe you would say something good about the prince of evil.' Well, my dear, I am sure we must all admit he has great perseverance.'

"Now the free coinage of silver at 16 to 1-let us get the record to the point; when the market ratio was about 32 to 34-it skipped about so much you can't be really certain. It has been 34 to 1; somewhere between 32 and 34 now. If the market ratio be that in the mint ratio you propose 16 to 1 there is a premium of sixteen ounces of silver profit on withdrawing every ounce of gold in circulation. Free coinage of silver at 16 to 1 means single silver monometallism; 16 to 1 is a single silver standard, and, in the language of my opponent, we will start with all the South American countries and Mexico. Free coinage of silver, then, is absolutely certain to drive all gold out of circulation. The mere hint of it did that in the panic of 1893. May 1, 1895, the first of this month, there were $568,000,000 of gold in circulation. Since gold must be inevitably driven out if free coinage of silver is had, there will be no inerease in the quantity of money.

"If the people who support free coinage hope to increase the quantity of money it is perfectly evident oL