No reform which seeks to free the masses...

No reform which seeks to free the masses from the domination of the classes is bon est in the eyes of those whose unjust ad var t age is threatened. When the silver tongued Breckenxidgs talks of repudiation it is not probable that he refers to a repudiation of the judgments of courts of justice. Every 10 per cent added to the purcbasing power of gold is just 10 per cent subtracted from the earning power of labor and from the property labor has already earned. Patriotism down in New York in order to have the true ring, must have the Vanderbilt ring and must have it in the nose. Patriotism out in Nebraska is torn off a different strip of cloth. Our friend, Bourke Coehran, an allegetl democrat, who is making republican speeches for SlOOanight, islikely to have bis protincial ideas enlarged somewhat bef ore he covers many western states. In spite of the positive knowledge that the country is going to be ruined by the election of Mr. Bryan, Cornelius Vanderbüt bas given his newly married daughter $5,000,000 to start housekeeping on the ruins. The republican press very gravely informs us that public sentiment in England is against Mr. Bryan. As the public sentiment of England is largely the creation of Lombard street, this is quite reassuring. If Gen. Spalding would j ust let go of his "safe bi-metallisrn"longenough to tip his left ear to the ground he might catch the first faint rumble of the cyclone that will termínate his public usef ulness in November. ! It is presumed that Garrett A. Hobart is too busy just ncv calcnlating his profits on the recent advance in coal by the coa! trust to give mucli time to politics. But llien, it was Hobart's sugar and not his brains that Ilaima wanted, anyway. It is strange that no.one questions the free coinage of gold. Inasrmich as the free coinage of go'd furnishes the great deniíind for that metal it is obvious that it is a boon to the gold miners and to the small coterie of speculators who own or control the world'S stock of gold. A fall in prices due to improved methods of production, is a blessmg to mankind. It beneiits all to the detriment of none. But a fall in prices lue to an appreeiation of the standard by which values are measured and debts are paid, is of advantage solely to those who deal in money. Of course Gen. Alger is hauling Sickles around in his private car on his stumping tour tor gold all on account of the laboiiug man and the farmer. The sleek, well fed monopolista are nighty solieitous that the farmer may njure himself with the great big Australian ballot that he will cast for Biyan in November. The voter knows where to flnd Mr. 3arkworlh. Heisan outspoken earuest and able advocate of the free coinage of silver. He is no trimmer. He speaks what he thinks and will vote in congress as he pledges his constituents to vote. There is no straddling about Mr. Barkworth's position. When you see a fellow on the street corner puff himself up uiitil he looks as wise as an owl looking down a rat lole for grub and then lay claim to all patriotism, intelligence, honesty, etc, that has characterized the democratie party in the past, you may stake your bottom dollar on it that he has just returned from that convention of renegades, mugwumps and silk stocking demoerats at Indianapolis. The democratie couuty ticket this year is one of the very best tickets ever put before the people of this couuty. There is not a man on the ticket but who is above reproach. It is a good, clean ticket of strong men, who will make excellent county officials. ïhosc voters who try to vote for the best men for county office irrespective of politics, will vote the democratie councy ticket this fall. Two short years ago Gen. Spalding assured the people of Washtenaw coiinty tb at the fullest and freest kinc of silver coinage was just what would help the farmer. Now he is busy ex plaining that he didn't mean what he said. The people took him at his word two years ago and sent him to congress. They will probable take him at his word this time and give him an opportunity to look af ter his Monroe bank. It is currently reported that the farmers along Gen. Spaulding'sline of march are still laughing over his pecu liar niethods of demonstrating how much he don't know or how little he is afraid to teil about the financia question. The individual who picks the average Washtenaw farmer up for an ignoramus on such matters is going to get left, and as one old fel low, who has forgotten more about the question than the majority of the gold plated orators have yet learned was heard to remark, "man afraid o: his mouth" would be a fittine name for the candidate who is presuming to win by concealing what he knows. My friend, did you ever think that it is because gold has appreciated 100 per cent in twenty years that the money power loves it so. Naturally a standard that has stolen an average annual increase of 5 per cent is prized by its beneficiaries. But, if instead of stoping the appreciation of gold by the perfectly legitímate remonetization oi silver, the stock of gold should be suddenly doubied by a miraculous increase in the production of that metal, does anyone doubt that the purchasing power of the gold dollar would decline am that it would cease to be in the eyes o those to whoni the "dearest" money is the ''soundest'' money, au honest dol lar? We challenge those who insist that dear money and low prices pave the road to prosperity to glance back over the page of history and cite a single instance where under the influence of declining prices we have had business prosperity and when labor has been fully employed and wages have been good when business has been dull? And when you have searched in vain for such instances look again and teil us if you can when rising prices have not induced business prosperity and when business prosperity has not afforded f uil employment to labor at good wages? And then figure out if you can how we can have rising prices when the material which is made by law the standard of value and by which all values must be measured, is appreciating an average of 5 per cent each year. Hon. Thos. E. Barkworth of Jackson was made the unanimous ehoice of the demócrata of the secoml district ior candidato for Cougress at Monroe, Tuesday, and the ehoice was a ivise one for he will le the nearlv unauimous choiee of the peop'.e at the polis in November. The people admire positive conyictions an-d the ability to advocate them with clearness and force. Mr. Barkworth has these qualitjes in a marked degree. He diil not have to trim bis opinions to flt bis party's platform before he eould accept the nomination, but on the eontrary, he was one of the active spirits in making that platform what it is, one of the ablest expositions of the cause of the people that has ever dominated the action of a pol tical j party. Mr. Barkworth is true to him self, true to his convictions and if elected he will be true to the people. = Our farmer friend, did you ever stop to thmk that under present conditious ■ every business transaction is computed j upou the price of gold that day iu Londou; that every deferred payment is a promise to deliver on a given day a certain fixed quantity of gold - 23.22 line grains for each dollar nominated in the bond? But you do not actually pay debts, either foreign or domestic, with gold. There has not been gold enough produced iu the last 25 years to pay the interest upon the various natioual debts. AVe do pay debts with labor and the staple producís of the country. The condition confronting us then is this: A debt is a promise to deliver gold; any person who is not a producer of gold must exchange his labor or his property for it; it follows the.n that the amouut of gold our property or labor will exchange for is in important matter to us, and any measure calculated to reduce the price of gold as expressed in other property and commodities will benefit us. By restoring silver to its old place in our monetary system we will destroy the monopoly that bas enhanced the value of gold by giving to the debtor and producing class the right to use either metal in the discharge of their obligations. Y ou Washtenaw farmer give us your ear for a moment. After a careful survey of the situation don't you think your farm land ought to be worth more now than it was 20 years ago? The population haslargely increased. That fa'ct alone should, and under healthy ecoaomic conditions does, increase the value of farm lands. Added to this are the improvemeuts of 20 years, the new house and barns and the better cultivation. Yet in spite of all these influences which should have increased the value of your lands it has slowly decreased until it will not sell today for more than half what it would have brought before the denionetization of silver started the appieciation of the gold in which the value oL that property is uow measured. Oh, no, the demonetization of silver did not hurt the farmer any. It only knocked the price of his produce clown below the point of proiitable production and cut the value of his property in two. Of course the only man who suffered by such a transaction as that is the man who is compelled to take farms for a mortgage whose principal sum did not cover half the value of the land when given. Isn't it strange that the person who has suffered in this latter marnier should be shouting himself hoarse over honest money? Every argument againstsilvermoney begins with the assertion that the f reie coinage of silver is intended only to benefit the western mine owner, that it will enable hitn to take 53 cents worth of silver to the mint and have made into a coin which other people will be compelled by law to take for one dollar, and then the chances are ten to one that the goldite orator closes his harangue with the statement that the tree silver will give us a 53 cent dollar. The processes of reasoning by which those two statements are to be reconciled has not yet been made public. It will undoubtedly tax the mental agility of those politicians who received a gold plating at the St. Louis convention to solve the puzzle. It is not the propositbn of the silverites to enhance the price of silver but to reduce the price of gold. That increased use oí' silver would increase its value goes without saying. That decreased use of gold would decrease the exchange value of that metal is perfectly clear to those whose visión is not blinded by visions of the golden calf. That the silver mine owners would profit by the increase in value of silver is not to be denied. Neither is there any question but that the great mass of people would profft by the reduction in the price of gold. Mr. McKinley says he will not open the mints to the coinage of silver. but he will open the milis tothe American workingman. Like the republican platform and most of the arguments put forth in apology for it the little major does not explain how he is going to open those milis. We have supposed all along and we believe that the government statisticans down in Washington, who have an uncomfor table way of accumulating data that is poison to i certaiti line of political argument, proves that the milis are elosed not because the farmer is buying goods in foreign markets, but because he is not buying goods at all; because he is not receiving enough for the produce of his farui to leave him any money to buy vvith. The farmer who is blowing himself npon fine clothes, new buggies, pianos, furniture, tools, champagne suppers and ten cent cigars, is as scarce as truthful statements in a gold bug argumeut. If Mr. McKinley would open the milis to American labor he must furnish the American farmer a price for the produce of his farm' that will leave him something to buy. with. If he would stop the appreciation of the standard by which they are measured, if he would stop the appreciation of gold he must destroy the monopoly which it now enjoys in our monetary system, and the quickest and surest way to stop the appreciation of gi ld and start a rise in prices that would not only open every factory in the land but cause the building of many new ones, is the restoration of silver to its old place alougside gold in our monetary system.