Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 22, Number 10, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 23 October 1900 — BRYAN'S LITTLE BOY ASKS SOME QUESTIONS. [ARTICLE]

BRYAN'S LITTLE BOY ASKS SOME QUESTIONS.

A Colloquy that Boded in Talk About the “Goblins.” Mr, Bryan, the handsome Democratic candidate, was on the Lincoln train today. A bright little boy, his son Georgie, sat by the candidate and was asking childish questions. “Papa,” he said, “what did the Hungarian miners out in Colorado mean when they shook flags marked 16 to 1 iu Roosevelt’s face?” "Why, my son,” said Bryan, as he beamed on liis boy with loving smile, “why, the miners meant that they wanted our money to be 16 to 1. That is, they wanted it so that 16 ounce? of silver would be one ounce of gold.” "But, papa, 16 ounces of our coined silver will buy one ounce of gold now, won’t it?” asked Georgie, opening his eyes wide. “Yes, my soh. Congress did a law making that ratio. Sixteen ounces of our coined silver will buy one ounce of coined gold now.” “Then, papa," said Georgie thoughtfully, “if gold and silver are now 16 to 1 by act of Congress. What more do they want? What do they keep yelling for ‘l6 to 1’ for?” “Well, my son,” said Bryan thoughtfully, “ ‘l6 to 1’ is all right for the farmer. mechanic and business man, but the miner wants more for his silver. He wants to sell his 16 ounces of uncoined silver, which is really worth in the mar-

ket less than eight dollars, for sixteen dollars’ worth of gold.” "Why, papa, that would he paying a fifty per cent bonus on silver, wouldn’t it? It would be buying it at twice its value. It would be just like the government buying all the hogs and corn and cotton at twice their market value, wouldn’t it? That would he nice for the farmer, papa, but the miners wouldn’t, be in it. would they?” “Georgie, hush,” interrupted the boy’s father. "But, papa, I will hush in a minute, but say, if the government should buy all the miners’ silver at twice its market value the fanper and the mechanic wouldn’t be in it, would they, and——” “Hush, Georgie, don’t talk so much. You don’t understand that we are using the ‘Hi to 1’ to fool the miners until after election.” "Oh! I see, papa,” said Georgie; “if we should give an.ounce of gold, worth sixteen dollars all over the world, for sixteen ounces of silver only worth eight dollars, we’d have to buy all the silver in the world —billions of dollars and ” “Hush, Georgie! hush!” interrupted his father. “And, bye and bye. papa." said Georgie. “the rest #f the world would have all our valuable gold and we would have their cheap silver worth 50 cents on the dollar. I see. papa, it’s ail a joke. It’s what they call the ’bogie.' It’s like plutocracy and Caesnrism and imperialism. rt’s a scarecrow and ”, “Georgie,” said the loving father, “you must hush. r J#»ey will overhear you.” Then the fond father put his arms around Georgie and gave him a big banana to eat. v “Eat it, Georgie,” said the bogle candidate. winking one eye, “or the goblins will get you.” ELY PERKINS.