Page:Speeches, correspondence and political papers of Carl Schurz, Volume 5.djvu/330

306 strict economy live on $2.00 a day, they are fearfully pinched when the $2.00 buys only as much as formerly $1.00. He consults with his friends, and a committee of them apply to the president of the street railway for higher wages. “Higher wages?” says he. “I have been thinking that a reduction of wages will be necessary. For all our supplies and material we have now to pay $2.00 where we formerly paid $1.00. But we get only our 5 cents fare, which is really now 2½ cents. And, besides, our bonds are payable, principal and interest, in gold, and we have to buy that gold at the rate of $2.00 in silver for one gold dollar. How are we to make both ends meet? I really do not know whether we can continue to pay you even $2.00 a day.” The committeemen growl and speak of striking. “Strike?” says the president. “Why, the streets are full of laboring men thrown out of work by the closing of shops since we are on the silver basis. There are thousands of them, men with families, who will jump at the chance of earning even less than $2.00 a day.” The committee look at one another. They know that it is all true. The beauty of higher prices on the silver basis begins to dawn upon them, and they withdraw, wiser but much sadder men; and the conductor's care-burdened wife asks him whether it was really a smart thing to vote for Bryan and plenty of money.

The same will happen to the hundreds of thousands of employees of the railroads in the United States. There is hardly one of those railroads that will not be prevented either by law or by other powerful influences from raising its passenger fares or freight rates to meet the depreciation of the money they receive, and 60 per cent. of their bonded indebtedness is contracted to be paid, principal and interest, in gold. Bankruptcy will stare them in the face, and even those of them that may manage to escape it, will hardly be able to make good to their employees