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the alleged causes for it are : First, insufficient quantity of 

 money ; second, protective tariffs ; third, trusts ; fourth, 

 speculation in farm products; lifth, inequality in taxation ; 

 sixth, too high rates of transportation. 



In regard to the insufficient quantity of money, the actual 

 circulation in this country Jan. 1, was $1,529,000,000, or 

 $29 per capita. In Great Britain the circulation per capita 

 was 5^529.01; in France, $57.36, and in Germany, i>20.63, 

 so that this country stands about even with Great Britain, 

 and second only to France in this respect. The free coin- 

 age of silver would quickly retire all the gold, and gold cer- 

 tificates from circulation, really contract the currency and 

 make it harder to get money on any kind of security than 

 now. Any student of the condition of agriculture knows 

 that protective tarilfs are necessary for agricultural pros- 

 perity. No country, past or present, has a paying system 

 of agriculture that does not or has not protected its home 

 industries. 



If we protect our labor, trusts or syndicates will be a 

 benefit to the masses and will give us cheap production and 

 distribution. So far as speculation in farm products is con- 

 cerned, there is no more than there is in other things, 

 though if the producer could deal more directly with the 

 consumer it would be advantageous. 



Transportation is as low as it can be at present and pay 

 fair wages to labor and capital employed, thcugh improved 

 methods may bring down rates as rapidly as in the past. 



The cost to the people of our railway services for freight 

 and passengers is just one-third the cost of the same ser- 

 vice in England, and English companies pay their employ- 

 ees less than one-half what ours pay. So much for the 

 alleged causes of agricultural depression. 



Now for the real causes, which the speaker enumerated as 

 first, a greater increase in agricultural products than in 

 population ; second, the vast increase in the production of 

 cereals in other countries, and third the employment of 

 people to do our manufacturing and produce our wool and 



