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Bryan on Flexico The reading which I did preparatory to mv visit to Mexico revealed to me how little I had known of the history of that country, pa c t and current. In this connection I acknowledge my in debtedness to SSenor Romero, the Mexi can minister at Washington for ad van. cd proofs of his book, just issuing fronj the press. descriptive of Mexico at the present time. 8< nor Romero, be sides bring a student of great industry and re. ( arch, is t •< roughly familiar with our language, ae.d iii- l ook will be of gri t valu< to I otL repel li - - in that it gives to ttie people of the United fetates full and authentic information vuh regard to our neighbor on the south. The readers of The World may be interested in a brief reference to some of the facts which came under my observation during a three weeks’ stay in the land of the Aztecs. i found: First.—That Mexico is a delightful place to visit. Travel on the main lines is as safe, as comfortable and as cheap |r as in the United States. The City of Mexico is within four days’ ride of Kansas Citj’ and can be reached by three routes. The Mexican National leaves the Rio Grande at Laredo, the Interna tional at Eagle Pass and the Mexican Central at K 1 Paso. The weather is dry and pleasant dur ing the winter months, and the temper ature high enough to he inviting to those who find the cold of the north too rigorous. The descent from the City of Mexico to Vera Cruz can be made be tween sunrise and sunset, and in the course of the day the traveler has an opportunity to compare the flora of two zones. As both the Mexican and the In terocean ic railroads connect the capital with this seaport the tourist is enabled to vary the scenery without loss of time. The new railroad which is build ing from the City of Mexico to Acapulco rises 2,500 feet almost within sight of the City of Mexico, and then drops 5,000 feet to Cuernavaca, the present terminus. The three snow crowned peaks Popocatepetl,lztaccihuatl and Ori zaba are magnificent mountains. Popo catepetl and Iztaccihuatl are near the City of Mexico. The first named, the largest of the three, presents the best view from Cuernavaca. All three can be seen from a point on the Interoceanic road n< ar Pueblo. Cathedrals built be fore the landing of the pilgrims, huge public* buildings, differing’ entirely in architecture from our own; unique Chapultepec, a national art gallery, filled with tare and valuable paintings, and a museum containing innumerable relics of a civilization which antedates the discovery of the continent by Eu ropeans—all these combine to interest and instruct. Second.—That while our nation has more inhabitants, covers more territory and possesses greater wealth, we cannot surpass the Mexicans in hospitality or in the courtesy which they extend to strangers. Mexico Friendly to the United States. Third.—That the Mexican authorities entertain a very friendly feeling toward the citizens of the United States, and heartily desire a continuation of the amicable relations now existing between the two nations. Fourth. —That Mexico is as firm as the United States in the support of the Monroe doctrine, having realized only 30 years ago the dangers attendant upon an attempt to extend monarchical in stitutions upon the western hemisphere. Fifth. —That President Diaz is en tirely deserving of the encomiums be stowed upon him by his own people, by resident Americans and by visitors. He has a genius for public affairs, under stands the condition and needs of his people and has their confidence to a de gree seldom enjoyed by an executive, either hereditary or elective. While the advantages of a stable government are no\V so generally recognized that his death or resignation would not disturb the existing order of things, yet his qualifications have been so amply proved and bis administration so completely successful that his people are unani mous in the hope that he may yet enjoy many years of official life. Hidalgo, the warrior priest, who led the movement which resulted in inde pendence, is called the Mexican Wash ington. Juarez, who successfully de fended his country against Maximilian, was the second great Mexican leader of the nineteenth centuiv. President Diaz, himself a brave general, by restoring order, establishing the supremacy of the civil law and perfecting the system of public education has < anted for himself and wi'.l enjoy in hMor" a place by the side cf Hidalgo and Juarez. •Sixth.—That the public men of Mex ico are not in erior to our own in intel ligence, education and general iniornia tion. Senor Mari seal, secretary of for eign affairs, adds to great ability long experience as diplomat and is worthy of com pan si with the premiers of the leading nations of the world. Senor Limuntaur, secretary of finance, is a most accomplished gentleman and has exhibited superior skill in the manage ment of the fiscal affairs of the republic. The gther cabinet officers, governors. naan hers of the national and state con grosses, mayors, etc., whom I met were, without exception, men of refinement and scholarly attainments. Seventh. —That the English language is being taught more and more exten sively each year and is now understood and spoken bv most of the public men or by memo- is of ti. ir famili*. s. I was informed that a majority of the mem bers of the federal congress gonld un derstand a spee< b delivered in our lan guage. Ihe leading > hotels and slores l.a\ o clerks who can speak English, so that travel and traffic are made easy. Advances In .fchluriitiona,! Aiftir*. Eighth.—Mexico is making substan tial progress in education The public schools are free and attendance is com pulsory. r lhe president and those asso ciated with him in authority are put ting forth every possible effort to im •prove the system of instruction and to bring all the children under the influ ence of the schoolteacher. As an illus tration, in the state of Mexico the num ber of schools has increased more than 100 per cent within the last ten years, and the number of pupils in attendance shows an equal increase. The girls and boys enter school upon an equal footing, and the ambition of the pupil is stimu lated by the offer of rewards for merit. It was our good fortune to be invited to witness the distribution of prizes for the schools of the federal district. Nothing impressed me more than the scene here presented. President Diaz delivered tin* awards to several hundred boys aud girls. The Indian and the Spaniard, the rich and the poor, all mingle together in the public schools and vie with each other for the prizes. The state not only furnishes instruction in the elementary branches, but pro vides industrial training for both boys and girls, normal schools for teachers and professional schools for students of law and medicine. President Diaz re cently quoted a remark made by You Moltke in praise of the Ge rman school teacher and also pointed out the neces sity for educated mothers. He recog nizes, as did Jefferson, that popular edu cation is vital iu a republic, and large ly through his efforts Mexico sees a yearly increase in the number of those who are capable of intelligent partici pation in government. Ninth.—That the free coinage of sil ver is entirely satisfactory to the people of Mexico. They have had a chance to test the system thoroughly and to com pare it with the systems of the . United States, England, France and Germany, and I found no disposition either among the officials or among the people to fa vor the gold standard. The federal gov ernment pays about $6,000,000 annual ly on gold obligations, and while it is compelled to collect over $12,000,000 in silver to cover this interest account, it has no difficulty in doing so, because of the prosperous condition of the nation’s industries. The government is not only meeting its expenses, but has a surplus. In Mexico the producers of wealth have not encountered the disastrous fall in prices which has afflicted all the gold standard countries since 1873. While exchange has fluctuated, the fluctua tion has only affected foreign trade, and that fluctuation, while of small impor tance when compared with the great advantage of maintaining the level of prices, will entirely disappear when the parity between gold and silver is re stored. I found quite a number of Mexicans who went so far as to express the hope that the United States would continue the gold standard because of the advan tage which Mexican manufacturers And in a high rate of exchange, but the ma jority of the people with whom I talked desire the restoration of bimetallism in the United states in order that stability in exchange may be added to stability in prices. No Desire to Abandon Silver. The United States has had the gold standard for 23 years, and the system has proved so unsatisfactory that at the last election 6,500,000 voters expressed a desire for independent bimetallism, while 7,000.000 cast their votes for candidates pledged to international bi metallism. The gold standard has been so disastrous that even a Republican ad ministration is asking foreign nations to help us to get rid of it. The people of Mexico could adopt the gold standard if they desired to do so, and yet no con siderable number ol them wish to aban don silver. Tenth.—That Mexico is more pros perous today than ever before. Her in dustries are increasing in number and importance. Near Orizaba is a cotton mill of irnrn "se proportions. The com pany operates 18,000 looms and 70,000 spindles. The plant has earned more than 16 per cent a year on the capital stock .during the last five yrs, has been enl ' ged at the rate of more than 10 per emt per annum during that time, a. ; the company is preparing i a Id 500 looms and 12,000 spindles t. year. At San Luis Potosi I found a cot ton factory owned by an American. The proprietor told me that he bad been enlarging his plant and found the business profitable. I went through a new cotton factory at Mcnterey and TAG JACKSON ARGUS. learned of a large mill now under con struction at Guadalajara. There are a number of cotton mills also in the neighborhood of Pueblo. The manufacture of woolen goods, the manufacture of hats, the manufac ture of hoots and shoes and the brewing of beer are all growing industries. The silk industry is in its infancy, but a Frenchman bus planted over BfoCo,ofio8 f oCo,ofio mulbt rry rre. s in the state of Guana juato v irhin the la-t few yeiy.es and is much encouraged ov. r the success thus which he had recently opened in the suburbs of the City of Mexico. The premium on gold has acted as a wall to keep out foreign competition and at the same time lias given a sub stantial bounty upon exports. While I was in Mexico the gold premium varied from f 1.05 to $1.15, and I shall there fore take sl.lO as an average. In 1873 the Mexican dollar commanded a pre mium of about 3 cents over our gold dollar. At that time a yard of cloth worth a dollar in the United States or Europe, when imported by Mexico, would be worth about 97 cents in Mex ican money plus transportation and tariff. Now, with gold at a premium of sl.lO, a yard of cloth worth a dollar in the United States or worth $2 10 in Mexican money plus trans portation and tariff. Where the gold price has fallen one-half the Mexican price is about the same that it was in 1873. On the other hand, those who export from Mexico have a great advantage over competitors living in gold standard countries. For instance, a coffee raiser in Mexico because of the rise in ex change has fared much better than the planter who has cultivated coffee on a gold basis and who bad found his in come diminishing while his debts and fixed charges refused to fall. One of the gold men of my own state has laid aside his political scruples sufficiently to in vest in a large tract of land near Tam pico, upon which he is planting the coffee berry. He is not the only Ameri can citizen who is seeking in Mexico the prosperity for which he voted in the United States. Large Importations of Raw Materials. The cotton mills of Mexico now con sume more cotton than Mexico pro duces, but the acreage is increasing. If, as some expect, they find it possible to produce upon Mexican soil all the cot ton needed by their mills, the Mexicans will become dangerous competitors of the gold standard countries. At present they are handicapped by having to im port so large a proportion of their raw material. In reply to the argument that is sometimes made—namely, that we can protect our manufacturers by still higher duties—l contend that we can only do so by increasing the disadvan tage under which American farmers now labor. The lot of our farmer is hard enough when the price of what he buys falls in the same proportion as the price of his own product, bi cause even then his taxes, debts and other fixed charges do not fall. If, however, we maintain the price of manufactured goods by a high tariff, the burdens of the farmer will be so increased as tc make his ultimate bankruptcy certain. I might mention in this connection that I found many of our protected manufacturers selling their wares in Mexico in competition with their Euro pean rivals. At one store I found lamps and lamp chimneys made in Missouri, hammers and shovels made in Philadel phia, cutlery made in Massachusetts, also Yale locks; Disston saws, and hinges made in the United States. California wines and canned fruits and Chicago canned meats find a market in Mexico. At Guanajuato is a theater, recently completed, the structural iron of which came from the United States. At sever al places I saw electrical apparatus of American construction. In many in stances an additional discount is given by American manufacturers upon ex ported goods. Eleventh.—That wages are not only higher on an average than ever before, but still rising. Progress or retrogres sion can be determined only by compar ing the present with the past. The con dition of the laboring classes in Mexico can be improved, but it is a fact that they are in better condition than they were in 1873. when the Mexicau dollar was worth more than our gold dollar, and I believe that their condition is much better today than it would have been if Mexico bad adopted the gold standard when the United States did. It is not fair to compare the wages in one country with the wages in anot' r country without first making allcwai a for differences in efficiency, differei in climatic conditions, in habits, etc. Difierences That Cannot. Be Ignored. Even w ithin the boundaries of our own country there are differences too great to be ignored. During President Harrison’s administration Secretary Rusk i..-ced a document entitled “Wages of Far?u Labor Iu the United States” (Report No. 4, year 189a). Pag-’ 16 of this rep. n t -oi .ains a table show ing that in 1892 the average wages for farm labor (without board) was $12.50 per month in South Carolina, $13.30 in Korth Carolina, 813.50 in Georgia and $13.75 in Alabama, while in California the wages paid were $36.50 and in the state of Washington $37.50, the average for all the states for that year being $18.60, For farm labor with board the wages varied from $8.40 to $25 and averaged $12.54. The report cays that white farm labor in the united States received $282 per annum; that the same labor received about $l5O in Great Lritain and S9O in Germany. I refer to this rej ort because it was is<utri by 1 publi an authority and silos\ s that untier the upta ition of the same financial system and the same tariff system farm labor received tim e times as much in one part cl the ul on as it did in another part When it is rtmeml turd that* the wages paid in each state were ascertained by averages, it will be seen that the differ uce be tween the best paid labor and the poor est paid labor is still greater. The re port also shows that in the United States Caucasian farm labor receives more than three times as much as the same labor receives in Germany, al though both countries have a gold stand ard and a protective tariff. Between 1816 and 1834 England had a gold standard and the United States had a double standard, with silver as the mom yin common use, and yet laboring men were better off here than in Eng land. Turkey is one of the gold stand ard nations, and Japan, until recently, coined silver at a ratio almost identical with ours, and yet the progress of Japan was so great that Mr. Cleveland com mented upon it in a message during his second term. The gold standard advo cate who would consider it unfair to compare Japan and Turkey does not hesitate to blame silver for the low wages of the peons of Mexico. lii all the leading cities of Mexico can be found people from the United States, England, Germany and France —all drawn from gold standard coun tries by the advantages offered in Mexi co. Few have gone from the United States to Canada, where they have the gold standard and speak the English language, but in Mexico, where an American citizen is compelled to learn an entirely new language, there are al ready several American colonies, and the number is constantly increasing. Some are in business for themselves, some working for wages, and they stay there, although they are at liberty to return whenever they see an opportuni ty to better their condition in the United States, Twelfth.—Real estate is rising in Mexico. Public and private improve ments are in progress. Guadalajara, one of the largest cities of the republic and surpassed by none in beauty, has re cently decided to put in a complete sys tem of sewerage and waterworks. The work of constructing the sewers was let to a New Jersey contractor last mouth. Monterey has recently laid con siderable brick pavement, and the capi tal has nearly completed a sewerage tunnel through a mountain range. Electricity is taking the place of the old time street lantern, the shoe is gradually supplanting the sandal, and the coat is winning against the serape. It would be unfair to give to Mexico’s financial policy credit for all the prog ress which the country has made in the last 25 years. Her government and her government officials have contributed much to her development by giving se curity to life, protection to property and stimulus to education. If the advo cates of the gold standard insist that her financial system has been a hin drance and that she has gone forward not because of it, but iu spite of it. I re ply that my observation as well as my reason leads me to believe that the use of silver has been of material advantage to Mexico, and I am more than ever convinced that the best interests of our own people demand the immediate res toration of the free and unlimited coin age of gold and silver at the present legal ratio cf 16 to 1 without waiting for the aid or concert of any other na tion. Mexico is not strong enough to main tain the parity between the metals, but the people of the United States are. Mexico has by the use of silver avoided the fall in prices, but has suffered to a certain extent from the fluctuations in exchange. By opening our mints to the free coinage of silver we, too, shall es cape from falling prices, and by main taining the parity we shall in addition avoid fluctuation in exchange. W. J. Bryan. Mr. Ward JL. Smith, of Frederic ks town. Mo., was troubled with chronic diarrhoea for thirty years. He has be come fully satisfied that if was only a question of a short time until be would have to aive up. He has been treated b\ some of the best pbvsiciaus iu Eu rope and America but <r -r, u > permanent relit f. One day he picked up a news paper and chanced t read a" adver tisement of Chamberla Colic, Chol era nod Diarrhoea Remedy, He. cot a boi tie of it, the first. dose helped him and its continued us-j cured him. For sale by all druggists. cures Dyspep- I Idlllvl v sia, Constipation and Indi gestion. Regulates the Liver. Price, 25 cts. For Administration. G RORG lA—Butts County. I o all whom it may concern: Wm. Sanders having in pr.q,er form applied to me for permanent letters of administration on the estate of Tlios. R. Bailey, late of said county, this is to cite all and Singular the preditors and next of kin of Thus. R. Bailey to be and appear at my office within the time* al lowed by law, and show cause if any they can, why permanent administration should not be granted to Wm. Sanders on Tims. R. Bailey's estate Witness my hand and official signature, this 10th day of January, lays. JAS f. Carmichael. Ordinary. Letters of Dismission. GEORGIA —Hi tts County. To all whom it may concern : Mrs. K. F. I*. and. administratrix of the es tate of F. E l’cvnd. deceased, up; .- me for letters of dismission from saidadii.Uost uion, abd i will puss up n the , iuu . e< in • pieuson. Butis county. Ga.,ou rii first Mon d-”-."' ill Marco, ieus. < riven unOermy hand and oincia. signature. Tins the day ~} ! veem lu r, 1,-v. i7. J F. C V R Ml* 1! \FL. Ord nary. Flection Notice. S r l ATEOFGE t) RG 1 A—Bn tts von n ty. Wh rens. it. has been made known to me that one-tenth of the voters who are entitled to vote for tuembers of the Geneial Assembly have petitioned for an election to determine whether or not such spirituous liquors as are mentioned Section 1548, Code of Georgia. lsp-y, vol. 1. shall be sold within the limits of Butts county. 1. the undersigned, ordinary in and for said county, do hereby give notice for an election to taae place in the same manner and at the same places as elections for mem iters of the General Ass'*mbl\, and by same electors, on Thursday, the 3rd day of March. 1898. provided said electors have actually resided within the territorial limits to be affected thereby at least six months next preceding the date of elec tion. All persons voting at said election, who are against the sale of such intoxicating liquors as are mentioned in section 154,5, Code of ba., INUS, vol. I.shall have written or printed on their tickets •-Against the Sale,” and those who favor the sale of the articles tnemioued in said section 1548, shall have written or printed on their ballots, *• For the sale,” and that this no tice be printed once a week for four weeks in The Jackson Argus, that being the official organ of the sheriff of this county. Given unier my official signature, this 18th day of January, 1898. JAS. F. C ARMICHAEL. Oruinary. GEORGIA—Butts County. To all whom it may concern: The appraisers appointed to set apart the twelve months allowance of Mrs T. L. Wil liams and her four minor children, and returned the same to the ordinary. This is to citeall aaid singular, the creditors and next of lan of T. L. Williams to he and appear at my office within the time allowed by law, and show cause, if any they can. why such allow ance snould not be confirmed. This the 13, day Dec., 1897. JAS. F. CARMICHAEL, Ordinary, HIDES Bought and Sold by W. E. HARP, POSTMASTER, Jackson, - Georgia. Before Selling Your EEX3DES I A REASON For so any Failures in Tie Treatient of Cataril There is a fixed law in Therapeution, that paliatives never tftVct structures, but pathological functfi ns; treatments offered in lhe form of Smokes, Vanors and Atomizers, etc., are but paliative and • ft-c f only functions, as evidenced by the relief of suffering, only for ill© time being. I ° affect a permanent cure, Hie mucus membrane must be cleaied of all mor bid matter of whatever mature, as this is the fust step in the restoration of an eli fee ted area, this to be followed with direct local applications, the structural changes that are always present in Chronic Catarrh must be brojght to a normal Condition by Constitutional Treat merit. I win be pleased to 1 ave any one that is suffering with Catarrh call at my office and consult witli me, or correspond with me upon the subject. Upon tlie recommendation of any min ister of the Gospel I will place upon treatmeu' at half price any person not able to pay full charges. DR. S. T. WHITAKER, Special, st. 205 NORCROSS BUILDING, A TLA XT/ . THE DELINEATOR IS THE Woman’s Favorite Hagazine, And is issued by the Famous Fashion Publishers, The Butterwick Pub lishing Cos. (Limit and), at 7 to 17 West Thirteenth St., New. Yoik, at the remark aby low rate of SI.OO for a year’s subscription, or 15 cent a copy. Cl family magazines it is the great caterer to domestic needs, and can be recommended for its cheapness, usefulness, beauty, freshness and utility. TEA cures Dyspep- P Iflsilvl v sia, Constipation and Indi gestion. Regulates the Liver. Price, 25 eta. 3