2. Free Silver Man: I tell you that plenty of money and high prices make good times. Farmer (an ex-Confederate): Is that so, partner? I can recollect when coffee as $40 a pound during the war and boots $200 a pair, and times were about as bad as you could imagine. The more money we got the worse we were off, for when prices of food and products had increased forty to sixty fold, people were denounced for asking five or six prices for their labor. Oh, no, partner, you’ll have to get a better argument than that to make me for free silver.

3. Popucrats, Gold Bugs and the Wizard of Oz Bimetallism and the Election of 1896

4. Money Problems History  Specie: 16 to 1  Greenbacks  “Crime of 1873”

5. Money Problems History  Bland-Allison Act, 1878  Sherman Silver Purchase Act, 1890  Panic of 1893

7. Money Problems Gold v. Silver  Money Supply  Prices  International Trade  Farmers

8. “…we shall answer their demands for a gold standard by saying to them, you shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns. You shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold!”

9. 1896 William Jennings Bryan  “Cross of Gold” speech  Democratic nominee  Support of Populist Party  “Popucrats”

10. 1896 Campaign Issues Bimetallists  16 to 1  Anti-Semitism  Tried to unite workers and farmers

12. 1896 Campaign Issues “Sound Money”  Gold Bugs  McKinley  Bryan as radical  Scare tactics

15. Result McKinley wins  Republicans dominate  Democrats re-evaluate