The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1869-07-31

The following illustration shows how ten
ants Of land are affected by high rates of
interest on money. N. owns farm which
be cultivates. He is, therefore, the right
full owner Of the produces. Il, however, N.
lets the farm to o., and o. cultivates it,
then N. and o. are joint owners Of the pro-
ducts This principle, that labor and CAPT
ital are together entitled tn the produces, i,
in accordance with the laws Of nations, and
must continue to be 80 a. long as the rights
Of proJ erty are recogn med by civil authori-
". The question which arises fer settle
ment is, what proportionssrig htfully belongs
t. the capital, and what to the labpr- what
proportion OF products n should receive for
the use Of the farm, and what proportion
o. should receive for bis labor in cultiva-
ting it. 1t will be SAID at once that the pro-
portion which o. is 20 give to n is a matter
Of agreement between them; and. therefore,
Whatever N. agrees to take, and y. agrees
to paw for the rent OF the farm, is The Iight
prov ortion and that no laws should inter-
fere in such contracts except TO compel
their fulhlment. This would be right, and
just to both the contracting PARTIES, if the
public standard Of value ON which they are
compelled to found the contract we're eq ut
able. But If the standard or rate of inter-
est be such that o. is obliged by its legal
operation to pay nearly the whole surpl us
products of the farm to n as rent, the con-
tract is a manifest wrong to o.; because, al
though he worked diligently all bis life,
the legal standard will keep bin foreS er
poor, while N, by The action Of the same
standard, without labor, will constantly in
crease IN wealth.
We declare that all men are born free
and equal but N. NAV be born heir to a
dozen farms while o. may be born without
property and, under present laws, BY his
labor alone he cannot acquire it. There
fore, N. il actually born to live in luxury
without labor, and o. is born to be SER
want ton O's children are born servants
to n, and to his posterity, ana live in per-
petual toll and hardship, that Ms child en-
may be supplied with all the luxuries of life
without labor. N. and bis children receive
these Injuries from the rent that U. and his
children pay for the use Of the land owned
by N. If all men are by nature free and
equal, why has legislation reversed the or
der Of nature so as to secure the greatest
possible inequality 1t is not in the power
of man to continue a more efectual method
of concentrating property In Few hands,
than by high rates Of interest. This method
works rapidly and securely, because it ex-
torts consent as it operates. IL civilization
require that property should descend from
father to son, it certainly does not require
that legislation should do its utmost to
magnify the inequalities arising from this
right Of inheritance. Tiese inequalities
only exist because the whole body OF pro-
ducers are Obliged to pay an exorbitant
price for the yearly rent of every descrip-
ton Of property and why ore they Obliged
to nav this price Because the rent Is de-
termi1ed by the legal intere on money
the standard Of value, to which no lndlSld-
ual. nor class Of individuals, can olier sue
cessful resistance. If n, instead OF leasing
the farm to O., lend him money With which
to purchase a farm, D. rents the money
from N. instead Il renting the farm. BIT
he is as much compelled to pay the interest
on the money with the products OF the farm,
as he is to pay the rent Of the farm with the
products. II the interest on money were a.
one per cent, N. could mot let his farm to
o. at such a rate az to compel, o. to give
him IN rent q sum equal to the principal Of