Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1869-04-26
And nox comes ans,her .upnor,er o. ,

And now comes another supporter of the
Sprague theory that the country h going 10
the dogs. Mr.. J. Il. HodgskIn, in the NORA
hneriean Rcrisr for April gives an article to
s'the Financial Condition of the United States -
II e argues that the general increase in wealth
or the last eight years has been merely appa.
rent; that there has been a real falling of in
pr oduction and In property; and sets forth the
Causes which, be alleges, have concealed these
-acts, ana created a delusiye and feverish pros
Terity Some of the points suggested are those:
BY the census returns the wealth of the
L nited States increased from ESQ to 1s60 By
ABOUT si5o.0oo,0O0 annually. In 1850 the an
Gusi accumulation was probably S5O0,0OO, 200
lor the whole country. Tn. cost of the war;
Including both taxes and loans, was abou,
S1,OoO,ooo.oOt. 1t therefore must have con-
umed much more than the actual accumuIa.
mons or savings Of the years from 1850 to Isss,
ana must have left the country literally poorer
than n found il.
But the Government came into the marke,s n
Guy products and gave bonds tor the money
used Ii competed with private buyers and
mus forced up prices enormously. In ordiua.
~ times ''the products Of all ind buyers; the
iaigest proportion is bought for consumption,
'ne smallest proportion for IN vestment; but for
every one hundred dollars worth of property
Aooueed mere are one hundred dollars ready
ouy IL. But when the Government takes
i've dollars from the people in the shape Of q
oan, and gives q bond for 1t, the people still
ave one hundred dollars left where with to
Guy, and the Government has FIVE dollars
besides: and thus people and Government
together have one hundred and five dollars
wnerewith to buy one hundred dollars worth
OF products"
VII in FolI
the persistent determination OF people and
Government combined to invest one hundred
and i've dollars in one hundred dollars worth
products. Mr.. Hodgskin agues with Mr.
Wells, that in every part of this change, capital
As whole IS Immediately beneficial at the ui-
Innate expense of labor. The rich are enriched
and the Poor are impoverished.
The immense increase in the iron and conner
Production, he contends, is actually impoyer
ishing the country, because the whole people
are taxed for the protection of their interests by
heavy tariffs. In the same way he argues that
the vast speculation il railroad extension il
doing the country harm, not good, and that
''Ae bulk Of the additions TO railroad stocks are
Il guestionaoly sheer fabricafIons, represent
ing nothing tangible, and while adding large
amounts 10 the nominal wealth of individuals,
do not increase the real wealth OF the country
By one single dollar. II is impossible to tell.
even approximately, the amount of this ficti.
hcus wealth, but with the figures already
gwen II will not seem exaggerated to estimate
II 1t over six thousand millions OF dollars. or
rot far from one half of the total properly
valuation OF the whole country in $780,
The ahther gives no recipe for Iemedy sns
THIS unpleasant state of things, but perhaps, he
reserves this for another article In toe mean
tine as the people, judging by the Sprague cor
Iespondence, are In the mood for reading these
respondent utterancss. II Is not unlikely that
this new prophet OF evil will have a following
% his own district from that Of the Senator
rom khooe Island.