The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1870-04-02
A New Monetary System,
~ EDWARD KELLOGG
CHAPTER IV.-SEcTIoN v.

THE MANAGEMENT or THE BANKS AND THE EFFEcrs
OF THEIR OPERATIONS UPON THE PRDsPE RIrY OF
TRADE ASD PRODUCTIVE INDUSTRY.
coNTINUED.
Nations have assumed that the value Of
gold and silver money is innate, and have
established their monetary laws upon this
false assumption Thus, according to law,
all innate value is in gold and silver
money, and there Is no innate value in any,
thing else; for the laws have made this
money legal balance in payment for every
thing that is bought and sold, while no other
thing is any tender or legal balance in pay
mcnt for money. Neither is any other
thing a tender in payment for anything that
is bought or sold hence if value be at
tached to anything besides money, it is this
innate value Of money which must deter
mine what that market value shall be for
other things have no legal value except by
the permission and determination Of this
innate value Of money. This innate value,
assumed BY law for gold and silver money,
is not like that Of any created thing in the
mineral, vegetable, or animal kingdom, for
it overrules and controls the value Of all
these things. According to our laws, it is
an independent, uncreated power, having an
inherent right to govern and settle the value
of all things.
This money power is not only the most
governing and influential, but it is also the
most unjust and deceitful Of all earthly
powers. 1t entails upon millions excessive
toll, poverty and want, while it keeps them
ignorant Of the cause oftheir sufferings for,
with their tacit consent, it silently transfers
q large share Of their earnings into the
hands Of others, who have never lifted
finger to perform any productive labor. The
same power has grossly deceived our public
teachers; for not being able nationally to
account for the great inequalities of wealth
and condition existing in society, and being
expected to furnish satisfactory explana-
ton in some way, they tell the people that
these great wrongs are Providential, that
they are the mysterious workings Of the
providence Of God that all these evils are
governed and controlled by His power and
goodness. This method Of accounting for
the gross political wrongs in society has
covered up and hidden from view a multi
tude of heinous sins. Notwithstanding the
number of those who now live in luxurious
idleness, performing little, if any useful
labor, and the great number Of those who
remain idle because the scarcity Of money
renders it impossible for them to obtain
work, vet with all these impediments, there
is generally enough produced each year in
each nation to give to every man, woman
and child comfortable living. Every per-
son Of common sense must see, that God in
his providence has beautifully provided for
man and that there is some other power
against him, and Numerically OBJ
posed to the righteous distribution of his
bounties. 1t is the providence of the ma
tional laws, establishing this unjust power
Of money, which robs the producing classes
Of their rights. AS the bounties Of God are
abundant, 50 must the money for their dis
tribution be abundant, or they can never be
Justly distributed. If the scarcity of money.
Or its centralizing power retard the produc-
ton and the distribution of the products of
labor, the power of the money is unjust and
and instead Of being in unison
with the providence Of God, it is the most
powerful opponent Of bis righteous laws, as
we'll as the most powerful and bitter oppo-
nent of justice and bene6cence among men.
It would be rs reasonable to expect sweet
waters to low from bitter tountain, as to
xpect just distributions of property if the
standard by which it is valued is unjust. |
We are not depicting an unknown evil. |
Legislators, fnanciers and the producing
classes all know that money is possessed Of
ONE mysterious evil power, which has
lever been clearly explained and defined.
We have intended to remove this mystery
oncerning the nature and operations Of
money, and to show what laws must be an.
lulled, and we shall proceed to show what
ther laws must be enacted, in order to es-
ablish money that will be endowed with an
quitable power. The evil power of money
as been politically established, and it must
e politically annulled. It is a public
'rosg, and the public must administer the
emedy.
(TO BIZ CoNTINUED.)