The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1870-11-17
Hiaqsllaneon..
From the Chicago Tribune. ]

From the Chicago Tribune.1
Why Money is Scarce.
There Is plethora of money in New
york. The banks are full, the sub-treas.
9ry Is fuil, and the brokers and spectators
nave more than they know what to do
with. The rates Of discount are easv and
ee1XIG'nange on Europe is down to par
Wnlle tins IS true Of New York. the case
is reversed at the West. We are short n
money our banks are drained. and cx-
change Is scarce. There are several canses
i9r 10 Inls' but they are mostly incidental to
the lact that we havepurchased as beaviIv
as usual from the East, at. undiminisbed
COST, while eur shipment of EXCHANGE nro-
ducts have been sold at an average re5nc.
CloH Irom last years prices. The balance
against US we have had TO make good in
cast p. 1t IS plain operation of natural
iaw' Ii Last year we exchanged commodi-
CleS- 1hls year our productions were onIv
worm say, ninety cents on a dollar com.
PaIe1 with last years prices, and. havino
purchased like amount this wear we
IN money ''ii0i eD0e
,,Jl TINS brings the people Of the entire
WesC 10 direct appreciation of the efFaci
Of our tariff laws We raise grain snG
provisions, and exchange th0rn for iron
cloth, glass and crockeIy, cotton and wool.
en- goods. The value of our prodnct;on,
IS hlxed by the foreign market. The nro-
ducer can only receive the price maid in
Liverpool, less the cost and cbarges for
transportation. If the foreign cr0ns he
large, our prices recede and we mnsf seII
at whatever rates rule during the season
but when we come to purchase our sun.
pines, this rule is reversed. The stro5o .
arm OF the law is interposed, and we are
compelled to pay prices fixed bv a tariff
we nave no choice Of markets. The Enc.
llsh merchant only buys American orain
"hen he cannot get other at lower: Tafes
ana never pays farthing beyond the pricf
at which other grain is offered him In
1uylng his bread and provisions he has
the whole world to choose in. giving ~
course, the preference to the countries that
lake lake his products in exchange for theirg
Ihe result Is, that he only deals with tbe
Ohlted States upon compulsion, and never
%hen he can get what he wants elsewhere
DuI when we come to buy our iron. cotton
ana Woolen goods, glass, cutlery. boots and
shoes, the government interposes and tells
US we must do one of two things-eitber
puy what we want at home, paying 60 per
cent. more than We can get the same for
elsewhere, or pay fine of 80 per cent. for
buying from Europe. We have been sinh.
mlttlng to this outrage for SO MANY wear.
that most persons had settled down in the
oellet that 1t was fixed policy. and 80
long as prices of bread-stufs Remained
unchanged they paid no special attention
TO It's operation. But the fall in hraad.
stuns brings the case home to us in the
most telling manner. The price of cotton
and woolen goods, of iron, and of all fhe
necessaries of, life which we havp 10 bnv
remained fixed by law. While the Enc.
llshmsn Is at liberty to buy, and does buy
all ne needs IN whatever market he COW
Obtain 1t cheapest, we haysno choice. The
government has Gordon Of officers aIono
the frontier to compel us to buy at prices
arbitrarily liked by law We produce and
send 10 Cadlz, III Spain, slaves and head.
Imgs to the value Of 81 10000 annually
The price Of salt in Cadiz is abont I . CENTS
per !OO pounds. This shipment of slaves
and headings would, therefore. purchase in
Cadlz as many hundred pounds of salt as
- cents are contained in 81 100000. But
the government lnterposes and prohibits
Ihe exhcange OF slaves for salt, under a
penalty OF 10 cents, in gold, per 100
POUNDS; Ii the shipper persists in making
sne eAcnange' as he must do or bring back
MS vessel empty, he must lay aside is
cents IN gold topay the penalty for everv
u cents ne expends in salt, and, instead Of
bringing home the value Of his slaves in
salt, he brings back $40O,OOOw of that
afucie' and S5OO,OO0 in gold to pay the
ffoducers OF grain and provisions sre
subjected to precisely. the same process
we SEND gram abroad, and are compelled
10 take such prices as we can obtain. If
we send 81 100000 worth of breadstuffs to
Liverpool, we. are not permitted to pur-
chese that amount of clotlD oEIother arti-
cles we need, or, if we do, wesEust divide
our money, so that for every dollars worth
OF goods we buy we shalL-haye from go to
SO cents IN gold to paV'tbs penalty for
making the purchase If, as is the case
now, the price of breadstuffs has fallen,
say ~ per cent. then we must bear the
Ndn Whoie loss OF the reduction, and have onlv
$oOOOOO to purchase goods and paw the
Since 1868, in the short period of two
years. the price of breadstuffs has declin-
ed 40 per cent. Under the operation of
the tariff we have to produce 40 per cent
more IN 187O-to purchase the same ouan-
tlty OF clothing and hardware than we
bought IN 1868, or we must, in addition to
our crop, forward 40 per cent. in cash
we have reached that point now. Taking
the average neecs,of our people. in CLOTH
lng furniture, iron and all other manufac-
tured goods, to be the same as in 1868. it
requires 40 per cent more of our produc.
uons TO purchase them now than It did in
1868. The 40 cents on the dollar has to
be made good by that much increased
labor, or that much drawn from preYions
savings
Those who wonder why it is that, with
our increased population and increased
production, we are constantly expendine
all we earn, and in addition are Compelled
to encroaeh upon our accumulations. will
nnSthe true explanation in the fact that
the prices of all we have to buy ara M
held and maintained by arbitrary enact
ments; and we are compelled to sell what
we produce for whatever we can get. If
the barriers which Congress has erected
against our trading with the people who
buy our crops were removed; if the law
which confscates 60 per cent. of our earn
lngs to subsidize others were repealed, we
should find immediate relief, and the
property which is now flowing away from
us would remain in the hands of the right
full owners.