Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1872-10-22
gpiriit Of yefffrsol1.
Charlestown, jefferson County, West Va.
TUESDAY MORNING, OCTOBER %, 1872.
WHAT is MONEY!

the productions OF their labor Tor other labor
OF the productions of other labor. 1t was
designed by all as a convenience for all, but it
was neyers rsintended, or thought OF, that this
instrument should be so monopolized by q feD
as to enable a fen to charge and tax all, what
the few might think proper, for the use Oft this
instrument. The whole people, who created
this instrument money, meant only that he
who should have it in his hands, should hold
it, as "pledge" and ''demand for an equiv.
aIept, of the labor or production he parted
with when he took this token "pledge" or
"demand,' in any other labor or production
of labor, or form of labor or. property he
might desire: They never, for moment,
meant that he should buy and sell and specu
late in it as commodity for this would be
to destroy it in its character as money or cur
rency; aud to give to HE fe,o and The rich a
mse of it-an aitlittonat and false use-that
the poor could never have; and thus to cheat
his partners in the creation Of money, by q
use of it they cannot have, as the poor have
no surplus to speculate on. 1t is law, and
sound law, that no one shall use his own un-
questioned property or conmodity-a thing
he of himself, and d!without'the aid of others,
created and brought into beins-in such
way as to injure any one else; and if this is
law, and reason and right, with how much
greater force and truth is it law, aud reason.
and right that no one should use, or be per-
mltted to use, common and public instyu>
ancnt naoncy-which one can of himself
create or bring into being-in such wav as
to injnre. defraud, and cheat his co>creafors
and partners in that common instrument?
And yet, this very selfsame, ille.itmate,
fraudulent use (od~Se) of money is c">ordinate
with its very exstences From old time. and
down to the 10Th century, in which we boast
to live; through this very abuse Of money,
the using it as an 1nnestnaeut and commnditu.
instead of currency. foh.e~, aud me1;um of
erchanye safely; the cunning. and fraudulent,
and cheating .fe'c, have, through this false
cheat and abuse, been enabled to plunder and
rob the many, until the statistics of the coun.
try proclaim the fact that, through this very
abuse and cheat, while 10 millions have
created all the wealth of the country, 2 mil
ions are in possession Of all they have created,
and SS millions are paupers
Look for moment, and consider, and
think, and you can't fail to see how the Thing
has been done. Your attention has been called
ott, diverted. to personal politics You have
been made to believe that whether Tom. Dick,
or Harry Is your Governor. or your President,
or yonr constable, or your squire, or your
sheriff, or your assembly y man, or your seoa-
tor, that all good and every blessing for vpu
depended on this result. and this only: Thus
have you been distracted and dinidrd into
personal party r1litics and whilst SO divided,
and not looking to yonr own individual in
forests and relief, it has turned out that
whether the Demorrot has beer elected or the
Republican, your fate the fate of both par>
hos haav, L
cheated. and plundered hy both or either
party; and to he heavily taxed. and without
any prospect of relief. AThis is-and Won
must see it and acknowledge 1.-THE resul. of
all your party politics It has been blank
delusion, and pitifnl failure! 1t has covered
the whole land with bloodshed, demoraliza-
ton, debt, poverty. and ruin and will unless
you come together, and make common cause
in your own defence, consign you, through
these Juggling fiends" and knaves Of both
parties, to the loss of your liberty and free
government
How shall you come together? Why.
simply, look to your own, immediate, personal
affairs and business, and let your deceivers,
the politicians, of whatever party, 60 to the
Devil or, what they hate worse, to mork !
You all, of all parties, have common iu-
terest in labor and in property and. of course,
a common interest in the money of the coun
try, through which-and only through tcz,ich
moncy-the labor of the country can be prop
ery rewarded and, further, the traits oftAot
labor can be, properly. dirided and distributed.
This thing-money-is the distributing agent
the scales and measure of all your earnings
and labor and if the measure and the scales
be wrong or false, of course many are bound
to be detrauded and cheated ! Can you doubt,
for moment, that the measure and the scales
-to-wit (: moncv-are wrong apd false, when
the profits and wealth, earned and created by
4O millions. are in the hands of 2 millions
But the measure and scuies-money.-are
not only wrong and false. but wrong and false
as they are, they are, besides and in addition,
in sorong and false hands.
They are sorong and false; because if yon
take any one product of labor, or commodity,
as specie Cor example, to be the measure and
scales of all other products and commodities,
this one product commodity so made meas
arc and scales should be, in all justice meas
atred and s"aled itself, by comparative and
relative value of other products and commo>
dities which it is to measure and scale: The
Constitution of the United States injoins that
this should be done: Congress shall coin
money and regulate the value thereof:' Is
this thing done! Not at ALL Congress
never has regulated the value of money in re>
gard to the values of all the other products of
labor and commodities of which, it is to be the
measure and scales Ii Congress had done
so, the whole Indebtedness of the country,
now estimated, public and pripate, at hil>
lions, thousand millions of dollars, could,
and would have been only q billions. or 25
hundred millions! That is to say, only one>
third, and in all Justice, of the emormou.
amount, for which the public and prioate
The people, thus, in the aggregate, aud in
their iudividuality-in public and in private
indebtedness-are held responsible, aud con-
sidered debtors, for A billions. or 4 thous>
and five hundred millions of dollars which. in
justice they do not owe; and which l will
add they ought not to pay, but repudinte, in
all justice, to themselves and their posterity