The daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1873-1877, 1874-09-05
From the Chicago Times.
Deluded Farmers,

From the Chicago Times.
Deluded Farmers.
Reports from Bloomington, Springfield,
and one or two other points, represent that
some of the Texas steers people are a
good deal torn up IN their minds by the
discovery tina, Professor Etter is not OF
the same faith with Messrs. Powell Logan,
Ridgeway, Dan Voorhees,, ct at., on the
subject Of a bottomless shinplaster swindle.
According to one report, Their indigna.
ton is simply terrific. They say they will
formally expunge his name from their
ticket. They denounce him in unmea-
'sured terms; call him dishonest, hypo-
critical, and fool besides"
The notion that man is dishonest who
believes in honest money and in honest
fulfllment of public and private obliga,
tions, is not new. Nor is it new idea
that man is tool who don't believe that
money is anything that the legislative
power may say is money nor that govern
ment is an omnipotence able to create val
ue out of nothing nor that faith in such
potential omnipotence of government is q
sufficient basis of cubic and private ere
dit. These decisions of ignorance are old.
assignats, South-Sea bubbles, continental
currency, and manifold other schemes OF
baseless shinplaster swindling, by which
nations and states have been bankrupted,
men robbed and reduced to beggary, and
society UNNECESSARILY cursed. They Gov
cred the American colonies, time and time
again, with blight of desola,ion worse
than any plague of locusts or of western
grasshoppers They have ever dealt out
their worst consequences upon the ignor
ant and the poor, who have had the strong
est faith in them. And yet, with all the
terrible experience of their consequences
recorded in our own history, with which
all who live under our boasted public
school system are supposed to be acquant-
ed, these decisions still remain fixed seem
ingly as firm as ever.
Unfortunately, men of sincere and hon.
est character are very often the most ig
norant. This is the greatest difficulty in
the way OF western tarmers-thosc more
particularly that are the victims of the
shinplaster delusion. They are as sincere
and as honest as the average of men, I'M
doubtedly; but on the question of finance.
they are beset by an ignorance that is per
tectly uniathomable. The fact that thew
the great producing class-which society
must have, and can not exist a single day
without,-are the greatest sufferers, the
most injured and piundered victims of an
enforced shiuplaster currency, based on
nothing but the bottomless foundation of
debt, they shut their understandings
against, and hug to their bosoms delu
sion of ignorance that is eating away the
- hn,
men OF larger knowledge and understand
ing tell them the truth and decline to aid
them In their suicidal folly, they denounce
them as dishonest and as fools.
10 his recent able letter on the finance
and revenue questions, written to some
gentlemen in Cincinnati, Mr. Hugh Nc
Culloch (lhr. Lincoln's last secretary of the
treasury, and the ablest finance minister
he country has had in a generation ).makes
he following observations
There is no class Of men who are so mnch in |
urea py irredeemable paper money The agIicul- |
uf'sh: IL IL the farmer especially VINO Is Cheated
by nci",.cSs money. It's said. KNOW, thar he paws
bis ta7e- with hand Tor what he needs TO purchss:.
oq Is II not true also thu. Ia increases his ,axes anG
adds largely TO The cost of What ne buysY + /
cotton, suga, and rice nl the DUH, and TIE grain
beef and pfk If the Wvst are nee ed at bonc md
1y foreign nations. and these ntcessaiies win a.
Ways command money. Tue people who nave L., IN |
u dispose of mast det ide what kind OF money f.
Ial Oe-money In the fornl Of broken promises or I
gold and silver sDd convertible bank Noes
Il have been for lolg time absent from the
country bat AN greatly deceived il the demand of
me west lof more currency does not come chiefly
ia tno1e VINO nave little or nothing IL sell, and
lnce with their demands
There has never been time " hen the product,
u the West Il can speak advisediy Of tins section
lave failed TO bring what they arr really won't o.
ording 10 prices at the home and foreign markets
on want Of money TO pay for them, and there never
\ III De Know lhat these product have com usnd |
q al various times extremely low pris..s mt tbis
vas owing 10 the lack Of means OF ran,p5rtstio% |
u u OF a supply superior 10 tie demand The fsct
Ia Liue OHt oil Ten OF those who have been en- !
.ssea 10 buying and shipping the products ~ The
"es' 70 the sea0oard where prices are usually REQ
Insss oy the EaropeaA markets have failed In bus
- II an evidence that those PRODUCT. have NO,
80 sAcilhesd or sold al home Tor less than tbsir
80 ~ feAson OF scarcity OF money Tnrra
= % no apprehension the part of the
iea.ts VI the West that they will be Injured n,
-1al ihtfe would be scarcity Of money 5y rsssCf ,
~ .ns hl'haraWai of the United ate. notes ar
II SenrecIs,lpa 1Pen Circulation For every dollar
ave ooiiaf, IL value al least OF copyer,ibi 1lo
'sf on OF sPecie What is true ia regard 10 pa
r. IL equally true IN regard TO maDnfsri,roI arm
Fan e, and laborers. NY own a. H., eis, me-
= mat we SHAH never have really chran ,,,i 4nloh
y. can never have reliable money until H.. T,;
sAles no'es are stripped OF their faIs. ilea
49, nom eiFc uiztion. and their place suris'
,P.eis' and perfeCtly-secaned. couvrr,ilt 'er by
socT, apeele then Will cease to flow AM ot IN
m 20 - az no II does but viii eomIacnc, so.in
xhisb ba =, ~e Drive out Of circulation III ro,g
epi'eo II OF lite monetary cbararierf
he e ;ana mlpr.oeably-nay most probably
Tue ignorant farmers who ar. bpa
aciusloh that Is daily aud LonrIv Ils .he
abIs .n nSa 1s 70 oeggary, will say thar ,as
Sole ana practical economist VII, , sia. ule
HIesses them is dishonest. bv,.nus ad-
miserai tL Perfectly certain is it tha, "a,
begsinS ess seh-seeking demagogues that sre
that such sss;s az Their hands will tell them
made Id me interest of bankers and are
holders and that the true acou oona- !
Tor tne people who are not banLar Is
pondholders to persist in the conrse g aoo
70 themselves In order to punish The a suin