The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1874-10-17
Sound Talk.

last week, Prof. ,. H. Ierry, Oh Williams y"
, lege, a standard writer on political economy
delivered an address which contained som
of the soundest talk to farmers we have "
seen. We copy few random paragraphs;
An inconvertblc paper money always &c
preciated and always variable, Is worse 10
farmers than for almost anybody else; mrs
on the ground of its depreciation, and sccon,
on the ground of its variability. AS the valu
of money goes down, OF course general price
tend to rise; but, unfortunately, they do nc
rise coually, nor in equal times; and som
prices do not rise at all. For example, manu-
featured goods are quickest to experience
ris. of price, owing TO depreciation OF tn
currency, because as n rule manufacturer
are intelligent men, and know the tendenc.
of deprecated money to depreciatc more, ant
| thus hasten to insure themselves by putting
higher price on their goods. Wages rls'
much more slowly than goods and never pro
portionately; because laborers do not under
stand the situation, and never act quickly
enough to insure themselves; and so ihcy are
always great suffers from u deprecated
money Real estate rises slowly and irreGu'
larly, though at times unanimously, uh"cr
such money, and never on the average 50
high as manufactured goods rise; while agri'
cultural products some parts OF which are ck'
ported to foreign countries, scarcely rise IN
price at all The reason for this IS that the
foreign gold price Of that part Which Is cN-
ported largely determines the home price Tor
the whole crop. There is only one wholesale
price of wheat of the same CRAZE III New
York city, whether it is Tor export or "hcti',
er il is for home consumption. Inc gold
price IN Liverpool determines the currency
I'M n nc "
is exported and the price in New York de
termnes the price in Chicago and Omaha.
If the premium on gold, in CONSEQUENCE Of
the use Of deprecated currency, were as
high rs the average rise of prices arising
from tnal depreciation, it would not be so UNI
lust; but it never IS; gold is generally the
cheapest thing a.going as soon rs an inferior
currency has dcmonetiZed itand thrown it out
of demand and the whole consequence to
farmers Of the use Of such a poor money is,
that they have to pay great deal more for
all that they need to buy, and only get very
little more, or nothing at ali, for all that they
have 10 sell. Wheat was no higher in cur
rency in 1873 ;han it was In gold in 1860;
hams were not; lard was not, and salt pork
was not. These are all eXpOrtable agricultu-
raj products, whose current price IS dctcrm-
med by the gold money of the worlds great
mark ct These things are what farmers sell.
But harness, boots and shoes, hats and caps,
blankets, all manner of clothing, were much
higher in 1873 than they were IN 1860. These
are what the farmers have to
bug.
The mischief OF paper money is, that it af
lccis different classes differently, and the |
largest class the most injuriously of ALL 1t
'aiscs some prices much other prices little, /
md still other prices not at all. But farmers
always have been, and always will be, the .
greatest losers from rag money; partly, for
he reason that have just given, namely,
hat what they have TO buy is enhanced in
,ricc by It, while what they have to sell is
lot enhanced in price by it; and partly also
because it takes the farmer almost year to
ealizc on his crops, and he cannot mean
While insure himself against the inevitable
hangcs in the currency. The dollar in which
&c calculates the expenses of his crop is al.
lost sure mott be the dollar in which he re.
Lies the results of his crop. He cannot cal.
ulatc. He cannot insure himself He is .
elpless The manufacturer who turns of !
lis product weekly or monthly, can vary his
'rces weekly or monthly and save himself
t least in part; but the farmer poor man, can
% no such thing. He is at the mercy of cur
cncytinkers. Because all our paper money
) only promise to pay, and an unfulflled .
romisc at that; because it Is deprecated far
Glow the solid money of the worlds market:
ccausc it is variable in value from dav 10
ay and from year to year, unSettlinG the
lcaSurc Of all other values; because such
lonry always stimulates speculation and l.
ampcrs productive industry; because 1t
orrupls public morals undcrmincS honesty,
nd makes dciauters, by destroying the sta
lc standard of value; because ii uniusly Il
the rewards of industry, and
heats by wholesale the whole farming inter.
SIS; and because such money has always
rccn followed hy these results whercsoevcr
le experiment has been tried; do hereby
lvlle all farmers east aud west all grangers
Drlh and south, and all other true men. to
mite with me in raising IA cry thar shall
crCe the dulled ears Of our rulcrs-an hon.
i cry for an honest dollar.
THE SECOND FOE OF THE FARMERS
Next to the irrcdeemable paper money the
realcSt obstacle To the prosperity of the far {
crS oi The United States at the present mo-
ent is the So'caled Protective Tariff This
not so bad rs II was two or three years ago =
has been twice reduced and simplitied in :,
e fear that the honest Indignation of the y
,oplc would overthrow it altogether. BIT =,
Is still bad enough 1t is still too bad 1t =,
an old trick OF the devil To take II good y
ord and cover up with it an evil thing. Pre-. =
s"ly tins is done whenever the word "PrO .
c,ivc" is applied to any tariff The word !;
is good word when used in its y
Ultimate sense. As signitying the security j.
person and property under good govern
ent, II Is IN admirable word and dcsci lies
indispensable thing; but rs applied to a II
riff, the word is full of deceit, inasmuch rs 5
tariff from its very nature can not protect" \
ybody or anything 1t can rcdistribu,e I
opcrly by raising the prices of some thirgs I
ID depressing the prices of other things, but '
cannot possibly raise the prices of things a
general. The trick of protective tariff t
just the same as the trick Of paper money, y
c jugglcr's trick of putting existing things u
strange places. A tariff creates nothing, I
reduces nothing, adds nothing to existing b
callh. but il distributes great deal :
TARIFFS TAKE, But NEVER GIVE ~
At first sight Il tariff seems TO be nothing
ut series ottaXcs on certain foreign goods 4