Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1875-09-24
The BOndhoIder's Dollar vs.. the Peo-
ple's Dollar.

The Cincinnati Enquirer has taken to
quoting 1.-THE bondholder's dollar" at 1913,
or thereabouts, adding the remark that
the bondholder's dollar" is worth "344
cents more than the peoples dollar" and
adding also the query: Why should the
rich mans dollar be worth more than that
of the poor man?" BY " the rich mans
dollar" the Enquirer means the highest
priced United States bonds, and the quo
tatiOn given is the currency prices, inter-
est included. And then to make the diff
ference between the bondholders dollar"
and "the peoples dollar appear as great
as possible, the lying assumption is made
that bonds are quoted at their gold value
in New York and elsewhere in this coun-
try. Thus, if skies of 1691-the highest
bonds in market-are quoted at 1873, it is
assumed that bond for 800 of that de-
scription is worth 1928 in gold, ex inter-
est. Then, if greenbacks are worth only
81 in gold, the difference between S8 and
par is added to the % per cent. premium
on the bonds, making difference of 35
cents between 1.-THE bondholder'S dollar
and the peoples dollar"
Thinking men will see through the Jug
gle at glance. But it may be we'll enough
to state for the benefit of those who may
not be familiar with such matters that in
this country bonds, stocks and all other
things, including gold itself, are quoted
in currency. Ii bond is quoted at 100,
eX interest, it is worth twenty cents on the
dollar more than greenbacks, and that is
all there is of it.
If it is so bad thing for our
bonds and greenbacks to be from 16 to %
per cent apart why not bring them nearer
together by building up the public credit,
instead of tearing it down? Why not
make the peoples" dollar better, instead
of making "the bondholder's dollar"
worse? Instead Of asking "Why should
the rich mans dollar be worth more than
that of the poor MANI" had we not better
ask, Why not make the poor mans dollar
as good as the rich mans dollar? 1t is
easy enough to make 1.-THE poor mans
dollar" belter-as good as gold, in fact
and that is Just what the advocates of hard
money want to do. They want to add
some fourteen cents to the value of each
and everyone of the hundreds of millions
Of dollars deposited by poor men in the
savings banks. They want to make the
poor men of the country eighty or hun
dred millions better off than they are.
But the Enquirer and the whole gang of
rag-money repudiators propose TO do
Just the reverse of this. They ad-
vocate a policy which, if it does not
mean flat reputation of the bonds of
the United States, would widen the breach
between them and greenbacks. They pro-
pose a policy which would make the
greenbacks worth less and less in gold,
and make the bonds worth more and more
in greenbacks; for as greenbacks go down
bonds go up. They propose policy which
would subtract more and more from the
value of each and every dollar deposited
by poor men in savings banks, and which
would, if carried far enough, make each
and every one of those dollars utterly
worthless. And yet these rag-money re-
pudiators set themselves up as the very
particular friends and special champions
Of the poor man. They are, in fact,
whether they know it or not, the deadliest
enemies Of the poor man, and the very
best friends of the gamblers in gold and
stocks. Their policy would rob the
wages Of every workingman of part of
their purchasing power, and put money in
the pockets of those Spectators who, un-
like the working men, are far-seeing and
INSCRIPTIONS enough to anticipate and
take advantage of the depreciation of the
greenbacks If the working men know
what is good for them they will avoid the
demagogues who preach initiation and re-
pudiation as they would an army Of Sicilian
bandits or fleet of pirates,-Chi. Times.
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