The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1875-09-16
Texas Politics.

Editors Democratic Statesman It is I'M
durstood that the Convention now assem-
bled will take some action on the subject
of usury. Some desire it to go to the ex-
tent of making an usurious contract penal.
Granting that there is necessity for law
suit against usury, it would be an act of
blindness for the Convention TO incorpor-
ate such a law in the Constitution. All
that the Constitution should do, would be
to leave the matter open to Legislation.
Then such laws might be passed from time
to time as the commercial necessities Of the
people demand.
But the Convention could do no greater
service to the State, than leave the organic
law on the subject of usury, as it is. First,
Because law against usurious contracts is
wrong ia principle. Second, Because such
q law is inexpedient and will be ruinous TO
the State.
Money is coInmodity--private property
and the owner has as much right to dis
pose of II for what it will bring in the mar
ket, as the owner of wheat, etc., has to
dispose of his wares.\ Superficial thinkers
fall into grievous error, because they fail to
apprehend what money is, and what is the
true standard of its value. They erroni-
ously assume that the government makes
money and gives it its value, and hence has
ly this is great error, else all governments
would be rich, at will. Government can
no more make money, or give it value, than
WELD the magic power of the philosophers
stone. The wants of the commercil world
(Which is composed of all commercial ma
tions) renders it absolutely necessary, that
nothing shall be adopted as money, which
has not an intrinsic value Of its own, out
side of the government stamp. Nothing is
valuable as money except the precious
metals or bank notes or bills, that are medi-
ately or immediately, convertible into the
precious metals, or coin.
1t may be asked, then, what makes
money valuable and what is the standard OF
its value Answer: The price Of money is
the labor necessary to extract the gold or
silver from the mine and present 1t as
medium OF commerce. just as the cost OF
producing wheat, cotton, ETC., governs its
price or value, SO does the cost of produc-
ing or procuring gold govern its value.
SSme gold Tor money may be put in circu-
lation with a little more, some with little
less labor, just as corn or cotton may, but
there is as certainly fixed acreage cost in
procuring gold, as there Is in producing
corn or cotton. And that average
cost is the. true value of money and
the natural laws Of trade each branch
OF which seeks its level as does water
force an exchange Of the gold, or money,
that il procured by one days labor, for the
amount of wheat or cotton that is produced
by one days labor. II that were not true
there would be turning aside Of part OF
the labor employed in the less profitable en-
ployment to the more profitable. II Is said
.sthere Is no excellence without labor" IL
may as well be said that there is no value
without labor. And it will be found on
scrutinising the value Of every commodity
that the labor of producing is the standard
of its value. But says one, what is il that
makes bank notes yaluableg There is no
value attached to bank notes, except to
furnish e1ideaee that the holder is entitled To
receive coin-gold or silver for it--destroy
its convertability into gold or silver, and the
blindest man can see that the bank bill Is
waste paper. There must be somewhere
foundation Of actual value, specific
thing, q commodity.
Il is mistake TO say that money Is an
absolute standard Of value. II Is only rel
alive, and Is as much affected by the uni.
versal law Of demand and supply, OF any
other commodity.
"a man he wns 20 al the country deas
And passing rich with forty ponds year."
This couplet was true few centuries
ago, because money was scarce and high.
Il nc utbCOftIy Oi uuuleTOuh uiuc3 aua tue
appliances Of modern mining operations
makes the procuring Of gold and silver
easier II now takes less expenditure OF
labor, hence a man is not passing rich
with forty pounds year." So IL is AZ
once seen that money IS not On absolute
standard Of value, but that 10 is commo-
dity whose value stands in exact relation 70
the cost Of getting It from the mine, from
the stream, from the rocks.
The conclusion Is that governments can
not make money. God alone made the
raw material, - which, IN various shapes.
having been wrought upon by the Iabor Of
men, is called money. It Is the product OF
individual labor, over which the individual
has absolute control, and the government
has no more right 10 restrict him in gts
use than IL has to order him 10 sell his
wheat or corn At five cents per bushel.
At another time propose to say some
thing as 70 the expediency Of law against
usury. JosH.