The anti-monopolist. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1874-1878, 1876-07-27
WHOLE NO. 107.
If the price paid few years since would
'nnS HON

i. If the price paid few years since would
be. GUS boon.
Othe- are at work, but with large families
and small pay, it is almost impossible to keep
from running behind. Where wages are scant
and the laborer's credit good, he may bridge
over brief crisis by running no accounts; but
if the trouble is long continued, or the man
has no credit, what is the prospect that stares
him i'll the face!
Simply the poor house.
But the Citizen is mistaken when it
says that the cause Of financial troubles
is ''over~production." How can there
be "over~production" with tour millions
of W orkingmen out of employment for
y two years? How can there be
"over-production" with half the factories
closed or in the hands of the sheriff? Ever
since 1878. now three years, we have
had the crisis, with diminished produce
ton, and yet men talk fippantly about
'over-production." The trouble is not
that too much has been produced, but
that too little has been consumed; and
the decreased consumption is due to the
poverty OF the people; and this is due to
the interruption OF production by the
contraction OF the currency.
We will suppose A. B. c. and D. to be
manufacturers. A. makes boots and
shoes; b. calicoes; c. woolens. and D.
hardware they have all of them been
carrying on their business. as usual, with
one-third cash and two>thirds credit. A.
lives in a town in which there is 300 900
to loan. BY the process OF contraction
this S1UO,OO0is reduced to SIS, 900.
There is Just a much absolute wealth in
the community as before but there are
80, 900 less currency. AS means OF credit
are reduced one.fourth; perhaps, Git his
paper is not regarded as "gilt,edged, y
it is destroyed altogether. A is forced to
contract his business. He discharges
one halt his workmen and reduces the
wages Of the balance and he enforces
the strctested economy in his own fami-
ly. What is the result. His employees
and himself and family buy one halt less
OF BIS calicoes, C's woolens and DIS hard
ware. b, G and d find not only their
margin OF credit reduced % per cent.
but lnev find their sales rapidly diminish
ing; and they dismiss two thirds OF their
wurkmen, men who used to bny literally
Of AS boots and shoes. A finding his
customers poverty-stricken cuts down
his business still farther. The whole
town suffers; the mechanics, the mer-
chants, everybody is driven to the same
economies. Real estate shrinks in val
ue; personal property shrinks in value
everything shrinks in value but money
that grows and flourishes in the midst OF
the general calamities. The distressed
people ask an explanation. Cover pro-
duction, SAY the moneycrats ;-"ov-
| reproduction, echo the fools. And
then the moneycrats proceed quietly to
pack the town and county caucuses and
state and national conventions OF both
parties, SO that whichever way the peo-
| pie turn they find the doors OF escape
closed IN their faces, and they sit down
and submit to inevitable destruction, or
they break loose from both the corrupt
old organizations to find liberty and
safety in a party Of their own creation.
Suppose o.morrow, the work Of con-
traction were to stop, and Congress
should authoritatively declare that for
five years the currency should be neither
| increased nor diminished Business
would at once revive, the work of pro-
duction would commence anew; the
workingmen and women now idle, starv-
ing or begging, would have their pockets
full OF money with which to pay their
debts and buy goods Of all kinds. The
whole country would unloose its gather
ed boards TO add TO the general prosper
ity.
What would be lost? Well it would
be said that the promises Of the govern
ment were not redeemed; its greenbacks
! would be below par.
Suppose this to be true, who would
| place this incident of finance in the
scale against the prosperity and happi-
ness OF forty millions Of people? 1.-The
Sabbath was made for man not man for
the Sabbath" Money was made for the
people; not the people for money. One
worthy citizen, driven bv poverty TO
bankruptcy and suicide, outweighs in the
eyes OF God and OF all just men, the ac-
cumulated money OF the whole world.
But there is another way out Of the
dilemma. The currency bonds Of the
United States are now worth 1z5 cents
on the dollar, or Is per cent. more than
greenbacks. Let the government de-
clare that greenbacks are fundable in
bonds Of the United States at par, green
backs would at once be worth az much
as the bonds, TO wit: 70 per ct. above
their present price or IA per ct. above
par. And for every dollar Of greenbacks
50 funded in bonds, let new green
back be issued, 50 as to keep the sames
amount of currency in circulation.
1.-THE contractionists have no object in
view except to make greenbacks worth
AZ much as gold, here ID short cut TO
that result which will hurt no one. Why
10 it not adopted?
Why cannot Minnesota send three men