The anti-monopolist. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1874-1878, 1877-08-30


Who would manufacture goods for
steadily falling market! The rule APP
piled everywhere, and it paralyzed
not one kind of production, but all
kinds. Then work ceased, then wages
ceased, then buying ceased, then the
home market gave up the ghost. Two
millions of workers, worth two dol
lars day, were turned into two mil
lions of idlers worth nothing. Four
million day is twelve hundred mil
lions a year. This substracted from
taken utterly away from-our home
market. shut up many a store and sent
the storekeeper to swell the army of
oilers. That summed up one '.abnor-
NAL influence.
And upon this idle labor and this
tottering trade there descends seven
hundred millions of dollars yearly in
terest to be paid on public and cor
poration debts alone. Then come the
private mortgages, covering every
third house and farm in the country.
For these private mortgages there
was honest value given. But for the
public indebtedness what, as an aver
age. did the nation receive! Sixty
cents on the dollar probably. This
public interest Of seven hundred an
nual millions is another rather big
abnormal influence"
And the interest on private debts
was fixed and kept at high rate by
the high interest offered by the sever
al governments, national state and
municipal. The lender of money
could do far better by investing with
the governments than by lending to
private individuals. So much so that
it was as a personal favor that he
would lend to individuals in need.
This must never be forgotten. Top
heavy public debts that have but
slight and rotten foundations under
them may tumble down into that
Slough OF Despond called reputation.
But private indebtneSS between man
and man is Il sacred thing and is sa-
credly under guarantee Of law and
the protection Of honor. But even
on this kind of debt interest will have
to be either reduced or remain UNI
paid. How can it be otherwise! Such
investments were thought safe when
secured by property estimated ut
double the value of the loan. But
when the property shrunk to far less
than half that value. and when, at the
same time, it became utterly unsafe
able, what was to be done! Evident
ly not more than a proportionable
amount of the interest would be paid
as the productive power OF the prop
erty could or can afford nothing more.
and there is an unmentionable article
of the wardrobe YOU never can take
off Highlander.
Another abnormal cause of the
distress and ''tramping that are now
oyerrunning us is to be found in the
heartless neglect of congress to open
an escape for it out on the public
lands. To do so would have sent our
idle millions out to home and prosper
ity. To do SO would have lifted the
rate of wages everywhere up to near
what industry could realize on the
soil and that is the reward ordained
from On High. Thus would two
great improvements be accomplished
for the people. But the spectators,
the moneymaniacs, the combined
rogues inside and outside of congress,
| had also two great objects in view.
They had. and they have, it in view
| to swallow up what is left of the pub
liza lands-make amend of them. Then
would they have the homeless ones
the robbed and disinherited ones-cOm-
pletely and helplessly and perpetually
in the tolls of wages slavery. The
slavery that starved the laboring Goa
miners and drove the picked intelll
gent men who 'srolled the stock of the
railroads up to forty miles an hour
drove them first into hunger and the1
into flaming revolt-revolt agalns
their inhuman. anti-Christian, Mai
employers.
But the Belmont man does not Sc
those abnormal causes. Still les
does he desire to point out the ''nor
NAL causes that would remedy th
whole evil, recreate commerce, an
return TO us all and far more thar
all the prosperity we have lost. Blu
leaving the cities and looking int
the rural fields. here's what he says
The country population itself, a.
though not absolutely suffering flo
the means of subsistence, has lost t
a great extent the inland marke
which was afforded it by the wealt
of the city. the mining and the manu-
featuring populations, and finds
{ hard to get the means of paying take
and of providing for those want
which the soil does not supply.
finland market Are you at las
beginning to find that outl He goes o
and stumbles over 1.-The gTotesquel
anomalous symptoms of an old owe
4 crowded community which are no
{ affecting a country only half settle
7 and overlooking with natural wealth.
5 But he can't do anything better for
1 than go hunting to Mexico and Sout
!: America. looking for the market fl
our manufactured goods before W
can get anything to eat, or drink. {
l. wear in this country.
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