The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1877-11-09
THE LABOR QUESTION AND
FINANCES.


l0pcech OF Hon. Frank LanderE
| at = Rally Of W0rkingmen
1t Indianspoliss Oct. ~.
Iadlsnapoiis ssstinel
How can you expect wages to be KEEP
lup when the manufactures can not eel
the commodities you produce for pay
ling price? / want the iaboring man Il
become posted upon this subject. In
stead Of disregarding politics In you
labor union invite 1t there; learn wha
Iyour interests are and 20 TO the poll
and vote understandingly. Your in
jterests are identical with the interests o
'lyour employer. II he can not max,
money By manufacturing articles 70
market, you can not expect adequat,
wages for producing them. This labo
question 10 50 intimately connected will
the financial question that no man who
undertakes to discuss one can separate
liz from the other.
| Whenever be discusses the question
|of rcdecming labor from its embarrxss
mcuts he goes directly 70 the hnsucia
lqsesfion. The law OF supply and de.
mand must be recognized il the con-
Isideration Of these matters. Value il
fixed by the quantity Of money In the
'governmcRt. Labor produces every
thing, and whenever the volume Of cur
|reucy IL reduced, the value Of aIl com.
modities goes down and the value oi
labor must 20 with It. ] propose to
point out why you are SO embarrassed
why il 10 that real estate Is not saleable
|at any price.
BY finding the cause Of the embarrase.
ment Of the country, we can then point
|out the remedy.
In the first place, I will call your At
|tention to the prosperity that existed in
this country for years after The war,
Fer i've years after the war closed there
was more progress made ia this country
and more wealth produced than for ~
years preceding. The government, ia
order TO get through with the war, had
issued notes. some Of them legal tenders
that circulated as money and performed
Exchange, amounting to &1,722 OOU,OuO
1.-THE national banks had ever tl85. 5.O0D, ,oC<
and the state banks 478.U0O,0UO iM circu.
Iation. making m aggregate Of 81 ,976..
|OQ0.0OO. Then IL was that the Iaborer was
not going over the country seeking EN-.
pioyment, but employers were looking
for laborers. Many laboring men were
acquiring homes many had paid for
them. Where do you stand to-day
Are not many Of YOU losing your homes.
after you have paid . large portion oi
the purchase money? call your atten-
tisn to the volume Of currency in 1879,
ss the time Of The commercial panic,
fs66. .00O,QO; . contraction Of t1,13O.-
Oy0.UUJ. When you mortgaged your
house Tor one-half iis value. there was
one-half the value belonging 10 YOU.
but contraction has taken your hall
away and given II TO the party who took
the mortgage. II Is said that specie
basis will cure alI the evils Of which we
now complain; that when We get down
10 specie basis there will be no change
in values, but the laborer will find read y
employ nent and there will be genera.
revival Of business. lnasmuch ~ We
are askcd to make such sacrifices 10 get
specie payment We ought 10 inquire
what We shall obtain when We get there.
We had specie basis IN this country be-
fore the war. propose to prove from
figures that specie basis leads 10 the
greatest expansion aud contraction Of
any financial policy that has ever been
adopted. In 1911 there was bank cur
rency in circulation amounting 10 s28.-
OOO,OOO. In 1916 that currency had been
increased 10 o6s,OCUOoO. In 1922 Il had
been contracted $4,000, 900. leaving
in circulation in le1O only $4,000 .0OO.
Does that look like solid basis or likely
to give fixed values 10 commodities /?
We pass on. In 1897 there was M ex-
psnsion OF bank currency amounting to
3ss.UC, 600 Ia circulation, increasing the
volume 10 el41,Oo0,UUO. In l6l3 the
currency had been contracted TO o5s,-
100000, being . contraction Of Ss3,-
OcOOO.
Notice this cbb and fow Of currency
under specie basis. II the volume OF
currency regulates the value, where did
the value OF commodities 20 70 In lS43,
when there was $5s.COO.OO0 In circula-
tion, aud six years before there was
: SI4l.UO0,O00? have fought specie
basis because oi the expansion in the
interest Of the debtor aud contraction ia
the interest Of the creditor, destroying
values and increasing them 10 two
prices. In 1854 there was bank paper
ia circulation, redccmable In coin,
amounting 10 20s.0oa,OOu dollars. No
ticc the increase in the volume OF cur
rcncy. From 1e43 10 1864 the Increase
was from 5s,OO0,Uu0 10 204.oO0,0oo dol
lars The contraction from 1854 to 1888
was -. .OO0.OnO dolIars. leaving 1S5, 600. :
Oco dollars in circulation. Does that
look likc solid basis?
Does that look like giving assurance
10 tic manuiac urcr thst the value Of his
manufactured article II 10 hc . fixed
,.rirc2 4 wanf VOu n rtcol,cct thpsc