Mexico weekly ledger., 1878-09-05
COMMUNICATION.

". as proof let me cite To your lilies
rs early as last February and March.
My object at that time was to form a
party, which should have lower rate
of interest as IFS main issue. Failing
in that scarcely d. red hope that
this very qdestion woul form AN is
sue in our present campaign. Still
it has become such an issu.., and
whether it succeed on not, | have
the satisfaction, as Moses OF eld, to
see the promised Land" even If
l should not be permitted to enter it.
Being, therefore, as might say, the
father of the six per cent. movement,
/ should have the privilege OF saying
something in the premises.
Mr.. T., as might have been expect
ed, is opposed to this movement and
no doubt he thought he had disposed
OF the matter in his article in your
issue of Aug. l. | can imagine how
he read his arguments to Mr.. b. and
and triumphantly shouted: Now we
have got them, these arguments are
unanswerable. Slowly Mr. T. they
can and will be answered, even by as
humble a person as mysclt.
You say money is an article like
corn and wheat. Mistaken AIr. +.
Money is in itself power, while
wheat and corn Is not. In wheat Ind
corn, there are more producers than
consumers, while in money there are
more borrowers than lenders. In
money you can create an artificial
scarcity, while in wheat and corn you
| cannot.
The farmer will always TRIP to raise
as much wheat and corn as he can,
so as to have as much surplus as pos
sibte, while the money-lenders, being
but few in number, can and will c m-
bine to lock up part of their surplus
funds, in order To create scarcity,
and thereby keep up the rate of in
terest. Suppose you have $lOO, 600
of loanable funds, which would he a
surplus over the demand and force
Interest down. You say to yonr
brother money-kings, let us lock up
half of the amount, and We can real
ize as much interest out OF one half
as out of the whole with but one halt
of the trouble and risk. You may
reply TO that, hut we are all christian
! gentlemen, who surely won d not du
any such thing. But | say, ShyIocks
are Shylocks anywhere and any time,
whether dressed up in the garb of an
ancient Jew, or belonging to mod
ern church and dressed up in broa'l
cloth, and if Shakespear were living
now he would not have to 90 to We
nice after a subject for his Shylock,
but he could find them m abundance
in every city, town OF even village qi
this broad land.
You say, since a gre; t number OF
our people are borrowers of money.
and consequently want Il low rate Ol
interest, it is not strange that can
didate for the legislature should wax
eloquent advocating such measure.
You give our candidates very little
credit for honesty and sincerity oi
purpose, but charge they advocat,
this measure because it is popular.
Well, this is their business, with
which ] don't propose to medile.
But when you say a candidate would
not pretend to assert tV1t he was il
favor of passing law regulating the
price liveryman is to receive faY TIN
use of his horse, you are on the WRONG
track again. If the livery men bad
the power and strength which III,
possession OF money gives, and woulo
use that power to form combination,
by means of which they were enabled
to extort exorbitant rates for the uss
Of their rigs it would no
be half as absurd, rs yot
seem to think, for candidate for tn,
Legislature to wax eloquent in lvo,
eating Law, compelling the livery
men to charge but n reasC nable com
pensation for the use of their team,
Don't the state regulate tn compen
sation railro ld company is to re
ceive for the carrying of passenger,
} and freight per mile? The railroad
company cannot say the r)ad Is oui
property and we can charge what W,
, please for its use. And don't yot
know Mr.. r, that i'm st. Louis, a,
we'll as in every Other large city
| hackmen are required by ordinance
, to hang up the rates which they are
allowed TO charge In & consl';cuoui
place in their hacks.
This they are compelled to do, il
= order to prevent them charging eX
2 tortionate prices to strangers. Now
, if a city which is only creature o
the state, has the power to regulate
that traffic, surely the state itself, tht
creator of that corporation shoul,
. possess that power.
: "All usury laws are oppressive, un
just and in the end injuric us 10 th,
borrower AS well as to the lender
and TO the latter especially" which j.
exactly what's tue matter with Han
, nah. AS far as the injury to the bor
rover is concerned, L am perfect,
willing to shoulder all responsibility
and If it should prove so injurious u
that class, / give MIR. 4. the privi
lege to say to them: Cruelty him
! II the interests of the money .lendel
are so sacred. why is it that the ear.
liest law-givers such as Moses gav,
laws against usury. Da.id, who Ger.
tainly was not poor man aud there
fore not n borrower, in his XIV Psalm,
after propounding the question
Lord, who may sojourn in thy tent
Who may dwell Oh thy holy moundi
answers in 9th verse. lie that put.
teth not out his money for usurous
interest and taketh no brihe agains,
the innocent. And Christ himself is
said to have driven the moncy-chang
ers and lenders out of the temple, as
not being worthy TO occupy place
therein. In what respect are oui
present ey-changers better !rhe,
buy the Mexican dollar for So or &c
cents, pay them out for 100 cents and
then take them back again at 80 cents.
| Lastly, MI, + ahinks that meas
ure is undemocratic. Surely MIR. L.
did not think you would advance as