New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1879-09-23
THE A BIC OF FINANCE.
LET RESUMPTION HAVE A FAIR TRIAL

war upon we'll guarded National banks. which is
now wagcd in the interest Of men who want to
plumber the people by setting up wildcat banks
under State laws. Capital should be encouraged, as
il is by the National system. to establish safe banks
wherever they are needed, aud the substitution OF
greenbacks for bank notes would be an mmixed
evil. even if il would not involve reputation ana
general bankruptcy. The country needs no more
silver than il now has coined The sooner we stop
coming dollars which the people refuse to take or
use the sooner somethingmay be done to promote
the proper of silver alike in this and In other
countries. In short the money that We now have is
doing right well. As matters stand, prosperity is
dawning. Il is good sense not to plough UP prom
Using crop, until we can sec what ii will come TO-
We have paid all the cost Of resumption, ana
struggled Tor years 10 reach il. Now IT is good
sense 20 give II fair tTIa', and to see what IL Is
worth There is work enough in this country for
every class Of except oDe-tho currency tiDke's
who ought to be kept out of work entirely for some
years to come.
The root of all agitation about the money ques-
tion as has been shown, Is desire either 10 GET iu
of debts more aheaply, or u sell things "t ns"'i
prices. For that poison there Is but one ah''"o'o'
The one thing needfn is for the plain people to see
clearly that. where one person can be helpeu Wv
such a change. many others must surely be hnrt'
Farmer Smith is in trouble It is true because he
n,ortraced his farm for $4,000 in inflated times
and did not pay of the debt in the days of large
nroits and high prices. Now the farm VIII not sell
for the mortgage. But he kept his money or spent
II. i'm the DAYS when large paper profits were beng
made i'm cheap paper money lie sold wheat AT -
q bu,bel ana other produce at inflated prices, but
did not use the money 20 wipe out lbs debt. tie mas
lad NJ, far chance. Now the proper question Is not
whether Smith sha have relief" but whether the
ten workingmen, whose hagd-earncd savings smith
hes borrowed, shall be robbed. The small savings
which they had contnYed, by long seh-dcnial ana
much puching to get together for OLD age. or sick
ness, or other time Of need, they had put into a
bank. and the bank had loaned the whole to Smith,
taking q mortgage. Now the question IS whether
Government shall take away their money. and give
II to Smith. who did not save or pinch himself. The
Question is whether these ten men shall be robbed
hv making money cheap, or by destroying the pub
lie credit and sweeping away the banks, in order to
Give TO one man n relief 10 which he has no claim.
Ii is true. too that Smith could get more. though
poorer dollars, for his wheat aud pork. If he could
sell them nj sof.-money prices. But there are ten
othcr workinuDcn. who are even now trying nara
to save something fpr the needs Of wives and chil-
dreu aud they live on the wheat and pork which
smith sells, Mako thor food cost more, and they
can save nothing; some OF them, indeed must then
hear the ptcous wall of hungry little ones. II
Smith Is worse OIL he really is not, because there
Is too much hog in the dollar" all the working
men are the better off because the dollar and the
days labor will buy more hog. Hero are two sets
of people to be hurt, by giving Smith soft-money
prices: the consumers Of his products. who would
have TO pay more for their food and clothing. and
tine men whose savings lie has borrowed for their
dollars saved he wOuld make cheap and value
less a. possible. The country has no business to
help the few az tho expense Of the many. And 1t
would turn out that inflated prices would hurt the
many without really helping the few. With soft
money prices, the farmers would not be able. rs
tlev are now, to undersell foreign producers. The
country could Lot send, it will within year,
900 OGO. 600 bushels Of wheat to Europe. vast
surplus # wheat aud corn cotton. pork butter and
cheese, which now goes abroad. would be thrown
back on our own markets, after n vain attempt TO
sell it at inflated prices and the prostration which
would follow would be infinitely worse for the
farmer than the present state of large sales and low
prices soft money would make il cost moro to pro-
due. al things With grain and pork costing more,
and with fewer people TO consume them, would the
farmer fare well IN the endf MOI could the country
continue. with cheap money, TO sell more than 1t
buys as it does now that foreign debts GET paid.
and the Nation grows each year more independent
and strong.
I.s the particular business Of the worllingmen Of
this country to set foot the dcgagogues who
have lied 10 them so long. They have not single
real interest which these demagogues have not tried
10 make them sacrifice by their own votes. 1t is
high time for the woikingmen of this country to
show that they are not altogether dupes. Every
prediction made TO them 10y soft-money politicians
has proved false. Every theory or statement, from
that source has been found utterly worthless when
confronted with the solid facts Of everyday expe-
rience. The money question is peculiarly the work
incmen's question. No other class has as deep an
interest as they have in securing good money. They
need for their buynC-tool as much power as is pos
sessed by the money earned by any other workmen
in the world More money is due to them, as wage
eaIners or dopOstors. than to any other class, and
they ought to see that cheap money for debtors
means robbery of themselves. They, surely, ought
10 be sensible enough TO see that the demacogue
who wants to put d" less hog into dollar" means
70 mt less food into the mouths of those who work
for wages.
Finally industry and commerce need rest and GER
taintv. Agitation OF the money question, In
one form OF another, has kept Us all in doubt and
turmoil for fifteen years. Every interest has sui
fered Every branch of industry has been set back
no one can guess how much, by the long and con-
slant uncertainty. Capital has lost and labor has
lost Farms factories. stores, shops, railroads ana
mines have been stopped by heavy losses and hosts
Of men have been left without work, because there
was no solid basis of honest money on which to
build. and no sure hope that the money In use
would not grow worse or even worthless. After all
this loss and waste of savings and capital. the
country sorcly needs security and 0uiet. 1t needs
by years Of patient but certain growth. to repair lis
wasted capital. II needs security and rest from
monetary agitation. that tho people may gather
once more such reserves of wealth as were de-
stroyed by the war, and by the repudiating dema-
gocues who waste and ruin more than hostile