The Somerset press. [volume] (Somerset, Ohio) 1873-1977, 1879-06-12
The Honest Dollar.

Ohe ". tuo iesuee pIOPoseu " SOnn
Sherman for the next campaign is the
"Honsss Dollar," in the payment of money
obligations. The issue is not whether
honest dollars shall be paid, for all agree
to that proposition, but what constitutes
an honest dollar.
Every man who, five years ago, con-
tracted to pay dollars In the future, ex-
pected to obtain the dollars of payment by
exchanging for them the products of his
labor and skill.
An honest dollar to-day, in payment of
an obligation incurred in 1873, is one whose
purchasing power is,juss equal TO the pur.
chasing power of the dollar at the time il
was promised. A dollar that will cost the
debtor no more of the products of his
skill and labor at the time of payment
than IL would at the time it was contracted
to be paid, is an honest dollar.
| A dollar that is worth twice as much to-
day as the best dollar in existence was
worth five years ago, is not an honest dol
lar in 1879 to pay the dollar promised in
1873. Doubling the value of the dollar
after il was contracted to be paid, and re-
quiring pay ment Of the same number Of
dear dollars that were promised of cheap
ones, 10 rs dishonest as il would be Ia
double the weight Of the bushel, and re-
quire payment to be made in the same
number of double bushels as were prom.
ised OF single ones.
The great bulk of our public and private
indebtedness was contracted on the basis o.
cheap paper currency, the dollars o
which did not possess one-half the pus
chasing power that gold dollars now do
Prices Of products were high, property o
all kinds was dear, and We contracted Il
/ pay sums and prices, which to-day woul.
, be exorbitant, for the very reason that VI
E expected to pay in cheap money, obtaine'
from high-priced labor and products.
A man who contracted In 1869 TO pay
thousand dollars In 1879, expected to pa
l the value Of Eve hundred days labor, b.
. cause the consideration he received, 70
1 which he gave his obligation. was wort
but that amount of labor st that time. A
. consideration for deferring payment, th
debtor agreed to pay interest, more or les
which interest was all he expected to Civ
u and all that the creditor expected 70 n
l. csive for deferring payment.
o. But when pay day comes the debtor fint
l. that the dollars in market have been Il
creased in value. To obtain q thousaI
Of them now with which to meet his m
d tured obligation, he must give . thousaI
days work. The creditor has not only =
ceivsd his interest, which was 10 be u
10 sole consideration for waiting, but u
thousand dollars he loaned In 1873, b
grown 70 be worth as much % two tho
~ sand were when he loaned them.
as Is dollar honest that will thus n
~ either party TO the contract?
ss But such is the dollar John Sherman co
m tends for, such q dollar the "Dishone
u Money" lsaguers oall honest
BY The producers and Taxpayers owe Sh
~ lock several billion dollass-contracted
OF be paid when dollars were cheap.
I'd He says IL the debtor insists upon ps
hs ment in dollar cheaper than the one CO
iy tractsd to be paid, or one Of less val
Of than II was worth at the time the contrs
en- was made, is repudiation. He is cosre'
We Such dollar would be dishonest one.
Id the creditor would receive dollar who
Q" purchasing power was less than the o
70 contemplated In the contract.
% But what kind of dollar is that viii
u, gives 70 the creditor twice or thrice
o. value he gave fos the obligation, and
is quires Of the debtor twice or thrice