The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1880-07-12

To The Greenbackers of Marion County
We find in last fridays issue Of the
Fairmont Under the following paragraph
The Greeubackers hold their district
conventions on Saturday, the 10th, TO ap-
point delegates TO the county convention,
which will be held in the court house, IN
this place, on the 18th. The convention
for this district will be held at Barrack-
vile.
This paragraph indicates that our Green
back friends in Marion intend to put
themselves in the field this year as sepa'
rate political organization. They must
have, OF course, some reason for doing 80,
Their organization had its origin in sup
posed popular demand for "more more
and less misery" and now it is worth
while to inquire what reasons exist for the
continuance OF this demand, il indeed
there is any such demand at this time.
The era OF debt has largely passed away
since this cry OF more money and less
misery" was first heard in the days follow.
ing the panic. Many people are still in
debt, rs matter Of course, and always
will be-. Debt is the normal condition oil
large number OF people. But the era
OF debt growing out OF the war, and OF the
flush days succeeding the war, has very
largely passed away. Through payment,
through compromise and through bank.
ruptcy, the slate has been largely sponged
of. The process Of settlement has been
painful enough 1t was hard to pay for
land bought at $50 and SIS per acre on q
basis Of values that reduced 1t to one
half this price. Land found itslevel with
everything else-with iron and cotton
goods, and with the wages paid to all
kinds OF labor. Everything came down
together in the general crash. Every.
body had to walk up to the Captains Of.
Gce and settle.
This was no new experience. Senator
Thurman said in the United States Senate,
in the second year after the late panic,
that he had seen several Of them in his
time, commencing with the one OF 1919,
and that they all had common origin
viz-over.trading, which means an illegiti'
mate expansion OF credit, brought on by a
reckless departure from the good old prin.
cipIe OF "pay as you Co."
The farmers Of the country, along with
everybody else, were drawn into the gen
eral craze to make money out Of credit.
They bought land that they did not need
borrowed money to buy cattle and sheep
practiced little or no economy, built ex'
pensiye houses and bought expensive fur.
niture, and increased their general ex'
penses in variety OF ways. For all OIL
which they went into debt, and, In many
instances, executed mortgages on their
lands.
The crash came, rs come it must, and
caught them wholly unprepared for the
consequences. A general settlement OF
accounts was demanded, and but the few.
est number OF people were prepared 10 re.
spond to tue demand. Money was wa MED
by everybody, while lands, houses, iurni.
ture, &c, were wanted by nobody. The
market was gorged with everything to sell
and nobody was willing TO buy. This was
what was the matter. Every debtor
wanted money, and au amount OF money
was wanted equal in the aggregate to the
whole matured debt Of the country. OF
course the money was not forthcoming.
Those who had It held on to 1t, because
~ OF their apprehensions in regard to
safety, aud (9l because they did not want
to buy anything on falling market.
This being the situation when the panic
came 1t was not strange that the debtors
of the country lent ready ear to the cry
Of more money and less misery" They
did not want to sacrifice their property.
OF course not Who doesH Neither did
they want to see 1t deprecated and dull Of
sale. They therefore believed the dema-
goge cry that was heard all over the land,
that more paper money was all that was
needed, and that more money would soon