The Democrat. (Scotland Neck, Halifax Co., N.C.) 1884-1896, 1886-01-21
SIL YER.

lrtlcle OF 10Th December, l. prom
jsed to say something of the uses
md abusesssof money. In your last
ssue by several typographical er-
'ors, you have ascribed to me some
very awkward sentences, conveying
4 meaning entirely different from
hat intended. You have it 'foI
want of business as now 1illed.'
,honld be "as now felt.' [ meant
fiat stamp and not ''first stamr.'
sIntrinslc,' rot ''tinrinsic;' "Every
one knows that money is the medi-
1m, etc." not ''man.'' s'Irremedi-
bic evils" not ''irresistible evils"
Money is valuable because it is
useful. A steamship is valuable
because with it the products of one
country can be. transported to that
Of another. Rubies, diamonds and
pearls are valuable for ornaments
because Of their rarity and beauty.
So the value Of property of ever!
description depends upon It's uses
iuIness. The income Of property o.
every description, above expenses.
determines its value.
We do not infer from this that all
values are the same. Actual value
is one. thing but legal value is al
other. Actual value is that specific
and Inherent quality that contains
in itself the means Of furnishing
sustenance, clothing, shelter, Oh
some other Indispensable, orna-
mental, or otherwise, independently
Of anything else, without any fur
ther exchange. Legal value is that
peculiar propertyawhich represents
actual value, or in plain English,
legal value represents capital
Hence we deduce the fact that; mon
ey is not capital, but the legal rep
resentatiye Of capital. Legal value
depends upon actual value, and
there can be no legal value in the
absence of actual value. Money
which we say has legal value would
be worthless if it could not be ex-
changed for something Of actual
value. To Illustrate the difference
between legal value and actual yal>
ue, note the following: The nation
al debt of the United States is in
round numbers say two billions OF
dollars. This debt bears interest al
say FIVE per cent per annum
amounting to the enormous sum Ol
one hundred millions of dollars an
auslly, 7 his one hundred millieni
Of dollars worth OF the products oil
actual valuc-labor must be sold an
nually to pay the interest. If the
paper instruments, the legal value o1
which secures and represents this
debt and interest were destroyed, il
would not dimsnish the actual wealtl
OF the country. There would result
some change in the ownership OF
property. but no real diminution in
property of actual value. Now re,
verse the picture and say if an equal
amount Of actual value be swept
from the country by any imaginable
disaster, what would be the result
In better times than we are expert
cncing it would bring about famine
in this land. The power of money
like a boud or mortgage, is legal
These instruments hold right ove
the property of the maker of them il
spite OF him Or of any one else wht
may have the property in possession
Money! then, l take it, is nothing
more nor less than a public lien up
on all property in state Or natior
for sale. Money, however, is liel
superior to and above any mortgage
OR judgment; because when the spec
lied amount Of money is tenderet
for lien or mortgage, the holder i
bound to accept it and cancel th,
claim. If money did not have prop
erty and labor for it's ground-wor,
and support, it would be worthless
for obvious reasons. The value O
all claims depends for it's value upo1
its capabllity of being exchanged fo
property. The power of all claim
to accumulate value, is given b.
laws, and the accumuIations are onl
legal representatives of value, AM
this only because they can be ex
changed for something of actual val
ue. All the value inheres and be
longs to the property. and not to tn
money.
Money, then, in its most compre
hensive sense, is that agent institut
ed by government, by which proper
ty and the products of labor ar
exchanged and distributed. Its va