The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1889-04-18
what viii Higher Prices Dot

Til ksUAl AfNlL 10. 1888
What Will Higher Prices Do!
All writer's on political economy adj
init that the value Of money il estab-
lished by its quantity, not by the ma
terial OF which it Is made. The war
Of the creditor class against silver II
because the supply is supposed to be
inexhaustiblc. and the more money
there is in circulation the less Of the
products OF labor will given guam
tity buy.
A has farm worth $1,000 mortgag-
ed for 1900 to b. Now both are
really owners Of IN equal money in
terest in the farm.
Double the amount Of money in
circulation and you double the value
OF As farm, SO that a has Mt least r.
600 in the farm, while BIS interest re-
mains at 1900.
Again. a is turning OF from his
farm $1,000 year. He pays for labor
$3.50, interest on his mortgage, 300,
freight OH products sent to market,
$50, leaving for his own labor
and the use of the farm, tools and
machinery, $500. Double the volume
OF money, and his farm products
would be worth $1,000, the pay for la
Dor would OF course be double, or
$500, interest on the mortgage would
remain at 400, freight on the prod
nets would remain the same as it
goes to pay fixed salaries and interest,
which would leave for the use OF the
farm and the labor Of the owner.
$3.50 instead Of $500.
But suppose that A il q laboring
man instead Of q farmer, and that he
works by the day. He has two hun
dred days work in the year at $l.25 a
day, earning $3.50. He pays 800 of
this for clothing. shoes, sugar and
school books, 800 Of which is the
price Of the goods and $40 is tariff
tax he pays. Then he has rent to
pay-$5 a month-&GO, leaving the
princely sum OF 800 for all other ex-
penses of himself and family. But in
doubling the quantity of money in
circulation, the speculative spirit of
men having money, or the ability to
obtain it has been stimulated and 4
gets 312 days work in the year. II he
desires it. and two dollars q day, CIV
Ing him $G24-an increase Of 1914. His
bill for clothing, shoes, sugar and
school books would Of course be in
creased but his tariff and other taxes
levied to pay interest and fixed salar-
les would remain unchanged, 80 that
after paying all these increased ex-
penses, he would have remaining
about 1900 instead Of 800.
it should be remembered that
there are at least 1900, 900 laboring
men constantly unemployed in the
United States because Of the insuif1c-
iency Of money employed in the &C
tive industries to give them work. II
the million and o half Of men had
work every day at only one dollar a
day, it would be 100000 a week
paid to labor which is now unem-
ployed, and tranping or living at the
expense of employed labor. This s.,
100000 q week would all, or nearly
all, be expended for food, clothing,
fuel, school books, ETC., thus stilnu-
lating these industries by the addi-
ton of $9,OOO,OOO q week, or about
$50, 0OO, 900 year.
The interest of all classes Of our
people demand this increase except
the ones owning the mortgage debts
Of the country and those holding
public Office with fixed salaries.
These small classes Of persons would
Of course be compelled to give more
Of their salaries for the means of liv-
Ing or more of their blood money for
their food and clothing; and these
are the reasons which prompt them
to oppose all increase Of the money
supply of the country without re-
gard to the material Of which it is
made.
A financial policy which will add
million and half OF profitable con-
oumers will be worth more to the
farmers, manufacturers and mer-
chants of the United States than all
the fine-spun theories Of protection
to America industry through tariff
legislation, even if those theories
were true. Adding four hundred and
fifty millions of dollars annually to
the consuming capacity Of class Of
people who now wear cast-off CLOTH
ing and feed upon the refuse thrown
from the rich mans table, IL what
more III oney and higher prices Wilde.
In the course Of q sermon last
Sunday on the evangelization of New
York, the Rev. Heber Newton said;
The churches have been converted
to the paganisn Of political economy;