The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1890-03-13

sHOWs AS IOIOWS Tile CHlICu otdtC6
compared with France:
France, gold per capita........ S23.52
U. s., gold per capita......"....". n.5l
France, silver per capita....".. 1890
U. s., silver per capita.............. 1856
France, paper per capita......... 1904
U. s., paper per capita.......... 9.O2
Total per capita of France. $500. 59.s7
Total per capita Of U. S............ q. 80
The area of the United States be-
ing seven fold that Of Great Britain
and Ireland, France and Germany
combined, Of course, makes it more
difficult for the circulation to move
with the celebrity and convenience OF
these smaller and more thickly popu-
lated countries.
With these figures before us and
presented by bankers organ, at
that, it ill becomes us as a people 10
set up the very modest claim Of being
the most intelligent on earth, and at
the same time, find SO many Of our
well-meaning, good citizens nervous
on the subject of initiating or enlarg-
ing our currency. They say we have
plenty of money in the country. All
you need is good collateral to get any
amount of it. The banks are full of
it. Yes, and SO is the United States
treasury, and as far al the business
men and the farmers are concerned,
it might as well be in the heart Of the
mountains; and as far as collateral is
concerned We have altogether too
much of that. While the total valu-
alton of our nation amounts to only
sixty thousand millions of dollars, we
have Understanding collaterals to
the tune of thirty five thousand mil
lions of dollars, Mt an average rate Of
five and one-half per cent. to pay
interest upon. The political econo-
mist will tell you that the increase in
wealth in any country will not ex-
coed two and one half per cent. while
COLLATERAL draws five and one-half
per cent. And right in that connect.
ion please note the fact that collat.
eral or debt is a non-producer, and
. You will readily perceive that we are
taxing our producing factors to theil
full capacity, if not to excess, in order
to pay wages or interest due this non
, producer. Debt is the substitute fol
money; its amount just indicates thu
amount of money We have been shor
, from time to time in the transaction
, of our business. AS you proceed tt
the westward in agricultural district
the lack of money becomes more up
parent through this same evidence
debt. BY inquiry at the county seat
Of various counties in Iowa you viii
find the number of farms mortgage,
to amount to about eighty-five pc
cent. of the whole. If this be true
and you will find it is, the people @
those parts certainly have a fair shar
of collateral. Unfortunately for tin
farmer blessings do not accrue to hil
, from the existence of this collateral
simply the reverse. There is but on
article which will keep this collatera
ALIVE, and at the same time there
but this same one article which vii
KILL IT-"MoNEY." The farmer il
therefore, compelled to part with hi
; products in order to obtain this on
article, money If it happens to b
plentiful, he can get u fair amount c
it for his products. If scarce. he get
but little, showing that it's value
governed by supply and demand, tn
same as in the case Of other necess,
ries. Three years ago he could oil
: tain one dollar of this MONEY Il
three bushels of oats; now he is con
PEELED to give from six to nine busl
/ els of his oats for dollar, and ever
other product proportionately. Ga
does not seem to be very good &C
lateral to get money on. II with o,
stated twenty-seven dollars p,
capita, land we have not got the Ina
Of that amount in use) and our gre,
extensive country over which nun
Der Of days are required to make o,
exchanges, we have plenty of none
how must it be with Franc, havi1
about three dollars to one with whie
her exchanges may be made in Q
many hours as we require days
reach our extremes. Certainly IL
people of France must have the syn
pathy Of our well-meaning Peep
who can see the difficulty of living
country which is cursed with po
sessing too much money. To relic,
the anxiety of those good people, it
but fair to state that the currency
France has not been less than abo,
sixty dollars per capita since the We.
after the Franco-Prusian war, 1871
yet France, although fined one thou
and millions of dollars by Prussi
also the loss Of one fifth Of the best
her territory, the nation overrun n.
only by her own army but also h
the Prussian army, and still Franc
never enjoyed such train of pro
perity since she has been known as
nation as she has during the tin
mentioned. And although her issu
4 OF paper money In 1874 amounted |
about $40 per capita, her statesme
= were not nervous about EXPELLIN
the gold from the country or Of kee]
) ing it out, and the result was the gol
= which has been paid as indemnity
h Prussia in 1874 by 1873 had nearly a
IS returned to France by way of balan
s. ing exchange, and although the p,
j. per volume during the last seventee
re years has not been less than it is 4
II present, ($1S) still during the la.
= eleven years the gold of France HI
: increased two hundred millions