Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1891-02-04
GOLD AND SILVER.


But Rather of Numbers-The Value of
Money is Determined BY the Number Of
the Units.
One of the most pernicious errors in
existence, which is persistently circu-
lated and inculcated as an infallible
truth, is the fallacy, that gold, or
gold and silver are real money, and that
nothing else will supply their place"
This proposition may seem simple, and
within itself it is so, but the tendency
of politics makes it very important to
the people. For years there have been
hundreds of partisan speakers and
writer's busily engaged drilling hard
money doctrine into the minds of the
people: They are in the employment
OF the wealthy. Their purpose is to
turn public sentiment against public in
terest. The American people are more
easily led than driven. Capitalists
throughout the world are making
mighty effort to have gold adopted as
single and only standard of value. They
hope to accomplish this by means of
false teaching. If successful, this will
prove the last link in the horrid chain
that Is slowly but surely encircling the
honest toll of the world. the tightening
coil beneath which labor may writhe
and groan, but from which it can never
extricate itself.
We have not a single party leader but
whose head seems too thick to receive
an idea beyond metallic currency.
They ridicule the idea of making money
of any thing else than gold and silver,
and most of them insist that even silver
is unfit for the purpose. Nine-tenths
of the people would vote for free coin
age of silver, and large majority for
supplemental issue of legal tender
notes; but those in authority ignore
public sentiment with an assumed wis
dom that would be comical were it not
so contemptible Did not President
Hayes veto the bill for free coinage?
Did not Cleveland anticipate the meas
ure and oppose it in his message, al
though the people had been persuaded
that the Administration would sustain
it? Did not Blaine, Republican leader,
say that God made gold money? When
limited coinage became law, did not
Bayard, leading Democrat, advise the
withdrawal of the remaining three
hundred and forty-six millions of
from having any effect upon the
money in circulation? A few partisans
may take exceptions to these state
ments, but no one should take offense
at the truth. These men represent
parties. but they do not represent the
people; they represent those who
elected them, but not those who voted
for them. Are they not enemies to
human liberty? VIII the people work
and sing and hope and pray for reform
in 1890 and 1891 and follow these hired
emissaries of the rich to destruction in
1892?
When did God ordain that either gold
or silver should be used as money?
Never. He created these metals as He
created every thing else, and left the
use or abuse of them to man. Silver in its
crude state has no more money power
than skim milk. Uncoined gold will no
more answer the purpose of money than
a love story. 1t is the decree of Gov
ernment, the command of law that
gives wings to the material. Even their
intrinsic value, of which there is so
much silly twaddle, is far below par
with any of the comforts of life Of
themselves they do not relieve cold or
hunger; they do not administer to the
sick nor cheer the dying. They only
bless as the law gives them power
to do so. Let every nation decree
that they shall no longer be used
as money, or a basis for money,
and their commodity value will
decline fifty per cent. in twenty
four hours. In 1878 silver was demone-
tized, and the commodity declined in
price nearly thirty per cent, almost
running the mining interest. Gold and
silver are valuable because the law
creates a special demand for them. If
the law should make a special demand
for all the wheat grown, at one dollar
per bushel, the price could never fall
below dollar, though scarcity might
force it above it. Coon skins would be
worth dollar piece if the law should
make them a legal tender for dollar.
Our statesmen call them precious
metals, and the people echo precious
metals" They are precious only
through the folly of the people Silk is
precious, but it is not the poor mans
garb. French wines are precious, but
they are not the poor mans drink.
Gold and silver may be precious, but
they are not the poor mans money.
Nothing is precious that is not scarce
and costly. That which is common.
however valuable, is considered gross.
The more difficult thing is to obtain
and the more nearly it wrings the life
out of labor to procure it, the dearer il
is to the rich.
/ will now substitute for this PROPOSE
tion one that conforms to reason and
that can be sustained with argument
''Gold and silver are not money and
never should be used as SUCH '.Oh,"
says some one, you are getting too far
ahead; that is too radical to be popular"
/ would rather be ahead in the light
than behind in the dark He that adj
vocates the truth with the hope of be-
coming popular, will die without his re-
ward. Let rs reason:
1. They are too scarce. According
to the statement of the director of the
mint, we now have about nine hundred
million dollars of gold and silver avail
able for circulation. The debtor can
never have his just rights till our per
capita circulation is raised to as high a
point as it ever attained This would
require about thirty-five hundred mil
lion dollars; so that we have but little
more than one fourth enough to supply
us with circulating medium. In addi-
ton to this it must be admitted that our
supply is on the decline, with nothing
in sight that promises an increase. Can
you see that hard money means scarce
money?
?, They fiuctuate in value. Owing to
their scarcity, capitalists can control
them. They form corner on them,
force them to a premium, withdraw
them from circulation, place them on
ihe market as commodities, realize
profit and leave US without money to
move our products. Can you not see
that hard money means continuation
of money panics, bankruptcies, low
.