The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1891-10-13
THE FARMER AND THE DOLLAR.
Or, the Unjust and Oppressive Power of
Money to Oppress-A Remedy
ProDosed

Mr.. EDITOR The familiar and we'll
worn prOverb that 9 in the multitude
of cOunselOrs there is safety" is con-
sidered a sufficient apology for an
effort to aid my brethren Of the plow
to solve a question of such vast import
ance to us, that when properly cOnsid-
cred and viewed in it's true light. all
other SO called great economic ques
tlons of the day dwindle into utter in
significance.
The farmer feels the burden of the
yoke Of oppression. How it has been
fastened upon him, and how to. throw
1T off, is his constant inquiry. The
great upheaval among the farmers and
other labOring classes is due to q long
concealed or hidden cause which be-
gins now to be exposed to view as the
great host of labor gradually ascends
the eminences in the wilderness of de-
spair and looks over into the promised
land Of just inheritance, wherein the
shylOcks and usurers have no portion.
THE POWER OF LABOR
To create and accumulate value must
be understood in order to contrast it
lntelhgently with the power of money
to accumulate value. Labor possesses
creative as we'll as saccumulative power.
while money possesses the power only
to represent, measure and exchange
values and to accumulate value by in
terest. The power of labor is inherent,
natural and limited only by the physi
cal and mental capacity of man, while
the power Of money is artificial-fXed
by law-and the dollar is the creature
of law. The essential and wide apart
difference between labor and money
is that the former is a creator and the
latter a creature.
THE CREATIVE POWER OF LABOR
Was conferred upon man and fixed by
the fiat Of Jehovah which went forth
from Eden, in the sweat Of thy face
thou shalt eat bread " From that day
man became a creator of values.
\ few hundred years ago there were
no vaiUeS-cOunted as such and avail
able for the use Of civilized man-in
the whole of the then vast unknown
wilderness Of America All the great
cities and towns, the thousands OF
miles Of railways, the millions of farms,
the mines and factories, and every
other adjunct of modern civilization
which now exist in all of these great
American States ale the CT cations Of
labor. The labor of the farmer creates
the billions of bushels of grain, the
pounds Of cotton and tobacco, and to-
day there are more than sixty billions
Of dollars of accumulated values, all
of which owe their existence to the
labor of man.
LabOr-the GOd-given power Of brain
and muscle-is the creator of all values
and the whole vast fabric Of civiliza-
tInn itself rests Ia hNr
A COMPARISON OF LABOR AND MONEY.
The accumulative power of labor is
denied by none, but understood by
but few. This power can never be as
certained with exact mathematical ac-
curacy, as it depends entirely upon the
power of production, which cannot be
otherwise than variable.
Labor necessarily consumes a GER
tain proportion of it's product for sup
port. LabOring men have families to
feed, clOthe and educate after which
there is a surplus more or less in
quantity, dependent upon their sur
rOundingS.
The writer cannot undertake in a
newspaper article to introduce the
statistics which would be required to
show, approximately even, the net
surplus earnings of labor, nor the rate
per cent. increase of the accumulatiOns
of such surplus; but any farmer can
satisfy himself on this point by an ex-
animation of his own financial cOndi-
ton, or that of his neighbors, while
those who will take the trouble to ex-
anime the statistics Of the increase of
wealth, by farming and other manual
labor, will find that it's net surplus ac-
cumulates at a very low rate per cent.
And it may be stated with reasonable
certainty that labor, upon an average,
is only able to double its capital basis,
so to speak, once in a lifetime Of about
seventy years, while money at s per
cent. compounded will double itself in
less than nine years. If this statement
be true, which we think can be verified
by the experience of thousands Of farm
ers and other labOrers, it is a startling
fact, and deserves the very careful
study Of all Of Us who are concerned.
Suppose a young man starting life as
farm labOrer at the age of twenty one,
without inheritance of money or other
property and having a wife similarly
circumstanced. A fair amount of
wages for a years labor would be $85,
with house, garden, fire-wOod, and
usual allowance for ratiOns added
amounting to not less tdan $120. Out
of the $50 would have to be deducted,
say $40 for wife's board, and $50 for
clothing for himself and wife, which
would leave the saving, or surplus Of
wages at SIS, without taking into ac-
count all the risks of loss of time by
sickness, accidents or other contingen-
cies to which all laborers are subject
This net surplus Of $15 would be exactly
1 per cent on $500, which represents
the gross amount Of the laborer's CAPT
tai basis on which he receives s per
cent. gross, or $12O, but after support
he only saves $15. In other words, the
young mans labor-the output of his
brain and Drawn, enforced by the eter-