The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1891-10-27
MONEY MISNAMED CAPITAL.

MONEY MISNAMED CAPITAL.
Mr.. EDITOR:-MOney is the creature
of government and only a representa-
tive of the value of labor products.
Labor produces value. Money repre-
sents value. Capital is not money.
Capital IS Gods free bounty to all man
kind, consisting, primarily, Of the
earth and It's natural products, created
by the labor of jehovah; and secOndari
ly, of dwellings,, farms, shops, mills,
factories and every other product of
human labor.
In the early ages of the world there
was no such thing as money. Barter
was the primitive method Of exchange;
but as the human race began to spread
over The earth, it was found difficult to
exchange the products of the soil on
account of the lack of transportation,
and 50 necessity ave rise to the use of
gold and silver for this purpose. The
scarcity of these metals and their non
corrosive qualities, suggested their use
us Il medium of exchange, being easily
and conveniently transported from one
locality to another, but yet only as a
commodity, weighed out for the pur-
pose of measuring some other cOmmOd-
lty of consumption.
In process of time the early kings Of
the earth began to see the increasing
and universal power of these metals to
represent, measure and exchange all
other products. Warfare between
tribes aud petty kingdoms was almost
constant, and carried on, mainly, to
secure possession of this treasure. 1t
was not long before these early kings
began to divide these metals into small
pieces. and stamp their image and
name upon them in order to secure
complete control of their use. Further
on, as population increased, these
metals We're found to be insufficient, as
a medium of exchange, and coins Of
iron and other metals, a well as leather
and other scarce material, were used
for the same purpose. The stamp of
the kings image and superScriptIon"
made them current and gave them the
power of money or a medium of ex
change. Money thus first took the
shape Of coin by authority of the kings.
The Image and SuperScriptiOn" gave
money value to the Roman coin; its
power to represent, measure and eX-
change all labor products. 1t was an
instrument of authority and power
which belonged to the king. Render
unto Ceaser the things which be
Caesars" was a divine definition of
money. The metal was not considered
played no part-but the Image and
superscriptiOn" only. Money, there
fore, has only
a REPRESENTATIVE VALUE,
and no real or intrinsic value as such.
When gold or silver is made into coin
- JOOhnnIr jtS int, - rCie y ,I,1D o- ,V,,+C1
is destroyed, and can only be restored
by melting the coin and destrOyin the
Image and superscriptiOn," or gov
eminent stamp of authority, when it
again becomes a commodity and takes
It's value as such. None of the metals.
or any other substance is money until
it is coined, or has the government
stamp placed upon 1t, and any sub
stance, whether metal or paper, that
has government authority to pay debts,
Is money, being endowed thereby with
the power to represent, measure and
exchange values.
A farmer has a gold dollar, a silver
dollar and a paper dollar in his pocket
book. AS long as he keeps them there
neither will be of any value. but when
he desires to obtain any article for use
or consumption, either one of the dol
lars will buy as much as the other;
and they perform their functions as
money only when he parts with them.
The functions, then, to represent, meas
ure and exchange values, conferred by
government upon money, are not only
legitimate, but useful in the highest de
gree, enabling communities to convent
emily exchange, to the fullest extent.
such products of labor as will cOnduce
to their greatest prosperity and happi-
ness. But there is another and entire
ly separate and distinct, function of
money, also conferred by law.
ITS POWER TO ACCUMULATE VALUE BY
INTEREST
has made it, in all ages, an engine of
oppression. We have already seen to
what extent, and the rate per cent. at
which labor can accumulate value by
saving its surplus earnings, as well as
the enormous and vastly superior
power of money to accumulate value
by interest.
This unjust power of money was con
demued by the law of Moses. Thou
shalt not lend upon usury to thy