Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1891-11-06
FARMERS ALLIANCE COLUMN.
THE pR1NcrpLEoFrHE suB-rREAsURY

INTO clrculatiOH ny Vic SoNCi hiie u =
in times of scarcity, so as to supply
the deficiency and prevent sudden
and violent contractions with their
I seouent effect upon prices. This Is
the only principle there is in the sub
treasury plan; all the balance is de-
tail. The great object is to prevent
wheat and cotton from being a DIS
turbinq Influence in the markets OF the
country by contracting the volume OF
money and depressing prices so as to
produce over 40 per cent discrlmina-
| ton against agriculture and nearly
as much against commerce and man
ufacture. He who opposes this prln-
ciple must advocate the present sys-
| tenn. which is here shown to be sys-
| tenn of class discrimination in favor
of the Spectator. The merchant,
| LAWYER. doctor, artisan and laboring
man are lust as much interested in
stopping this discrimination in favor
okthe Spectator as is the farmer, be-
.c,$i.e it is discrimination against all
those who buy aud sell individually
and i'm favor of those who buy and
sell in combines and pools. An exam
pie to illustrate: There is in money III
active circulation, after deducting
| legal reserves and other boards and
losses, not over 5000, 100000. fthere-
| fore. syndicate able to control 500,
! 600. 600 should take that sum and lock
it up, they would contract the circu
lating medium 33a per cent and the
tendency would he to depress prices
exactly in that proportion; but sup
pose this tendency was partially over
/ L. a6 snppd
culation which always accompanies
scarcity, and various substitutes for
money, and that prices were only re-
duced as u consequence OF the con
traction 20 per cent. Then they, I'M
! der an environm mt OF S4O0, OOO,OOO III
circulation with prices ADJUST ad there
to, invest their 5000, 0O0,O OO IN farm
products or in any Of the active sta
| pies of commerce. They have, by the
simple fact of investing, changed the
environment to one of $500, OOO, OOO IN
circulation, with prices readJusted,
and by reversing the above estimate
of depressing influence have aug
mented prices 20 per cent and have
gained S5O.OO0,O00. Verify no man on
earth except those Interested III see
ing the exploiter exact tribute from
the productive interests OF the coun-
| try can justify system that furnishes
an inflexiblc volume of money to
handle a volume of business that Is
twice as large at one season or the
wear as il is at another season. Inc
principle OF the sub-treasury plan Is
| that the volume of money should not
be controlled by the capitalists, Meth
err should il be arbitrarily controlled
by the government, but il should be
incre sed or diminished by the gov
eminent under all automatic reSula-
ton that will keep the ratio between
the volume of money and the demand
for it use practically the same all sea
SONS OF the year.
THE DETAIL OF THE SUB-TREAsURY.
There is some essential details and
some non-esSential details. Ii Is use
less to discuss detail until an agree
ment is reached Oh the principle. To
all such, therefore, as accept the
foregoing demonstration OF the neces
slty for and statement OF the primer
pie of the sub-treasury plan, the FOL
lowing essential detail is offered a.
successive only. The auxiliary vol
ume necessary to be furnished by the
government TO prevent the regular
annual contraction should be repre-
sentative currency based upon the
most potential form OF wealth and re-
d.emable on demand. 1t should be
issued under such safe and conserva-
tive rules that it would always pass
Oh u parity with gold. Wheat and
cotton are suggested as the basis for
this auxiliary volume Of money, not
TO give any special benefit to the
farmer or 10 discriminate in favor of
agriculture, not to give the products
any advantage over any other com
modify, but because they are the DIS
tubing Influences that now produce
contraction, and therefore furnish ht
only true measure Of the volume OF sup
Elemental money necessary to pre-
vent contraction without producing
initiation, and they also possess the
Inherent quality of being able to main
tain a paper currency on parity
with gold, because being leading ar
ticles OF export their price is fixed by
the single gold standard of the coun
tries exported to, and therefore GER
titicates based upon these products
on deposit really represents foreign
gold which is thereby practically
brought into circulation here to main
tain the prices which it makes. The
most claimed is that ii will enable
the producer TO get the quotation
price and relieve him from loca
money scarcity in which the purchas
ing power of a dollar is made many
times greater than that of foreign
gold. Ii. in order to make this effec
tive, it becomes necessary to ware
house these products and lend the
auxiliary volume of money, there Ii
no direct benefit to either party from
those purely incidental operations
There is no benefit to the farmer
from warehousing or money borrow
ing as long as he pays what it costs
to do those things, 1t is an even eX
change of services between him and
the government, pure cooperation
an eniinently democratic junction OIL
government. True he may be Incl
dentally benefited because he had nc
warehouse, but the plan is not re
sponsible for that. n man may eX
change horse for a piece OF land
and the exchange of value may he
exactly equal, and still he may be
vastly benefited because he had
nothing to feed the horse. lnciden
tai benefits will flow TO the merchant
the professional man and the artisan
from the vast increase of local bust
ness and manufacturing and the locaI
distribution of money in times oil
scarcity that will benefit all these
equally with the farmer. 1t is true
that the farmer will receive benefit
that no others will, but it is not di'
rectly the result of this plan, it is in
cidental to it and results solely from
the adjustment of the 4S per cent
discrimination against him. With
this just plan in operation, the pow,
er of money to be cornered would be
broken and the exploiter could nc
longer use the government as an &C.
complete to help him rob agriculture
of nearly half her products. That is
the only benefit that would accrue to
agriculture, not equally applicable to
all other producers.