People's party paper. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1891-1898, 1892-12-23
OUR MERCHANTS.

interested in questions OF finance than
the merchants. And this applies es-
pecially to the country merchant.
His business is done largely on credit.
He is the debtor of those from whom
he buys, or of those who supply him
with cash. Exceedingly few of our
country merchants are SO well sup
piled with funds that they are excep-
tons to the rule | have above stated.
On the other hand, they are cred
itors to the people who buy their
goods. Their profits, to large ex-
tent, are IN suspense till the end of
the year. Therefore these merchants
are in position to feel the friction Of
any disarrangement of finances. In
spite of themselves the mill will keep
grinding till it gets to them.
Let us illustrate. Suppose a coun-
try merchant has to get his money on
hard terms, does not this compel him
to levy that burden on his customers :?
When he does so, is he not endanger-
ing his success by exhausting the
source from which that success must
come? Clearly so. The merchant,
like everybody else, is entitled to his
legitimate gains. These he can reap
and not hurt his customers. But
when hard terms are imposed on him
by his factor or banker, and he, in
turn, has to impose them (and his
own profits too) on his customers, he
will beggar his patrons and thereby
ruin his own business.
Not only is this the case, but he is
caught between two millstones in
another way. He borrows money in
the spring to buy goods, say in New
York. The price he pays for the
money is of course fixed, and he must
pay it, no matter how prices go. The
prices he paid for his goods are also
fixed, as to him, and, possibly, as
to his slime customers" but not as
to the cash trade. He lays in stock
of goods for the season and must
run the risk of any decline IN prices.
Now suppose the finances are out
Of joint as we say they are, and that
the price Of money steadily advances
while the price of commodities stead
lily retires, will he not feel the press
ure?
He has to sell more of his goods
to get the dollar. After he gets it,
it pays no more Of his debt to the
factor or banker than it did before.
Hence he has lost, irretrieyably
lost, whatever was the shrinkage in
value of his goods.
Not only that. AT the end of the
season, the debt he owes the factor
or banker, calls for larger quantity
of commodities to satisfy it than at
the time the debt was made.
Now, this hurts somebody. Who?
Well, if the merchant has made good
collections from his "time customers"
he saves his bacon. They get the
hurt. But suppose the burden of
excessive cost of the money and the
corresponding shrinkage Of the COM
modify has been SO heavy and has
been going on SO long that the coun-
try is impoverished? Then the
slime customer" is not able to pay.
What then? That merchant goes
to the wall. Isn't it so? And isn't
that our condition almost univer-
sally2
Every merchant in this land ought
to study these questions seriously
and honestly for himself. We claim
that the financial system of to day is
radically wrong. That money does
not increase as. commodities and
trade increases. Therefore that
money obtains the advantage over
commodities. That the dollar con-
stantly commands a greater amount
of commodity. That the debt con-
tinualIy grows bigger because it re-
quires more produce to pay it. That,
therefore, the capitalist dominates
the worker, and constantly exacts
more of his work.
Few country merchants are max
ing any money. The fires which
have desoIated the country are
swiftly whirIing toward the towns.
Only the man who buys on short
time, in small quantities and sells
quickly and for cash, is keeping
ahead.