The Dalles times-mountaineer. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1882-1904, 1893-04-29
SOME MISTAKES. .

The Eveniasg Telegram, in an edi-
torial on "England's Woe," paints
highly colored picture of the fight be-
tween capital and labor in that coun-
try, and says: "In no other country is
it 30 evident that the rich are growing
richer, and the poor poorer. 1t Is not
equalled in Germany or France" This
assertion is either Indicative of preju-
dice or ignorance, and to be charitable
we will consider it the latter. The
fact cannot be contradicted that in no
othor nation, except the United States,
is labor so well paid, and so nearly in
dependent of capitali:ts. In Great
Britain the amount of deposits in saw
ing banks is only excelled BY the
United States, and the condition OF
wage-earners is much better than in
any portion of colonial Europe. Leg,
islation has regulated the hours OF
work in every industrial employ yment,
and universal suffrage has made the
poorer classes an important factor in
governmental affairs. The humblest
subject of the empire has as much,
ard when he combines with his fellow
workmen, more power to shape the
politics of the empire than the queen
on her throne. With very few excep-
tions, the daily toiler of the island
empire enjoys the blessings of owning
bis own home and has free access to
the means of mental discipline equal
to the priviledged few. The Oxford
College Extension society furnishes
course of lectures on science, art aud
literature even to the lowest slums of
London, and these are free to all who
desire to attend. If ambition is act
i've the poorest paid toiler of England
can acquire collegiate education by
attending night schools. and listen to
lectures from master minds, such as
Prof. Huxley, Prof. Tyndall and
others who lead the world in their diff
ferent lines of thought. The England
of to-day is different country to
what it was thirty years ago, and in no
other nation has such wonderful prog
ress been made in bettering the condi-
ton of the dependent poor. We are
surprised that such an editorial should
have been published by metropolitan
daily, and it stamps the author as one
who is wilfully blind to the progress
of the present age If he had read
the articles from the pen of Walter
Besant, published, we believe, in
Scribner's in reference to the "Oondi-
tion of the Poor in all Cities" he
would never have been guilty of such
blunders.
The manner in which the editor
closes his article shows his shallow
ness. We quote the last few SEN
tences: "The money of England is not
poor mems money; it is the exclusive
property of the rich. 1t is apparently
out of place among the former. And
why is it? Silver has no standing in
England; gold is its tyrannical ruler.
The poor people all cry for bimetall-
ism, for silver; the rich permit only
mononetallism and swear by gold.
Which will winq The answer is a
wall of woe heard all over the world"
The poor mans money is always the
same as the rich mans money, and to
make a distinction would send the
business world back to the worst cha
otic confusion. There must be stand
ard by which to measure the standard
of value, and Germany and the United
States and all great commercial nations
trade on gold basis. The price of
an article is not governed by the
amount of money in circulation but
by the productive power of labor, and
the value of coat or Of the most ex-
act mechanical instrument is increased
or decreased by the number of days
labor represented. If the mlnts of
Great Britain and the Uuited States
were to coin all the silver they could
procure, the poor man would have to
give dollars worth of labor for every
dollar he received, and the purchasing
price of this dollar would be entirely |
controlled by the supply and demand
of the market for the kind of work |
he follows or the article he produces.
There is too much competition
among laborers, and while the
human race multiplies and increases,
without famine, pestilence or war kills
off the surplus, times will be hard and
money scarce. But this plaintive !
prayer for free silver comes in bad
grace from Democratic organ who
supports Cleveland, the gold bug, and
condemns Sylvester Pennoyer, the
oracle of unlimited coinage in the
northwest.
FLOOD TIDE.