The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1893-06-02


increase in proportion, and we will be
no better off than we now are. Will
you please give through the public
press, your opinion and experience in
regird to the efsct of an increase of the
volume of money on produce, labor and
real and personal property, and state
wherein the masses would be benefited
by the increase in the volume of money
Yours respectfully, F. HALL.
Plymouth, Mich, April %, 1898.
EDITOR OF The NATIONAL VIEW:
1 send you one of many letters which
I receive, asking my views on the Gin
crease of money and the demonetiza-
ton of silver. What effect it would
have on labor and property? ?" The
gold bugs say it would be of no benefit
to the laboring man or farmer. Now
let US look into the matter. In 1856
and up to 1873 we had free coinage
and large volume of money. In 1868
/ hired a man for one year, [ gave him
$500. We raised 1000 bushels of
wheat, 200 bushels of oats. about the
same of corn. Number one wheat sold
tor $3.50. My wheat being little
damaged that year, I received but 50
bushel for it. l paid the $500 for
labor, had $500 for my labor, and
$1,000 use of my capital which is my
farm. Had 1 hired man last year for
nothing but his board, and had l raised
the same amount of wheat and sold it,
I should have received for it $3.50. In
1868, with one and one-half pecks of
wheat I could get 81, now bushel and
one-half will not get 81. The dollar
that I got with peck and one.half of
wheat, paid 81 on my taxes, 81 on my
mortgage, 81 on interest, would carry
me as far on the railroad as the dollar
will now, that takes over bushel and
one.half of wheat. The gold bugs say
allow cheap things are sugar in those
days was 20 cents per pound.' Yes.
in 1869 I paid $50 for a 800 pound
barrel Of sugar. l sold 100 bushels of
wheat at $3.50 per bushel I paid for
my sugar and went home with $50 in
money. That money performed all the
functions of money that $3.50 would
now receive with wheat at IS cents a
bushel.
I bought four wagons at jackson
prison for $400. L sold 400 bushels of
wheat got check on the first national
bank of Saginaw for $1,000; paid for
my wagons and had 5000 lett. To-day
it takes $65 to buy the same kind of a
wagon. Now, it to-day l wanted to
buy four "cheap wagons" am 5000
the loser. At that time 100 pounds Of
wool would have bought one of those
wagons, to-day it will take 800 pounds
of wool to buy the same kind Of a
wagon. They will say See how high
calico was; yes, I paid 60 ceuts per
yard for 200 yards of calico to make
bedding for camp, Sl2O. Sold 100
bushels of wheat for $3.50 went home
with $3.50 in money. You will hear
also from them: "Money must be
plentiful, see how cheap it is; you can
get plenty of it at per cent" 1t may
be cheap among the stock gamblers on
call, but farmer cannot borrow money
to be paid on call, but We'll say that he
can. Had I borrowed 500 then at
100 per cent, I could have paid it with
200 pounds of wool, or 100 bushels of
wheat $3.50 per bushel would have paid
it principal and interest, and / should
have had $50 left. Now it will take
over l49 bushels Of wheat to pay the
500 with interest at l per cent-when
was the interest the cheapest? Any
time from 1866 to 1870 l could sell
one bushel of number one wheat, make
three round trips to Saginaw, my
county seat, and eat my dinner at a
restaurant each day. Now it takes
one bushel of wheat and 10 cents to
make one round trip to Saginaw, and |
have to go without my dinner or draw
on bushel of wheat have at home
How do | stand | am two round
trips, 10 cents in money and three
dinners short on the same bushel of
wheat. Now in regard to laboring
men by the month, l had a man that
worked for me three winters in the
woods at $50 per month. He went to
work for the dry dock company of
Detroit one mile below me, getting out
oak timber in 1872. He and his wife
got $50 per month. They called his
wages $50, hers $50. In the Spring
he bought 80 acres of land of the COM