The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1894-02-02
Our Conditions-as They are and as
They Might be.

temperate, frugal, we'll informed, in
dustrious. skillful mechanic, said in our
presence few days ago, while discuss
ing the outlook, il conditions continue
without Improvement, through the
present year he would place his property
in the hands Of an assignee. He could
not collect the bills due him, because
the people had not the money to pay
with, he could not pay the bills be
owed because he could not collect the
! bills du, him. He could not sell the
products OF his labor or purchase raw
mnterial to produce more if he desired
to do SO.
The experience of this man is the
experience of thousands and tens OF
thousands in every branch of produe-
tive industry, and is about the best
definition that could be given of stag
nation. This terrible condition will
not let up till thousands of the very
salt of the earth are bankrupted in
business and in purse, as tens of thous.
ands have been through the steady
grind of the last ten or fifteen years.
The severest turn of the screw has
been felt within the last two years.
The political bamboozeiers attem pit
to charge it to the uncertainty of the
tariff, but the pressure has been steady
one before there was anything said
about lowering the tariff. Before and
after the passage of the McKinIey bill
the general pressure on the uniavored
class was felt, nor was there any check
The favored monopol 'es, especially the
banking monopoly, were wont to boast
through their newspapers of great in
crease in wealth and advance in pros
perity of the country. But their
country" meant their favored class.
Beyond that charmed circle it was a
constant struggle to keep their heads
above water, of the industrious millions,
and Dunn and Bradstreet's recorded
the sinking out of sight Of hundreds
weekly
The tariff has nothing at all to do
with this terrible distress. 1t is not
even factor in the conditions. 1t is the
crushing of life out of business by the
contraction of the volume of money of
the country which felt its sharpest pinch
immediately following the demonetiza-
ton of silver in 1873. Business
aud population have increased, demand
ing more money to supply the growing
necessity this great growth produced,
for this indispensable tool of business,
while the bankers, the exploiting
money class, used every effort to dimin
ish The amount and supply its place by
oanirg their fictitious credit. Business
struggled along using this costly,
phantom, bank credit money, paying
for its use all the profit that could
be got out Of it in interest, for its
use, while the want of real money was
putting down prices in the consuming
market, till finally the prices realized
for the products did not suffice to pay
the cost of production, when the credit
prosperity fabric began to topple to its
fall The profits from all the industry
and effort of the plain people had gone
into the Golfers of the money loaners or
rather dealers 10 bank credits in place
Of money.
To produce this condition of affairs
was the aim Of the money lords, from
the inception of their conspiracy against
the industrial class. That all the sur
plus wealth OF industry should fall into
their hands was the scheme from the
beginning, and it has worked out
grandly with its crop of misery pow
before the people. Win they suffer
themselves to be fooled longer by the
professional politicians and the daily
press
Had silver not been demonetsed this
devastation never could have occurred
The English debt holders of the world
would have been kept down. The
silver of this country would have added
a steadily increasing volume of money
to the worlds supply. Every ounce OF
silver would have added to the wealth
of this country to the value of SI29
After serving Us it would have helped
to sustain prices throughout the world
in the same ratio that the gold standard
financial system has depressed businea
and lowered prices throughout til
world. Nothing would have so crippled
the English money mopopoli>ts as our
large output OF silver, adding steadily
to the money of the world. All of the
South American countries would have
come to US Tor goods, because their
silver would have bought the most in
Iur market. The whole eastern world
must come to US for silver, and our
open mints aud our home demand for
money would have absorbed it as fast as
it could have been mined, at the price
for bullion that it was worth as money.
All European nations would have been
compelled to remonetize silver or lose
the trade CT silver using nations. We
are the only great manufacturing nation
in the world which combines both
industries, an industry that supplied
food and other commodities that the
necessities Of the human race require,
and the raw material out of which to
coin the money that would drive pro-
ductive industry to its utmost capacity.
With all the conditions placed in our
hands to make US absolute masters OF
the world, like race of fools we have