The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1894-04-19
rs THERE ENoUGH MONEY!

rs THERE ENOUGH MONEY!
In considering this question, 1t is well
to distinguish between capital and money.
These are not. properly speaking, convert
ible terms, though In common parlance
they are used rs such The Rockefellers,
yanderbilts and Goulds have hundreds Of
millions Of capital, but they are invested
in oil plants, railroads, ETC., not In money.
There 10 not nearly as much money in
existence as there is capital. Capital Is
investment useful that is in
vested: "a business plants, lands, Houses,
ships, etc.; also useful acquired knowi-
edge: as the physicians skill, the me-
chances labor, etc.
Money Is not, and cannot be thus in
vested. 1t has 20 sooner been used in
the purchase Of one thing. than il is
used In the purchase Of another. A man
owns farm which he wishes to exchange
for town house, but the householder,
though ready to sell bis house, does not
want farm. The farmer sells his farm
and buys the house. The householder
wanted certain mine property, and buys
it; the mine-owner wanted something
else, and 90 on. 1t is the exception and
not the rule when one in Investment can be
exchanged for another directly. II can
only be done certainly and freely by
means OF money. Even when money is
placed In bank at interest, II is loaned
by the bank to the man who trades with
IL, keeping ii on its ceaseless round. This
is the law OF its existence--except in the
case Of it's getting into the hands OF
miser, who locks 1t up that be may gloat
over it, when it virtually ceases to be
money, and is so much bullion till il
again gets into circulation.
Money, according to the generally re-
ceived definition. has four functions To
measure value; to exchange value; to rep
resent value; to accumulate value by in
terest. But the functions that mainly
concern US In the consideration OF the
adequacy or inadequacy of the supply are
those Of exchanging and measuring value
1t 10 evident to any ordinary intelligence
that the supply Of money should be equal
to all the demands made upon it, II val
uable things are to be exchanged by its
means with proper, that is perfect, FREQ
dan, ard fas~oaoa TO 70 ;a cot 49, al :.
exchange Of these things is hampered,
their value is disturbed and depressed,
and the medium Of exchange, 1. G., money
at once assumes an undue and relatively
false Importance. and cannot truly fulfill
its function as measure OF value.
1t is freely affirmed by some that there
is abundance Of money in the world to
take care Of the worlds business. The
enormous increase in the production OF
material wealth, or capital, and the con
sequent enormous increase Of business
transactions are admitted by these men.
They admit, too, that this increase is out
Of all proportion TO the increase OF money.
But, say they, money has been found
to be too clumsy as medium Of exchange
and commerce has been driven to find a
remedy and substitute. 1t has done SO
in the creation OF system OF credit ex-
change, which does away with the neces-
sity Of money and is much more conven-
lent.
While admitting all the truth that there
is in this, common sense replies that, in
the first place, the creation OF this credit
exchange system proves even more con-
clusively that there is not enough money,
than that money is clumsy. Secondly,
that as the weakest link In chain is the
measure Of its strength, so the strength
of this credit exchange system is to be
measured by it's weakest point. This
weakest point is the first link 10 the chain,
/. e., confidence. Periodical disturbances
in the flow Of the worlds business occur,
and are called crises. Their primary
cause 10 the knowledge that there is not
enough money. The very first result OF a
crisis. therefore, is that those who have
money, keep it; those who have it not,
try to get tit is locked up, and rises In
value, depressing the value Of everything
else.
Those who have not the money land
they constitute the immense majority,
though they may possess what should be
just as valuable as money, lose. Money
they must have for credit has proved too
weak thing to take its place. To get
money they sacrifice what they have;
and sometimes they are forced to sacrifice
what they have without getting the money
land why? Because they had paid. In
part, for what they have 10 credit, and
credit is no longer current; so everything
goes. Thus great injustice is done, and
an incaiculable economic loss is sustained
When money is locked up, production, to
great extent, ceases. The direct loss
caused by this cessation in the creation Of
wealth is almost beyond computation.
But it is only part Of the story.
The indirect loss from the disuse OF
thousands OF business plants is also very
great. And what shall be said Of the loss
OF the working mans capital-his labor?
1t means the absolute loss OF many mill
ions of dollars day; but that is not all.
No money equivalent can express the
misery Of starving men, women and chill
dren. 1t means mental anguish. physical
suffering, moral deterioration, i'll health,
shortened life and death to the unem-
ployed.
Hoods "Song Of Shirt" stirred En-
xxIaaA h. AZ laa.A III.