The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1894-03-27

The Trouble Due to Ignorance, EgOtism
and Infamy-Satan Lives in Wash
ington,-Calls Congress a Collec-
tion of Box-Ankled, Dandy
Legged Tackasses.
Legged Jackasses.

ton OF Box-Ankled, Bandy-
Legged Jackasses.
Copyrighted, 1894, for the Atlanta Journal,
CARTERsvILLE, Ga, March 81 in
tended for this letter to begin a series
of character sketches, but have CON
cluded to devote it instead to the 6nan-
cial problem.
L arrived at this conclusion after
reading some letters which have come
to me and hearing some things on that
question.
One Of my correspondents says this
The financial question involves all
business questions, including mercan
tile, farming, mining, manufacturing
and the employment of all la nor, every
where and N every department of life"
He says: Money is property on the
one side, and everything of value on
the other side is property. The one is
a circulating medium, a yard stick,
and fixes all values"
The proportion Of property is as fol
lows: One billion seven hundred mil
lions in money; all other property,
seventy billions of dollars in value.
Therefore, if the billion seven hun
dred millions of money is used as the
yard-stick to measure all other prop
erty, then we can see very readily how
the few r holding the advantage
ground over the many.
When one billion of the money prop
erty of the country is in the banks of
the three cities. of New York, Boston
and Philadelphia, lying idle to-day,
and the seventy billions of other prop
erty almost idle, having shrunk in
value nearly one-half within the last
twelve months, then business paralysis
and commercial depression are newt
able.
Does government favoritiem. by it's
protection of national banks in the
taxing of State banks, have anything
to do with this abnormal state of things7
Has money gone up as all other COM
modities have gone down9 Some one
answers: "MUney is cheap. You may
borrow it at three per cent" But it is
not a question Of interest. It's purchas-
ing power determines its value. When
values of other properties, not money,
are increasing, we may pay large in
terest and yet make good profits.
Our money property is too small by
one-half. We have too little money,
for so much other values, or property.
Men whose holdings are nearly ex
clusively in money and securities are
interested in the contraction of the cur
rency, OF asingle gold standard. Every
advance in money enhances their
wealth, at the cost of every other man
whose holdings are in other properties,
not money. They are the men inter.
ested in the contraction of the cur
rency. While, on the other hand, the
expansion OF the currency will work
to the interest of commercial values,
such as manufactories, railroads, farms,
mines, etc. Ihe men in these indus,
tries are the men who have built our
cities and railroads, our factories and
furnaces, who cultivate our farms and
produce our food and clothing. It is
this class of men who are in debt and
can find but poor markets for their
products and but little employment for
their willing hands.
The contraction of the currency will
make these classes less able to pay
their debts and push their enterprises.
Increase the purchasing power of the
dollar and you increase the burdens OF
the debtor class in the same ratio.
Can this inspire confidence? It will
inevitably produce Encouragement and
dispair, unhinge the mind, cause suicide
and bring on complete paralysis in
business.
Money is now the best property in
the world. And the parties who have
money know it, and they will hold on
to it because it be the best thing in
sight.
heard Mr.. Ingalls, say in his lecture
on the Problem of the First Two Cen.
turtles Of Our Country" that men
would hoard good money but scatter
doubtful money. He said when one
had q silver quarter, not silver, not
having the right look and ring, he did
not put that quarter away and keep it,
but he put it off on the first banana
Dago down on the street, or, if it was
on Saturday that he made the discov
cry that it was not a good quarter, he
put it away for the contribution basket
at the church the next day.
True, men will not hoard money
when there is something better than
poopov