The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1894-12-19
Aptly Answered.

The Chicago Times has very pert
inent article, on the pending money
question, which we commend to the
perusal of our readers:
In discussing the money problem
before the Bankers club Saturday
night, Prof. Laughlin delivered him
self Of this parable whereby to prove
his proposition that the issuance of
circulating medium should be dele
gated to the banks by the general
governments:
"Now, when people talk as if the
public, the general government,
| should have the right to issue the
money it occurs to me that it is illus
| trated very much by this situation:
Here is district with bad roads, and
here is large iron furnace requiring
a good deal Of trans pOrtatiOn of heavy
materials over those roads, and the re-
latively uncultivated, unimproved dis
trict in which this iron furnace is
situated feels that it is not necessary
for it to spend very much of their
taxes on roads. Now, if they could
throw bridge across the river it
might save perhaps ten miles Of heavy
carrying. 1t occurs to the iron fur
mace to say to the good people of the
townships "We propose to throw a
bridge across this river; we do 50 per
cent of the teaming, and if we build
this bridge it is the general advantage
of our work and of the rest of the
cOmmunitY.' A crank arises in the
meeting and says: Now, don't you
let those fellows build that bridge: let
the people build their bridge; it is the
right of the people to build all the
| mp9OS of ra CnOrta ion n this town.
ship. We don want any interference
from private parties" But they an
sWer: "This institution proposes to
build this bridge across this river to
save ten miles Of carriage for nothing:
it doesn't cost you anything and you
can carry your grain and your wheat
over the bridge as well as we can car
ry our iron supplies.' Well, they
hadn't thought of it in that light"
"Thcre being no ''cranks' present
when the professor in the University
of Chicago related this anecdote no
body pointed out to him and his hear
ers that he had left out certain things
very necessary to make the situation
of the iron manufacturers and the
villagers correspond to that of the
banks and the people under the Balti
more plan.
Suppose the owner Of the iron fur
mace had said to the people: "BuilC
this bridge and loan it to u.s. We viii
only charge you enough toll whenevel
you pass over it to make it net u.
about S per cent per annum on you
investment in it. We won't actually
invest anything, but we will deposit
with you money to the amount of 81
per cent of the cost of the bridge
This deposit we will withdraw undi
miniShed when the bridge wears ou
or we retire from business In tn,
meantime we. not you, are to have
per cent annually on the amount 0
investment in the bridge
This is the story as Prof. Laughlil
should have told it, if he really want
ed to illustrate the Baltimore plan
, We rather think that were such
proposition made in town meeting tn
, people properly described as ''cranks'
) would be those who failed to join il
/ the movement to throw the cheek
r spokesman Of the iron foundry corpo
ration out of the window.
This hits the nail on the head eA
exactly.
Th Constitution plainly puts upo
/, the national government the duty q
furnishing money for the use of Ih
people. The government has no cor
stitutional right to turn that powe
oyer to individuals, to exercise 70
l their personal profit.
1t is an atrociOuS prOpositiOn:-gON
ernment abdicating it's function t
enrich the few at the cost of tn
many. l. d.