The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1894-01-12
QUESTIONS OF THE DAY.
For Business Men to Consider.

EOr buSlueSS men 10 OOuSlQ0r.
A belief seems prevalent among man.
ufacturers and business men that the |
movement for financial refoim-the
attempt to emancipate this country from
the power Of English financial dictator
ships movement inaugurated only
in the interest of farmers and wage
workers and does not especially concern
them, or if it does that their interests
are in some way identical with the
money power which the reform move
ment is fighting. This false idea has
been studiously and persistently forced
upon the business classes by the sub
sidized partisan press of both the old
political parties for years past, until
they have accepted it as truth without
knowing why. AS commercial trav-
eler of over fifteen years. experience
almost constantly on the road know
this to be true. I have talked with
business men from Lake Superior to
the Straits of Florida and from the
Western plains to the Atlantic ocean
in the principal cities of twenty.three
States. Not one in twenty of those
with whom I have talked makes any
pretense of understanding the financial
question or of knowing what effect a
change of the standard of value has
had or may have on his business.
That these business men have made
a sad mistake in delegating the financial
management of our country to class of
men whose interests are antagonistic to
their own and who gain wealth in about
the same ratio that business men lose it.,
will scarcely admit Of argument. The
steady decline in values Of merchandise
of all kinds for the past twenty years,
and the present huge stocks on hand
with hundreds Of thousands of families
destitute and other millions stintlng
themselves in every way possible, is
sufficient proof of the fact.
Why is this so?
The destitute millions want to pur-
chase the goods the manufacturers and
merchants have for sale. They are
industrious and willing to work for the
means wherewith to purchase. But
they cannot realize profit from the
results of their labor. This condition
struck the farmers first years ago, then
the laboring classes in the cities. What
was the consequences The workers
needed constant and increasing supply
of merchandise. They were industrious
and the merchants and manufacturers
knowing this were willing to sell to
them on time. Full of hope and con-
fdence in the future, they were willing
to buy trusting to their energy aud
industry to meet their obligations.
The volume of circulating money had
been contracted until the extended
credit system was necessary in order to
keep business moving. Hence some
fifteen years since the intallment plan
of selling goods took shape and spread to
immense proportions all over the land.
But some say that this was bad and
ought not to have been inaugurated.
Surprising it had not been? Then the
millions of workers who have bought
the products of our factories in this
way would have been compelled to do
without and the collapse in manufac-
turing and merchandising would have
come long ago. So that it is plain that
the manufacturers and business men
were certain to be caught in the con-
traction trap sooner or later.
Let us see now how it affects the
banker, the bondholder, and the pro-
fessional money lender.
Take for example one Of our Wall
street Hebrew friends who understands
the financial question thoroughly. He
knows that the contraction of the vol
ume Of money means the shrinkage in
value of labor and all the products Of
labor, whether of the farm or factory.
He knows that this shrinkage in the
value of commodities is not value lost.
but simply value transferred from COM
modities to money. He knows that as
everything else loses commercial value,
money will gain commercial value in
exactly the same ratio. Knowing this
he some twenty years ago put his
100000 10 a government, State or
city bond bearing fixed rate ofinterest
and payable in thirty years 10 legal
tender dollars. Now his rate of interest
is fixed and the number OF dollars he Is
to get is fixed. 1t is clearly to his
interest, being out of business and
ha1;no M loss IN sustain from business