The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1895-05-31
Questions and Answers.

Why is gold scarce? Why is there
scarcity of currency of the lower de-
nominations? Why is there indication
of advance of the price of manufac-
tured goods in excess of the ratio of
advance in wages?
The questions are the most import
ant that can be propounded. The
answers, as we think, are the most
simple that can be imagined. Gold is
scarce because we are paying out more
than we are taking in. And we are
paying out more than we are taking
in because our imports are greater
than our exports. That is to say,
we are paying more to Europe for
goods that we are buying from her
manufacturers than her importers are
paying for our exports. During the
first four months of 1895 the value of
our imports exceeded that of our ex-
ports by SOS, 1861 ,551. That is to say,
we paid more than $6S 100000 to
foreign nations IN excess of the value
of payments made in kind, raw ma
terial, food products, etc. During the
ten months last past our exports de-
creased to the extent Of Y3S,97S,949,
and our imports increased to the eX-
tent of $40 ,529. That Is to say,
our Indebtedness, payable in gold to
foreign nations increased by more
$45, 100000, while their purchases
from us decreased by nearly 9,OOO,-
600. We had more than $45, OOO, 900,
extra to pay, and $39,OOO,OOO less to
pay it with. This is one of the pleas
ant effects Of Democratic tariff tinker
ing.
Paper money is becoming scarce
| because of the increase of drainage OF
gold from the rural districts, and of a
corresponding demand for paper cur
rency to take its place. silver being
discredited by the very men whose
mischievous tariff policy has made
gold scarce. The financial crime
Cleveland's administration is twofold
1t made gold scarce, and it discredited
the value of the silver, that in the or
binary of affairs. would have taken its
place at par.
There is prospect of advance in the
price of goods without corresponding
increase in the price of wages by
operation of the very fol rec the potency
of which the pretectionists predicted
Low tariff having closed or crippled
American factories, and foreign i'm
ports having increased, the importers
are inceasing the price of the imported
articles. This is unavoidable. The
imports have a quasimonopoly of the
market. The fallacy of the free-trade
parrot gable, "the tariff is added to
the price," is proven by the fact that
the reduction of tariff is not taken
from the price. We are threatened
with a rising market on falling tariff,
But the rise is not in wages, but in
the price of what wages buy. The
American manufacturer knows that il
he were to open upon an increased
wage scale, which, Of course, means
an increased cost scale, the importers
would drop prices until they had forced
him out of the market, and then
would advance them again. This is
just what they have done. During
the first few months of the new tariff
prices fell to point with which the
American manufacturer could not
compete. Now that he is crippled
they begin to advance. The idiocy Of
"tariff breed trusts" is demonstrated
Tariff tinkering has bred an alien i'm
pOrters' trust that has the American
manufacturer and wage-earner by the
throat.-Chicago Inter Ocean.