The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-04-28
SINGLE STANDARD EVIL.
A PRINTER DISCUSSES THE MONEY
QUESTION.
The Public and Private Debt Con-
stantly increasing ut an Alarms
ing Rate.

one OF the most important questions
before the public today is undoubtedly
the money question. While it is impossi-
bic to do such vast subject justice
within the limits of newspaper article,
q short discussion of that phase of the
| question which at present excites the
| most controversy-whether single or dou-
| Die Standard-lnay not be amiSS. In de-
! inning the functions of money we find
that it is a medium of exchange, and the
basis of all commercial transactions.
Ihere are two kinds of money-primary
and credit money. Under bimetalIism
| gold and silver are primary money, that
is, all paper money, checks. drafts, notes,
able In either gold or silver; under mono
metallism they are redeemable in gold
only. Under the single standard, there
fore, even silver is only credit money,
plus its commodity value, and only the
confidence in the ability of the govern
ment which issued il, to redeem the sill
yer coin in gold. keeps it in circulation
at ITS nominal value, precisely the same
as in the case of bank notes, etc. But
not only are all other forms of money
redeemable and based on gold, but this
credit money and all values, so that a
man who could get possession of all the
available gold, would practically contrel
all the property in the land. Values are
determined by the amount of primary
money in existence, and if one-half of
the gold in the country were destroyed,
prices WOULD soon ADJUST themselves 10
the new standard and would fall one
half. One dollar would pay as much then
as two did before. The man who owed
the price of one hundred bushels Of
wheat or of one months labor, would
now require two hundred bushels of
wheat or two months labor to pay his
debt. To be sure, the debt expressed in
dollars, say one hundred dollars, would
still be the same, but it would take twice
as much exertlon to raise that sum as IT
did when he contracted the debt and the
hrax- frr-f.1 lITFn
his hundred dollars as he could have
done when he first loaned the. money.
This is exactly what happened after the
decentralization of silver in 1873. Where
not Influenced by other conditions and
exigencies, prices have fallen about one
half and the profits have gone and are
bondholder, while the burden of the debt,
or and the producer has doubled. And
who can say that he is not debtor! we
all have to pay. our share OF the mum
ednessy- exen-if we have 10 personal
debts. - This public and private debt is
constantly increasing at an alarming
rate. and must lead to perpetuatlon OF
debt, and finally end in bankruptcy. But
there is another phase OF the questlon.
About % per cent. of all business is done
drafts, bonds mortgages and other evil
dences of Indebtedness are issued, all 70
be redeemed in gold. Is it surprising that
the confidence in the ability OF the DEBT
ors to redeem their obligations is shaken
at time, when the credit has been
expanded to the utmost limit during the
period of prosperity and speculative en- I
terprise; that the banker calls. in his mo
ney for his own protection just when the
creditor needs it most, and that gem
hIv follows? On the other hand, would
not the doubling of the foundation-the
doubling of the primary. money through
the reconciliation of siiver-leeesIarliy
reduce the danger of panics and coliaps-
es at least one-half!