The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1895-05-01
HIRED HUMBUGS.

A STRONG LETTER-THE SPIRIT OF
HORACE GREELEY SPEAKS
THROUGH ONE OF HIS RELATIVES.
To the Editor:
Barnum said: 1.-THE American people
love to be humbugged," and, to prove his
assertion, the great Snowman went to
work and amassed a large fortune through
mere humbuggery. The two old parties
have also pursued this course, until the
minds of the average voter has become so
confused that he Is incapable Of knowing
right from wrong, or principle from dys-
pepsia. See their hired humbugs, the plu-
tocratic press, trying to blindfold the pub
lie against the beauties of free silver.
How gravely they assert that the amount
of primary money in circulation has no
effect on the price Of commodities of
country. Hear them eulogze gold be-
ing the only ''safe. sound and honest
money" for the people. Why, if the vapor
and gas emitted daily by these humbug
scriblers on the financial question alone.
was collected it would fill balloon with
sufficient power to carry the whole gang
to heaven, were 1t not that their souls
charged SO heavily with the innocent blood
of suffering humanity that they can never
arise above the treetops.
1t is recognized fact that the fall in
the commercial value of silver since it was
demonetized in 1873 has been almost ex-
actly in proportion to the fall of wheat
from said date. In 1872 silver was worth
in the markets of the world $1.32, wheat
s1.47 In 1898 silver was down tots, wheat
81. 1t is not necessary to repeat long
tables, but I have abundant evidence to
prove that the general average of staple
commodities has fallen from As to 50 per
cent from 1873. The same is true of prop
erty in general except in rare cases
where special causes have operated to
counteract the downward tendency. The
brass-lined o. p. press attributes this fall
in value of farm products to "overproduc-
ton This cannot possibly be so. The es-
timated wheat crop of the world for 1891
was 2,432. 600 bushels for 1892, 1904, 000,
0no bushels. But notwithstanding the re-
duced supply, the Liverpool market price
went down. from s1.51 in 1891 to 7a per
bushel in 1893, short crop and the lowest
price for over a hundred years. We all
remember what drop in wheat prices
to tx place in the United States three years
ago in spite of the fact that our wheat
production dropped from SIG million BUSH
els in 1892 to 1896 million bushels in 1893. The
same loss is noticeable in the other staple
crops, cotton, corn, and oats. Another
humbug theory of the terrorized press is
| their claim that falling prices are due to
| improved machinery, making possible a
| cheaper method of production. But the
| fact is, with the exception of the self
| binding harvester. nearly all the improve
ments in farm machinery date back be-
| yond the period under discussion.
| The question remains.-what causes this
| fall in prices? Is it due to change in the
| relation of supply to the demand. or to
| cheaper methods of production? No. 1t is
/ almost entirely due to a change in our
l money standard. Since silver was demon
! etized the worlds standard money has
| shrink in volume relatively to the popula-
! ton and wealth, causing it's purchasing
| power or value to increase nearly one-half.
] Money becomes dearer. while crops grow
| cheaper. And this truth should be under
| stood by any man who uses his head a
| thinking agency and not solely for a hat
| rack.
Yet the campaign of hlmbug theories is
| still on. The big dailies are still obscuring
facts, and inventing gold bug falseheods.
But then. that's what their masters, the
money-changers. have hired them to do
| humbug the American people at SO much
| ner .,nnnrGnnuaen,-u Anu1uuG( course these cor