The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1895-05-25
A FINANCIAL CATECHISM.
ny rRKp. rEnny POWERS.

Volume and Pricss-Continueh.
How docs money minister to human
happino,sr
by leaving it, posssssor in exchange
for something no wishes.
Docs everybody spend all tho money
ho gotsP
Everybody except tho man who puts
his money away In a stocking.
But what about the men who uaVo
money!
That is a moro form OF expression.
We gay q mau saves money whom no
spends money Tor inyosimonu or lends
1t to a bank to be loaned again.
Is 1t an advantage to the seller 10 have
dollars that come easily?
Obviously.
Is itan advantage to tho buyer 10 have
dollars tina. go easily?
Certainly not.
What, then, 10 tho advantage Of n
cheap dollar?
None; every man takes in and pays
out the same kind OF dollars and the
same number OF them.
Every man?
The man who has borrowed more val
liable dollars and Is permitted 10 repay
less valuable dollars, OF course, gains by
the process, but % or OS per cont Of
money is used In current purchases, and
here it Ia as broad rs 1t is long; the dol.
lar that comes easily goes easily.
What Is the ideal dollar2
One that will buy a great deal when
you are spending it with other people,
aud that will buy very little when other
people arc spending it with you.
II Congress should enac! that 2j.S
grains OF gold and sixty pounds OF
wheat shall be interchangeable. would
that make dollar wheat? 2"
Certainly not II the government
offered 10 exchange gold aud wheat on
this basis all the wheat in the world
would be offered to it when tho COM
tnercial price wa lower, and when the
commercial price was higher no wheat
would Oe offered to the government; it
would all 70 in pursuit OF tho higher
price.
Suppose We established the silver
standard here, what would be the effect
on prices?
They would probably rise.
llaveyo any doubt about it2
Not much, but the silver men insist
that prices have not changed in silver-
using countries on account OF the fall in
the value OF metal.
A rise OF prices would be a good
thing, would it not?
ltwonld DO n good thing for the sell.
ers Tor a while. but in the long run all
men are buyers and all men arc sellers,
and when the change was completed
everybody would be in the same relative
po.i,ion as before.
Would not every one receive more
money?
Every man would receive twice MS
many dollars, and each dollar would DO
worth only half az much.
How is that?
ltths law declared that thirty pounds
0! wheat should be a bushel, every far
mel would havO twice as many bushels
AS he has now, but each bushel would
be worth only half as much.
II we made thirty pounds OF wheat n
bushel. would we not get twice NJ much
money from an Englishman for 4 ton OF
wheat rs We now get?
Not much.
Ii We introduced q cheaper kind OF
dollarso that prices OF wheat and cotton
should be doubled here, would 0 TINT
double the price in Europe?
What n%onscnsei
What would be the eticc. Upon the
American farmer OF expressing his
prices in silver!
Ii he gothic same price in silver that
no now gets in gold. he would receive
only half the purchasing power no now
gets. II prices doubled he would get
just the same that he now gets: in one
case he would lose. and in the other
case he would make nothing.
Might no. prices 20 up more than
doublo2
Why should they? II thirty pounds
OF wheat made 4 bushel. a man could
not possibly have more than twice as
many bushels as he has now.
1t tas been said that ii we would adopt
the silver standard We could drive En.-
ii.h goods out OF silver using countries;
how could that DO donoH
II our manufacturers would take the
same number OF silver dollars that they
now take OF gold dollars, i, would
amount to cutting their prices in two,
and. OF course, they would underscll
England.
How would the manufacturers like
that?
They say prices ara too low now.