Western Kansas world. [volume] (WaKeeney, Kan.) 1885-current, 1895-08-03
WAGES AND PRODUCTS.
Ninth Day of the Horn Harvey Debate
Oreanized Labor Discussed.


one of the Harvey-Horr silver conten-
ton began Saturday afternoon. Mr..
Horn opened the days talk with com
parison of the wages and the cost of
products during the years from 1860 to
1890 as shown in table prepared by
Statistician Carroll D. Wright With
wages and prices in 1860 taken
as the index or 100, it showed
in 1890 prices were ! 90; wages
159, and the purchasing power
of wages 172. Mr.. Horn proceed
ed to argue that at no time in the
history of the nation was the country
as prosperous as it was at that time,
in spite of the ''crime of 1871 He
submitted that these statistics were
more applicable to the conditions
under discussion than those of Mr..
Sauerbeck, quoted by Mr.. Harvey on
Thursday as Mr.. Sauerbecks figures
were made from prices in England.
Mr.. Harvey, IN turn, took up the
matter of the prices of wheat for a Sc
ries of years, in reply to Mr.. Horr's
statement on Thursday that the farmer
had received as much for his product
in gold as he had received before silver
was demonetized. For answer he quoted
the prices from year toyear. Mr.. Harvey
proceeded by saying that the proper
index of prices was to measure them
in articles of international uses. Tables
made up by gold men even, on these
than in 1850. Referring to Mr. Horr's
argument touching the measure of
value in human toll, Mr.. Harvey quoted
e Il
in reply to a correspondent suggesting
the making of SO much work the
equivalent of a dollar. Mr.. Horn de-
clared the proposition absurd and con-
fusing.
Mr. Harvey denied Mr.. Horr's asser-
ton that falling prices were the re-
suits of improved facilities. Mr..
Harvey said: sit is the supply pro-
duced and the demand for it that regu-
lates the price of such products. Sup
pose widow, owning a farm, receives
the voluntary assistance of her
neighbors to raise and harvest
her wheat crop, will her wheat be
worth any less than the price fixed
by the quaint ity of wheat in existence
known to the traders, and the estimat-
ed demand for it? If all the corn crop
in the United States were destroyed
except the crop in Iowa, would the
Iowa corn price be governed by the
cost of production or the relative sup
ply and demand for corn? The cost of
the product has nothing to do with it.
A man may produce an ounce of gold
for 10 cents that is worth $40. The
fact that it cost him 10 cents does not
make it worth less than S2O.''
Mr.. Horn: MIR. Harvey is mystifed
because he takes it for granted that
the business of a country entirely de-
ponds upon the amount per capita Of
the circulating medium. He insists
that if you shrink that you ruin the
business in the country. There
are large number of men
who believe that doctrine, but no
more transparent humbug was ever
taught the people of this or any
other country. Money is plethora in
this country to-day. There are hun
dreds of millions of dollars lying idle,
simply because there is nobody to use
it. Did you know that? Why, my
friend, Harvey, and all Of you men
who think that way as usual get the
cart before the horse. 1t is not
an abundance of money that
makes business active; it is
business that makes money active
in this world of ours. And until
you can comprehend that point, Broth
er Harvey, you will never understand
this financial question at all The
ratio of money to the population proves
nothing. What we need in the United
\
employment for our men, and we have
got money enough to do twice the bus
mess we are doing.
''Speaking of organized labor" Mr..
Harvey said, Organization sustains
wages for those actually employed
while engaged at work, but when you
average the wages by including the
unemployed, and include the expense
and time lost, it does not do So Make
the calculation this way, and you will
find that the gold basis has measured
itself in wages with mathe matt cal ac-
curacy.''
Speaking of tenancy, Mr.. Harvey
said: Twenty million acres of land in
the United States to-day is owned by
English titled nobility, and the Eng
lish tenancy has to that extent been
already introduced into this country.
In the state of Illinois there is a
county by the name of Logan, that has
county seat by the name Lincoln,
and you can drive for miles through
that county on your way to that coun-
ty seat, and have on both sides of you
Lord Scully's possessions, with Irish
matched cottages over the land
II
sively, very extensively, through thir-
ty-one states of this union, and 1 never
yet saw a single farm, nor had my at
tention called to one, that was owned
by people living outside of the United
States. There are some, but they are
few
They Ate Dressed Beef.
CLINTON, Ia, July 29.--About forty
people were poisoned by eating dressed
beef Saturday at Thompson, north Of