Birmingham age-herald., 1895-04-14
The Credit and Deb tor Classes.
To the Age-Herald:

To the Age-Herald:
 Among the many cart before the horse ideas which are prominent in the present propaganda for averaging silver, prob ably the most hay is proper distinction between the debtor and creditor classes. The reason for this is, however, not hard to trace The superficial reasoner sees that there are money lenders in New York who are appropriateness creditor class In the west and south the farmers are in debt and are clearly producers; ergo all producers belong to the debtor class. The fact is. in regard to the latter, very many other factors have consplred to run the farmer in debt rather than the mere sin of being a producer Every county in the country owes interest on bonds every year, for money they bor- rowed with which to develop their re- spective resources to build court houses, improve roads, induce railroads to build in their direction or what not. Again, an ever increasing tariff has steadily added to the price of everything the far mer had to buy, while at the same time restricting the market for his own pro- ducts. These circumstances have put all the less frugal watchful and industrious farmers in debt. There are a few whose farms are not mortgaged and who have a little surplus every year. Now in addi- ton to these farmers who borrow money on their farms with which to farm and f pay taxes and interest and live we have the railroads, all the furnaces, mines and manufacturing establishments and suc- cessful merchants making up the debtor class. It pays in good business to bor- row money to operate with, and all sue cessfu firms constantly enlarge their business in that way. The creditor class is made up of the money-lenders of Wall street and the money-lenders of every where else the Idle and luxurious who have inherited or married their wealth, the saving and industrious middle and laboring classes and even those of the laborers employed on the farms who can manage to live on their wages are of the creditor class Every laborer is cred itor to the amount of his days, weeks or months wages. In short all of our peo- pie who can lay by the least possible sur plus after their debts are paid imme- diately seek investments. They invest in real estate, bank manufacturing or rail- road stock. Or they lend it to savings banks or to bond issuing corporations.
 It is this creditor class which the jealous movement seeks to sup press. and there can be no doubt that a depreciated currency will suppress them It is in aid of the debtor class. It will help the farmers who have their farms mortgaged to pay more of their indebtedness, but those of them who cannot at once pay it all will be foreclosed and farm mortgages as investments will be drug in the market.
 
 reap a rich harvest. The price of all commodities, together with freight rates, will be advanced along with silver but wages will not advance one cent as long as there are two men standing by willing to take every good job in the country. It is claimed that the cause will develop the latent industries of our people" to such an extent that there will after awhile be jobs enough to go around. But the effect on prices of everything except labor would be immediate and the latent industries" would receive a very great Encouragement to start out with. Labor in fact will always be ruled by supply and demand, though it is somewhat upheld at present through fear of trouble from labor organizations. The railroads and manufacturers would like nothing better than a depreciated cur rency with which they could pay their employees and wipe out that extra value given to labor by its organizations. It would reduce the price of labor to a basis of supply and demand without the danger Of a strike. The manufacturer and wholesale merchant would profit in the same way by reduction in their pay rolls, but strange to say, when there is talk of such salvation for the debtor class, these merchants and manufactur- CTS, who through prosperous times were or the debtor class, at once begin to re- duce stock and pay rolls, to pay off their indebtedness and become creditors They desert with an inward Lord save us from our friends" with a haste which must be inexplicable to those who really believe that such wave is rolling to the rescue or the debtor class. Such an in version of opinion would be epoch-mak- ing if 1t had anything more than the usual illusive popularity to sustain it It would be that success, which usuaIlv resulted from following the yirtuous paths of industry honesty, sobriety and saving, is no longer commendable nor honorable. Gold must be taught to know its place." those industrious thou- sands who have money in the savings 30 banks or who have been saving and have house or two extra to rent and thereby add to the results of the labor of their head and hands must be taught to take something less than their savings. They had said: We do well. these houses or this balance in bank is tbe premium on the industry and saving and self-denial we have practiced these many years" But they will have laid on flat tering junction prematurely, as they will see, when this hive of larvaI economists and financiers shall have swarmed. They must be taught that virtue is all in the camp of those who did not bother about income and outgo and per cent. but depended on congress and the legis- lature to keep down taxes and keep up prices. 1p SOUND MONEY. al