The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1895-11-27
A QUESTION AND ANS WEIR.

navy JuoU uulSllcu I0dUluk HC
American Peoples Money" l found
the contents so interesting that did
| not let go of the book until had read
| it through. AS l read agood deal of re-
form literature some of your ideas are
not new to me, but your humorous
way OF explaining facts somehow
touches the right chord in human ma
ture.
The works of advanced thinkers all
| over the world seem to point in ore
direction, namely, that rent. interest,
and profits are robbery. In other
words that it is wrong to live on the
labor OF Others. l believe the time
will come when another command
| ment will be added to the decalogue
which will read as follows: Thou
shalt not partake of the fruit of an
other mans labor in vain.
However under our present system
of government and finances we
should all be forced to break the
eleventh commandment if we succeed
ed in living out our natural length OF
life, for when no longer able to work
ourselves, we must be fed out of the
labor of others. You say, IF money
were plenty nobody would borrow"
which Of course would put an end to
| interest. rent, ETC.. and would be all
right for all those who are able to
work and earn money. But what are
we to do in our old age? We would
still find ourselves dependent on. 9th
erS for our living when no longer able
to work. Take for instance a farmer
who, by many years Of hard work, sim
pie living and close figuring, at last
succeeds in formulating considerable
property around him, but the time
comes when from old age his body be-
comes infirm and he finds himself I'M
able to make living for himself and
wife by his work. Each year he is
falling behind; each year something
has to be sold off the farm to meet
his necessary expenses; and it seems
to be only a question Of time when
| everything will be gone. Then if he
| is not gone TOO he will be obliged to de-
pend on charity for the balance of his
| living. Now then what shall he do?
Shall he, as soon as he begins to fail,
sell everything, hide the money in an
old stocking, (thus father contracting
the volume Of currency, and draw it
| out Bit by bit as it is needed and
when the last farthing is gone speed
over the hills to the poor house."
Or shall he, on finding himself rum
Ming behind, sell off everything, loan
his money out at small rate of in
terest, (thereby keeping the money in
circulation) and live on the income of
his earnings? The question seems to
amount to simply this. When his
own means are gone, and he finds him.
self unable to earn more, he has to be
kept out of the labor Of others. Eth
er the burden falls on the taxpayer,
or the one who has the benefit of his
wealth, and pays for it in labor in the
shape of interest or rent. Which is
right? i do not understand how ION
p. al Of A. P. NJ Mr. Sanders can
consistently attack Mr.. peak Nose"
for living on the interest of his mon
ey when he is money-lender himself.
..:....... MRS. B. J. CAMPBELL.
Westfeld, Wis. Nov. IA, '95.
We would say,in reply to our friend,
that there is wide difference be-
tween that which is abstractly right
and that which is practically possible.
1t would be better for the world if
each man lived on his own land and
paid no rent or interest; but such
condition is not likely to be reached
in our day,-if 1T ever is. AS long as
the present conditions continue men
will rent land and borrow money and
pay. interest on it; and we cannot
the. law makes legal. 1t is not the
fact of lending money that is repre-
hensible, but the spirit in which it is
done. II a farmer is in pinch and
borrowing 500 can save $1,000 from
sacrifice, then the man who lends him
the 800, at reasonable rates, is his
benefactor. We have not attacked
legitimate borrowing or lending, but
the cruelty which charges ~. 10, 100
per cent per annum, and lays in wait
for and devOurs the unfortunate
debtor. The golden rule of Christ is a
safe guide to go by:-to do to others
as you would that others should do to
you,-if conditions were reversed, and
you were the debtor. There was a
touch of profanity and yet a great
deal of the spirit of the Golden Rule
in that curious epitaph',
Here am 1. John Elginbrod:
Be merciful to me, Lord God.
AS would be to thee, II thou vert John
And l, Lord God"
Some of our excellent friends see
that which is abstractly right, with
great clearness, and then demand
that it be at once accomplished;- but
they fling themselves against the face
of precipice and fall back crushed.
Common sense must rule in this as
in all other things. The great Greek
lawgiver Scion was asked if he had
given the people of Athens the best
laws. NO." he replied, "but l have
given them the best they would re.
ceive"
The man who in this struggle would
demand absolute right, and seek to
enforce it, would probably be mobbed
and murdered. Christ died a cruel
death because he simply preached
universal charity and justice.
fout Of this gigantic battle we can
achieve one or two points for reform
we shall have done great work. Pos
terity will take up the work where we
leave off. "Rome was not butt in a
cay" All that Abraham Lincoln ex-
pected, from the agitation of 1856-1s6O
was. as he said, that 1.-THE public
mind should be placed where it would
rest in the conviction that slavery
was in process of gradual extinction"