The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1896-09-01
a TIMELY FABLE
Is TO the roint-wise Men Who
Thought They conid overturn the Law
ofsapply aud Demand by siatnts-The
Corr, Came Ia hut Wheat Went Out.

sNhleh Is to tho point-Wlse Men Who
Thought They Couid, over,urn the Law
Of snppiy nnd Demand by statnts-Th p
Corn Came In hut Wheat Went Out.
a. r. Stllwell In the Philadelphia
Ledger: II was near tho close Of tho
nineteenth ccntury-Herywhcre there
was grcut depression. Railroads could
not pay dividends, values were shrunk.
on. money was idle. labor uncmployel.
The well.to-lo could not mako profits,
and everybody was gloomy and sad
Each man as he met hts neighbOr would
solemnly say In tho language Of tho
o James Fnddcn, what TELL" and
modify pass on.
Then there arose tho wise men OF
kHnsas. They were mighty IN their
DAY: With hOncyed words they beguIl-
cd tho people. They painted In colOrs OF
hiEht the oppression OF labor and the
sunerinSs OF poverty, They pictured In
hues that pnlcd the mornings rosy
glow. the delights OF luxury and the
blessings OF wealth.
FrcnEied by the Intoxicating dream
they exclaimed: 'Whercfor are we NOT
all rich? Go to now. Let us abolish
poverty. Let us legislate ourselves Into
atiuencc." And tho people heard and
were swcet!y sinlttcn with the delicious
madness.
Then the governor assembled the
wise men In special session and thus
addressed them:
Mo- noble, brave and mighty ycO-
men. u people Eroan, the burden Ia
heavy upon them. Early and late they
toll and cat the bread NJ dlsappoint-
ment and bitterness. Make sc laws
for their delIvcrancc.
We are the greatest states In the
union. We are big enough and rich
o 20 have a policy OF our own re-
SardlesS OF what other states may do or
ma o do. Let us be patriotic. 4 Kan
sas policy for Kansas Is the need OF
the hour. Wheat Is hard to raise aud
the Yield Is light and uncertain. but We
are great on corn. The notion that the
price must be governed by the law OF
supply and demand IL n superstition
by means OF which the rich plumber
and Cypress honest toll. Make ye, there
fore, n law In accordance with which
sovereign and ancient statute corn
snail be put upon the par with wheat.
They should be interchangeable bushel
Tor buShel. and the price OF corn shall
De the same as tho price OF wheat. Do
this and tho people.ot Kansas shall rise
up and call you blessed and all the
world except the money lenders shall
hail you as the cmancipators OF man.
kind"
The wise men passed the law as the
governor had advised. and all the people
nf the state rejoIced. for their cribs were
full OF corn, They could hardly restrain
themselves TIL the governor had signed
the bill which raised the price of Kansas
corn from 10 cents. to AZ cents Il bushel.
All the people now felt rich. They bought
many luNurieS, and the most OF them
were In debt. They wondered that they
had never before found out that wealth
was simply n matte. OF legislation, and
they felt a great pity and contempt FOR
the ignorant and supsrstltious people OF
the other states. Then the farmers from
the other states began hauling their corn
10 Kansas, Long lines of wagons came
winding along every road. Boats floated
Il down the rivers md railroads rushed
Il In from every section OF the country.
II seemed as II the country was all corn
and II was all headed for Kansas. The
people OF Kansas took their medicine
that Is, they took the corn and gave up
their wheat.
The farmers from the other states
thought the Kansas people were queer.
but they kept bringing them their corn.
Corn came in and wheat went out. And.
besides. all the Kansas people had gone
TO raising corn. because 1t was more cas-
lily produced than wheat. and was 10
bring just as much IL the market as
wheat. for the wise men had deemed that
II should. 1t was not long til Kansas
had all OF Its own corn and nearly all
OF its nelghbors.
When the other states saw this vast
accumulation and knew that II must
sooner or later come onto the market.
the price OF corn began tn decline, until
1t could be purchased anywhere. except
in Kansas. for 10 cents a bushel. In
Kansas the price was still - cents.
which was the price ot wheat. but there
were no buyers. Neither would anyone
exchange .whea; for their corn. When
the autumn came the Kansas people did
not have any wheat for seed. Then they
sent TO the n%elEhboring states and I'M
plored the tarmersSto exchange wheat
at a parity with corn. But the farmers
said: Eve will exchange one bushcl Of
wheat for four and one-half bushels OF
corn" "Our law,'%EeplIed the Kansas
people. puts corn and wheat on a par
Ity. They are equal. for our wise men
said they should be-" And the farmers
replied: Your wise men are asses: let
them eat your corn" So the Kansas
wen, back home, and all their people
we're In despair.
The more corr they had the less 1t was
worth. and they had nothing but corn.
Day by day the times grew harder.
When the governor again assembled
the wise men he said to them: Most
consummate, picturesque and glltterlng
COLL -darned fools. There IL but one big
ger fool than yourselves. 1t Is he who
now addresses You.
I'VE thought We could bluff the ever
lasting law OF supply and demand with
one statute. We thought we could leg
islate value Into a thing and make
people rich by n law. We thought We
were patriotic. We were idiotic. Let
us honestly acknowledge our a%ssininIty,
repeal our fool law. get back Into line
with the other. states and Imagine no
more that We are wiser than the whole
world. Do this and may we live long
enough 10 know that the other states
have ceased laughing AT our folly and
that Our own has ceased cursing US for
It"
Then the wise men repealed the law.
but II was many years before the poo
pie recovered from the effects OF the
corn craze.
Moral: We are n big nation. but We
arc not the whole earth.
Another moral: Legislation can Meth
or make o unmnkc values.
Still another: 4 fool Is a man who
thinks all the rest OF the world are fools.
One more: We cannot lift ourselves up
by our boot straps.