Birmingham state herald. (Birmingham, Ala.) 1895-1897, 1896-03-29
OUR LETTER BOX.
Truths of the Gold Standard.
Rjru,inghapa March ~

Birmingham, Marcn 20.
To the State Herald:
The gold monometall. sts who deal so
glibly in generalities, are never weary of
asserting to laboring men that they
should advocate the gold standard be-
cause the purchasing power OF their
wages is increased constantly by the
continuance of this system. They seem
to forget or to ignore the memorable law
the labor, whether all workers are en-
ployed or not, must subsist out of the
wage fund, be that fund large or small;
that the wage fund may be cruelty d.
minished while wages may not nominal
ly change much. If considerable num-
Der of men shall be idle the workers must
nevertheless support them. The Biz
mingham district can furnish numerous
iiustra lions of two-and three men doing
one mans work and living off one man
wages. although the daily or monthly
pay of workers remains nominally the
same as a year ago. l will show the
workings of this principle in regard to
railroad employees. AS is well known,
these men are intelligent, skilled and
have organizations that are powerful
and efficient. But they have felt the gen
eral and continued decline of prosperi-
ty in a startling way. l give here some
figures from the statistical abstract for
1895. printed by the bureau of statistics,
page 1928. According to this publication
the decrease of gross earnings of all rail-
roads in the United States in 1894 was
St47 800 OFT; decrease In net earnings. $780,
$50 100; decrease in operating expenses,
S96 SOC, 977; decrease in deductions from
income, SO, 413,S46 deficit from operations,
$45.S51 .294
Let us thy to realize the tremendous
import of the foregoing figures. out or
a total loss of earnings of-S147,39o,0f7
the managers of the railroads made up
part by reducing operating expenses $685.
rnca IN ha1
sum? What are operating expenses?
Broadly speaking, they would include the
salaries of all officials, clerical assist
ants. repairs, renewals of rolling s+re'-
wages of operatives of all classes. 1t is
apparent tina the lafvSs' portion of the re-
ductions was mace 81 tse-wages of oper-
atives and in redt -e,jt ~ns of forces. The
broad indisputable fact remains that all
persons working directly for railroads,
or In industries which nrnish supplies to
them, suffered a loss purchasing pow
e. of $96 506 GIT, and that no suffering on
Ire part of farmers who supplied them
reduced quantities of provisions at reduce
ed prices would compensate for this ir-
reyocable loss. Nor would the enhanced
power of the wages which they
received compensate for the re-
duced wages of the operatives
quantities of clothing which they
bought. Nor does the loss to landlords
of these people compensate in reduced
rents In a great amount this decline In
wage earning. VIII the gold monomet-
allists contend that the loss in wages by
.fhe employees of railroads in 1894, and of
others connects 4 with the same. is made
up to them by .he decreased cost of arti-
cles which they consume? Will they
ccnfend that this Bss does not cause
immense hardshps to all employees and
to those who were laid off. as well as
to all producers who were engaged In
supplying their wants? Happily, work
ingmen are reading and thinking
of these matters, and their great leaders
have pronounced against the gold stand
ard and all of it's iniquities and the mis-
cries entaiIed by an era of falling prices.
]. c. C.