Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1896-08-14
MLvER COINAGE A REMEDY
CONTINUED from first page.


alive; but when man an institution in debt
ceases to earn surplus over actual and neces-
sary living or running expenses, there is nothing
left for the creditor, and the value of the debt
vanishes. The man lives, somehow The
railroad runs just the same, whether meeting
dividends on stock, or interest on bonds, or
only earning operative expenses. The road
bed, motive power and rolling-s stock 60 on with
their work, even if the securities become worth
less. Wall street has had that lesson illustrated
a good many times But there is deeper,
broader lesson now enforcing itself upon Wall
streets attention, and that is that for nearly
generation the power to earn surplus by the
country generally has been steadily running
down and diminishing; that while this process
of slowing down has been in progress, there
has been a steady and accelerated growth in
debt. What Wall street needs to realize is, not
the safety of this debt dependent upon 200
cent dollar, or any other dollar above par-and
this country will never have any below par
but upon the power of our $4,000, 900 of people,
with all their appliances of every kind for pro-
duction and exchange, to earn surplus enough
enough beyond the cost of living for man
and of running expenses for machinery-to
pay interest and meet principal. Power to earn
the dollar, not the dollar itsel, is at the bottom
of the problem Wall street is beginning to
feel the effect of the lost earning power of the
country. The man and the railroad survive
the loss of power to earn surplus, but debt per-
ishes. Its safety can only come from restoring
the earning power of the country, whose labor
must pay every dollar that is paid.
eve believe that the adoption of gold
unit of value and the suspension of free coin
age of silver (the dollar of which was previous
ly the unit of value') by the act of February,
1873, have been the main causes of the decline
in the prices of all other commodities as since
measured in gold-a decline which has brought
production to or below cost line in most things
and now threatens the foundation upon which
all securities rest. The decline has covered
European gold-standard countries as we'll as
ou1 own
''To show how destructively expensive to
our country that decline has been, we will cite
single instance:
Had we received for our exports alone for
the year 1895 the prices of 1873, they would
have brought to our people 5000, 900 900 more
than they did bring, and this would have been
distributed through every interest producing
and handling them, from raw material until
delivered for consumption. Our exports are
perhaps per cent. of our total product. The
difference which fair price would give would
be available for debt-paying, or for surplus
This is only one year of twenty-three, though
one of the worst.
cit will need but little reflection upon such
facts to guide us, to know that with even our
colossal debt, public and private, exceeding
anything in the worlds history, would be per
fectly safe, with fair prices, to give Legitimate
surplus earnings to our producers.
.'tNor will it need much reflection, with such
facts to guide us, to show that with the good
times which fair prices would have kept with
us, we could have lived in greater comfort had
a much greater and much better development
than we have and could have paid for it out of
surplus earnings so that our debt would repre-
sent widespread producing interests in all parts
of the country, and not be held so largely, or
indeed at all, abroad.
Further than that, instead of being the
great debtor country of the world, we would be
the great creditor country. Our commerce by
sea would supplement and complement
commerce by lana, ana our own SnlpS would
be bringing US tribute from every great port in
the world. Our own city of New York would
be the first city of mighty republic, whose
power and wealth would assure permanent
safety and prosperity, unequalled elsewhere in
the world.
"There is. however, mo use crying over spilled
milk. We adopted Policy which has crippled our
energies, and we mpst face the consequences. hon
ssty and courageously. until get into better