The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1896-10-21
what L. Money!

Il -
what IL Money!
In the avalanche OF talk now in pro-
gress. there il some danger that the sim
plist truth regarding money may be
obscured il not entirely buried. We have
need oil few kindergarten lessons on
the first principles OF finance. What is
money? Simply anything that answers
for medium OF exchange and serves as
a measure OF values. IL need not be
good servant; it may be q bad or indid-
erent one. Almost every commodity
under the sun, and some under the 9, as,
have, in the course OF human events, been
monetized and also demonetized. None
tary history would seem to be one long
record of "crimes" that 10 If demonetlza-
ton is, OF necessity, acriminal act. Even
here in America tobacco, shells and pelts
have been used as money and then been
sent to the monetary boneyard as better
instruments Of exchange came into use
We discarded such things for silver just
as we finally passed from silver to gold
should we discover something better
no doubt gold would have to 20 by the
board. But just now the money OF ac-
count. the money In which we do our
thinking is gold. 1t Is not valuable be
cause used as money. but used as money
becau~e 1t Ia valuable. The nut Of the
present money question is. "What Shall
the Term Dollar Mean?" Shall 1t mean
25.S grains OF coin gold as at present
4l2 grains OF coin silver worth 90 cents,
or saall IL mean inredeemable paper de-
pending for it's value upon the populists'
appetite for any thing called money?3-
This is the central and all important
point OF the present discussion, though
you might never guess il from listening
Ia Bryanic speakers.
by common consent dollar may mean
anything you please, gold. silver,
paper or 30 much pig tin. 1t may no.
necessarily be coin. but only certain
amount Of ONE commodity. The unit
of international trade is a pound sterling,
which is not a coin at all, but some ia
grains OF gold. That common consent
il the final arbiter, as to the circulation
of any money, was shown by the exper-
fence Of California during the war period.
notwithstanding the citizen OF the Paci.
dc could, by law, pay his debts in green
backs, sometimes only worth 35 cents on
the dollar, yet public opinion was strong
enough to maintain gold payments there
throughout our period Of deprecated
greenbarks.
Now it Is easy to admit that we can
Ak our own monetary standard with
out waiting for the consent OF Other
nations" We did this very thing when
we adopted wampum 7.ss money-when
we :made Tobacco legal tender-w hen
furs were to chief medium OF exchange
IN thiS Lake region. But when we be- |
came nation about the first thing we
did was to try aud get in touch with
other commercial nations by getting our
money in line with theirs. When we
argue for the necessity Of such things to-
lay we are accused Of being the tools Of
he money power" the Rothchilds, or
he Great Red Dragon of Wall Street"
Did our iorefathers Of 1909 fall victims
o these awful powers7 Did they not
now what Independence meant2 Did
hey not appreciate It's value and place
round IL every safe guard In theirpower7
ut, says the populist, money Ia merely
matter Of law. OF legislation" And
It the pages OF monetary history are
rewn with the failures Of legislation to
,complish the proposed result. We
ust either believe this record TO be- alb
lutely false or that IL has escaped the
,tice Of the populist orator.
Any one who can read the history OF !,
monetary experience and not o
receive greater force at work than d
sislation, should have bis thinkers =
lied up by the roots and sprouted over =
rain.
Man is a wonderful being and does q
arvelous things, but he does them by :
orking In the harmony Of nature, not :,
gain~t her, by recognizing natural law
't by opposing or ignoring It.. In short r
an 10 great according 20 his knowledge Z
the natural order Of things and only :
lat part Of his legislation will endure
,at IL not contrary to the natural laws I
sN.ial progress. We may not know q
'ucn o'sAese lsws-not made by man
-may 'n ct be ignorant of their :
x'stence. put s1~s still exist and ara thu
ocks which will scs.,r IN. ,o, .o.s
'opuIistic Observation-Disclosures ~ -. .
. not wrecked beiore-by To - .
he peoples win 800"
isn't u . stunner?--Gribbls'sa d.