The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1896-08-06
Sound Money, or An Honest Dollar.

The air rings with the cry Of sound
money, and an honest dollar. What
is sound money? What is an honest
dollar3 We remember the time when
for one dollar in gold you could buy
three dollars Of greenbacks. Then
the greenback was 33b cent dollar.
The person who borrowed a hundred
dollars Of greenbacks, or a hundred
of money, gave an obligation, either a
judgment or a mortgage for that
amount Of money, with interest at
per cent, or other rates as fixed in
other states, as the case may be.
Every dollar of the borrowed capital
of that period was $50 cent dollar.
Much of that borrowed capital has
been continued, either by transfer or
partial payments from time to time,
with the hope Of the ultimate extinction
of those mortgages and other debts.
However, meanwhile, thousands of
debtors were crushed under the weight
of Ssh cent dollar debts, and mort
cages and judgments were foreclosed,
and they lost all their property.
Whatever balance of the original OBJ
legations remain unpaid with interest
accrued thereon, every debtor is
obliged to pay a 100 cent dollar for
every 33B cent dollar he borrowed of
the deprecated currency by reason of
the single gold standard currency.
Every subsequent year since the ssh
cent dollar greenback period, the
currency contracted more and more
until the resumption period when it
appeared to have settled to an equal
basis of currency and obligation of
conditions, that neither debtor nor
creditor could be wronged in money
loans. Prior to this, the creditor
class had a decided advantage over
the debtor class. But since the de-
monetization of silver, the contraction
of currency and depreciation of prop.
erty became fearfully and alarmingly
prevalent, together with labor pro-
ducts, that stagnation and gluts are
the order of the day, and labor pro-
ducts are an easy prey to the merciless
and greedy money power. There
fore, while the creditor class had de-
cided advantages over the debtor
class before the resumption act, they
have double and triple the advantage
over the debtor class under the single
gold standard.
Therefore, the harping on sound
money and an honest dollar is only
myth, delusion and snare. 1t
would be just and right if the debtor
class could have the privilege to pay
their deprecated dollar debts with a
deprecated dollar currency. This
would be honest, This would be
sound money. The creditor class
should not receive a greater equiv
TALENT than that they loaned to the
debtor class. Thousands of millions
Ihave been unjustly extorted from the
debtor class by receiving for less than
"a 100 cent dollar, for which they were
and are obliged to pay a 100 cent
dollar. Give us sound money. Give
us an honest dollar. The single gold
Standard progressively contracts the
currency in proportion to the increase
cof population, and hence the masses
tind it harder each year to discharge
debts. We might as we'll advocate
only one law and one nation for the
whole population of the world, as to
advocate but one currency or one
Standard Of unit values for business of
The world. We may dwell upon this
aubject in future article. Give us
hound money. Give us an honest
dollar. J. c. WENNER.