Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1896-09-17
CHEAPER MONEY.
An Able Argument From the Pen Of
One of New Mexico's Abicst
Politicians.

From the Chicago Record, Sept. 10th.
THE Hon. o. A. Hadley Is ex. governor
O Arkansas and author OF the widely cir
culated work Of finance, "Tne Danger Line
Heached."1
The advocates OF the gold standard
are making herculean efforts TO con-
vince the farmers and wage-earner OF
this country that the free coinage OF
silver would be detrimental to their in
terest. 1t Is unnecessary to allude to
the varied style of arguments present.
ed, for they all culminate in what the
gold advocates appear to consider as
infallible and conclusive: "You will
be paid for yonr products and labor
with fiat m%oney-60 cent dollars"
This text, when ampli6ed by all the
ingenuity that money-lenders possess,
or their gold a buy, is expected TO-
so paralyze the farmers and laborers
that facts OF which they are personally
cognizant will be made to appear as
Authorizations only.
About one-half of the voters OF the
United States are engaged in agricul-
tural pursuits, as owners of farms or
employees thereon. 1t is safe TO as
sumo that 80 per cen of farm. owners
and employees of labor on farms, are
receiving no remuneration for their
labor or interest on their investment.
It is also a fact, well understood by
those in a position to know, thai at
least so per cen of the agriculturists
OF this country are running behind
yearly, all on account Of low prices for
their products.
The single. standard advocate admits
this, but claims the fact to be wholly
due to the memorable law Of supply and
demand. The product being large,the
price is small. Admitting this to be
true, when measured by the gold dol
lar, does not the same rule of supply
anil demand, by which all other com.
modities are measured, apply to gold
alsop II one half of the cotton or
wheat crop were destroyed and the
other half doubled in price you would
rightfully claim the advance as due to
the short crop. One-half of our money
has been practically destroyed by leg
islation, and the other half has doubled
in value. The advocates of BIZ metal
lism ask to have the other half re-
stored by legislation, thus doubling the
amount of real money, sound money,
and by the same law of supply and de-
mand reducing its value one-half, as
measured by the products of labor.
Very few farmers or laborers are going
10 be paralyzed or hypnotizsd by your
| fifty cent dollar theory for they see In
the near future bankruptcy and desti-
tuition approaching their homes with
gigantic strides, which they cannot
check under the gold standard. DO
not crush the farmer, for upon him
rests every other industry In u coun.
try, wen including stock and grain
gambling, trusts, combines and all
other monopoIies.
The fifty cent dollar idea is held up
to the vision OF wage-earners in all the
tints Of the rainbow, but IL the laboring
men and women OF the United States
possess the intelligence that | give them
credit for, no coloring to such a false
and untenable theory can blind their
judgment or induce them to vote for
the gold standard.
That inflexible law of supply and de-
mand is in evidence in the labor ques-
ton, just as in the wheat and money
proposition. II you cripple the farmer
by low prices, he must stop employing
labor. 1t the farmer is unable to buy
manufactured goods, the manufacturer
cannot employ labor. III the merchants
cannot sell goods, they cannot employ
clerks. II railroads and other avenue
of transportation are unable to obtain
freight and passengers on account OF
low prices for products and the poverty
of the producers, then they must curtail
their expenses and therefore will reduce
to the minimum the number of their
employees.
The first question 10 which the wage.
Garner is interested is, "Can | get en-
ploymentP" and secondly, "What will
the wages beP" The tens Of thousands
of idle men to-day will be increased to
hundreds of thousands in a very short
time If the farming and other Industries
of the country are to continue to be
crippled by the gold standard and in
evitable low prices for their products.
K What consummate sophistry is the
claim Of our gold-standard friends, who
try to impress upon the wage-earners
as a fact that they will have to pay
twice as much for everything they buy
il bI-metalllsm is adopted, thereby ad-
mi'ting that the employers Of labor
will receive so under the bi metallic
standard, instead of 81 as under the
gold standard, and that wages will re-
main the same for a long time at least.
If this position is taken under the belief
that the laborers of this country can be
led to believe 1t, its advocates show IN.
pardonable ignorance Of the intelli.
gence our laborers possess.
1t bimetallism shall be established
and prices advance, as admitted by
gold standard advocates, producers
and manufacturers, employers Of labor
will be prosperous and will gladly
share their prosperity with their en-
ployes; and as labor will be in demand
any man or corporation who refuses to
share his prosperity will soon learn
that his employees ale capable Of pro-
tecting their own righ's.
The whole trend of the gold-stand-
ard theory IS to make low prices to
producers and manufacturers, thereby
sapping the foundation upon which the
prosperity Of the people must rest.
This can tut result in placing labor at
the mercy of capital to al extent that
will not be tolerated by the intelligent
working classes of this country. Els.
pecially is this so. when the purpose is
merely TO please and tn he in harmonv