The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1896-04-10
More Money and Less Misery.

IS Tue representative Vi properly anu
being the medium of exchange by which
the valve of property is transferred from
one party to another, those who are skill
full manipulators of money, can, when
the volume of money is limited, made
scarce in proportion to population and
the amount of property to be exchanged
by it, draw into their possession large
amounts of property in exchange for a
small sum of money. This power when
once attained, can be increased by a
shrewd, INSCRIPTIONS person, almost
geometrically. Hence the wealthy class
becomes rich very rapidly and the poor
class descends to poverty quite as fast and
in far greater numbers.
This condition of society has been going
on i'll this country for the last thirty years,
at a more rapid gait than in any country
at any former period. The world has no
parallel recorded in history of the accu-
mutations of wealth into a few hands and
the sleeping i'll poverty of multitudes so
rapidly.
When the comparatively sparce popu-
latior and new continent with its virgin
soil and natural wealth are considered,
the rapid transition of population, indie
pendent and in comfortable circum-
stances, into two divisions with so wide a
gulf separating them as now yawns be-
tween the American multi-millionaire,
and the American poverty smitten classes.
Nothing can be found in history that
will parallel it.
This deplorable and most dangerous
condition is solely due to our insufficient
volume of money. Had not the money
of the country been contracted, and the
enterprising wealth producing class in
duced, if not compelled, to resort to credit
in lieu of money to keep their business
going, they never could have been robbed
as they have been.
AS soon as the slavery war was ended,
the money manipulating or non-produc-
ing class laid plans to contract the volume
of currency on which the great volume of
business rested. By this scheme double
purpose was had in view The money
when destroyed was replaced by national
debt. The holders of this debt were
not men of producing business, conse-
quently they had no legitimate use for
money. The large sums of money they
managed to get into their possession and
exchange for bonds, weakened the sin.
ews of productive industry to the amount
of the debt which took the place of the
money, and as natural consequence, the
amount of money in the country having
been decreased, the price of all property
began to fall. Being unable to transact
cash business, or nearly so, as formerly,
the business people who kept the wheels
of productive industry revolving, COM
menced running their business more and
more on credit Credit is very expen-
sive way of conducting business. 1t costs
considerable in the matter of interest to
defray operating or running expenses"
And while the cost is increased, the price
of the product commences to fall as soon
as the contraction of money is felt. Hence
the additional cost of the credit system in
production aud the diminishing price the
products sell for, begin to operate on the
producer, as the upper and neither mill
stone, and the victim is soon ground to
powder; or his business is pulverized.
Looking back over the record of annual
bankrupts as published by Dun and
Bradstreet, the failures steadily increased,
starting with about 500 in 1865 and run
ming up to the present time when the
annual failures of business concerns have
reached, some years, as high as 5000.
This condition of affairs is what the
contraction of the currency and the re-
placing it with bank wind has produced.
The business wrecks are on the industrial
side and their unfortunate victims turned
their faces down the hill to poverty,
while the money loaners, or more prop
erly speaking, the credit loaners, gath
cred i'll the wrecked property and added
it to their rapidly. accommodating store.
They not only sweep the property of
their ruined victims into their Golfers, but
the national bonds which represent the
destroyed money, that forced business
onto the credit system, are at the same
time drawing additional interest from
their industrial victims in the form of
taxes, collected by the government at the
expense of the victims for collecting,
while bonds which the task-masters hold
are exempt from taxation.
This is the artful process by which
Americas Millionaires and Paupers are
made, and the industry is still going on
with increasing velocity.
We want and must have, more money
to stop this blighting business. When
there is sufficient money i'll circulation to
conduct business on cash basis, all labor
is employed in producing wealth. Labor
being paid good wages in cash, the in
creased products of labor are sold for a
remunerative price.
When the volume of money is sufficient
to exchange the products of labor for
cash, the usurer is held at bay. The nom
producers have to pay the producers a
living profit for their products. The suf-
icient volume ofcirculating money keeps
the products of labor in labor's own hands
until the non producer is compelled to