The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1896-05-27

There are some men who belive, or at
least think they believe, that we have
plenty of money, notwithstanding the
evidence TO the contrary. Low prices
for our products of labor universally
prevail, and it can't be denied that all
that has been lost to labor and product
i've capital was gained by the idle rich
with their unprOductive capital.
Now let us hear what Colonel duBig-
non has to say upon the economic ques-
ton. He said in his speech at Dawson
that "labor was the unit of all value,
and then went on to explain that GER
tain ratio existed between all the differ
ent kinds of labor, professional, skilled
and unskilled; that the man who had
spent great deal of money IN preparing
himself for the work of life was entitled
to better pay than the man who does or
binary labor. The position here taken
was not only fair but true, and 1t was
from this premise that thought he
should have made his argument and
proved, if it could have been done, that
the single gold standard was sound, hon.
est and stable, and as measure OF value
had measured to all classes alike. 1t
was at this point that | first interrupted
him, and | still think that from the pre-
mise that ''labOr is the unit of all value"
it could be proven which of the two dol
lars that have pulled SO far part has
the best claim to be called honest. A
moments thought shows that there is
division of labor and an exchange of Ia
Dor going on all the time between the
working classes of this busy, working
world, and that there is a certain ratio
that is recognized as being just to all
classes of workers. This ratio is regu-
lated by dollars and cents. If we have
more money than is necessary to proper
ly transact business it depreCiates in val
ne and becomes dishonest. Those who
make cotton or wheat or anything else
| to sell would have decided advantage
over those who lived on fixed incomes,
because they could sell their produce
at high price and pay their debts and
taxes with less labor land ''labOr is the
unit of all value'O than would be just
to creditors and those who live on fixed
salaries. This principal was illustrates
| during the war. Previous to that time
a member of congress received eight dol
lars per day and was pa only for the
! time that congress was in session. A
good mechanic at this time received an
average of two dollars day. but de-
preciated currency sent the mechanic S
wages up to four dollars and every thing
else cOrrespOndingly high, and in Ordes
| to do justice to members of congress
their salaries were raised to sixteen dol.
lars per day, which, it will be noticed,
preserved the old ratio of four to one,
and at this ratio it stood up to the time
that silver was demonetized, 1873. But
how does it stand today? Why, the gold
standard has appreciated in value and
| become so dishonest that the mechanic
wv occupies the same petition that the
member of congress occupied under a
depreciatt currency. The ratio now is
| about eight to one, which shows that the
member of congress is getting more or
the mechanic less than he ought to have.
| If W.T. take the silver dollar, however, as
measure of value, it would pay the me-
ehanic four dollars per day, and this
| would restore the old ratio of four to
one. Doe not this show that silver is a
true measure of value and that gold dis
eliminates in favor of the idle rich and
against the wealth producing classes?
Colonel duBignOn spoke of the wonder
full improvement that has been made in
the manufacture of all kind of goods and
wares by the use of machioery. This is
all very nice In its place, but can he or
any one else say that the mechanic who
superIntends machine shop, no matter
how many sash, doors, blinds or boxes
may be pllced to his credit, if he does
honest, faithful work should he not re-
cejve his four dollars per day and at the
same time receive all the benefits that
innre to low prices? Those who live on
fixed incomes receive the same number
of dollars and these benefits, and why not
the working man? Should he not have
some recognition for the wealth he has
added to the world? There is not far
mer in this broad land but what knows
that it takes twice as much labor, when
measured by the present standard of
value, to pay his taxes, his Indebtedness,
his rail road fare and even the weighing
and making of his five-cenL cotton tn an
it did few years ago. If farmer car
res a load of cotton to AS. warehouse A,
weighs and marks it for twenty-five cents
and gets as much for his labor as he ever
did, but the farmer has to give several
pounds of cotton for the money where
! two pounds would have paid it only a
few years ago This principle applies
to borrowed money. If farmer bor-
rows a thousand dollars at ten per cent.
| interest it takes twice the amount of
! cotton and twice the amount of labor,
which IS the CUNT of all value" to pay
the interest on this money. If
silver should be remonetized and it
should never rise cent above its pres
ent bullion value it would pay the west
ern farmer only one dollar bushel for
his wheat an the southern farmer an
average of about eleven cents a pouad
for his cotton Is there any honest, fair
minded man who can say that these
prices are out of proportion to the pay