Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1896-08-07
THE MEANING OF 1T.
WHY ENGLAND FAVORS GOLD
MONOM
She Gets Our Products for Half Price
Gold Standardites Are Tories-Dis-
Sarding of Silver Leads to Apprecia-
tion OF Gold and Fall OF Prices.

Philadelphia American: Inc demon
etization of silver was conceived and
carried out by the creditor classes in
tent on increasing the purchasing
power of gold and thereby increasing
the value of all debts. Just as gold has
appreciated and prices have fallen, an
unjust tribute has been laid on all debt
ors, and this tribute the creditor class
es have enjoyed.
The discarding of silver as money
metal, leading to the appreciation of
gold and consequent fall of prices, has
doubled the quantity of produce that
we must export in payment of interest
charges to our foreign creditors. We
are required to give our foreign credit
ors two bushels of wheat and two
pounds Of cotton where justice requires
but one. The labor cost OF producing
cotton and wheat has not fallen with
the fall in price. 1t takes as much ex-
penditure of labor and energy to raise
the bushel of wheat and bale of cotton
to-day as twenty years ago, yet the
debt-paying power of wheat and cot
ton, as of commodities in general has
been cut in half by the fall in prices, a
fall due, not to cheapening of produc-
ton, not to any natural increase of
competition, but to the appreciation of
gold. And this appreciation OF gold
has been engineered by the creditor
classes with the purpose of depressing
prices and thus doubling the sacrifice
of labor and the products of labor
which their debtors must surrender to
them in satisfaction of their debts.
Thus, when their debtors have re-
manned solvent, the creditor classes
have been benefited by the fall in prices.
And in Great Britain the money lend
ers of London, or, rather, the traffick-
ers in credit, are all-powerful. To the
creditor classes of Great Britain the
whole world is in debt to an amount es-
timated by none at less than 10000
100000 and by some as high as $50
900, 100000. Some idea Of the immensely
Of the Indebtedness of the rest OF the
world to England can be formed by a
study of the trade statistics of Great
Britain. AS we had occasion to state
last week, Great Britain's purchases Of
commodities for the year 1895 exceeded
her exports to the value of f130, SAT ,693.
| This much more she bought than she
sold, yet she was not called upon to eX-
port any gold in payment. On the con-
| cba cyo1l IA nj
of f14,736, 715 in excess Of her imports.
And why? Simply because the worlds
Indebtedness to London, on account Of
interest payments and freights earned
by British ship owners from foreigners,
and representing interest on British
capital invested in ships and placed
at the service of others, more than off
set the immense adverse balance of
! f130, SAT 693 incurred on account OF pur-
chases made by Great Britain in excess
of her sales. So, instead of England be-
| ing called upon to export gold in pay
| ment for her tremendous imports Of
merchandise in excess Of exports the
I United States and other debtor nations,
ficient volume to meet their indebted
ness in entirety, We're obliged to send
her gold for the balance. Here, then,
We have a tribute of the debtor nations
of the world to the creditor classes of
Great Britain of over S700,000,0 00-a
sum representing, at per cent inter-
est, a principal of ST., 500, 100000.
Such is the tribute the debtor ma
lions of the world are under to Great
Britain. The further prices fall, the
greater will be the number of bushels
of wheat, of pounds of cotton and wool
and of other products that this $780,
900, 900 of annual tribute will buy and
the greater to debtor nations will be
the burden of this tribute The appre-
citation of gold, which has cut prices in
half, has in effect practically doubled
this tribute.
When our foreign creditors are ready
to voluntarily diminish this tribute by
aiding in the restoration of bimetallism
with a view to checking the fall in
prices, then Mr.. Whitney tells us it will
be time enough for us to think OF re-
storing bimetallism. But when may
we expect the British government, con-
trolled as it is by the creditor classes,
to cooperate in the restoration of BIZ
metallism? When will these creditor
classes voluntarily abandon policy
that SO long as their debtors remain SOL
vent enriches them?
Surely it is folly to wait for those
who benefit from an approaching dol
lar to cooperate with us in restoring
bimetallism. 1t is true that, in the long
run, the immoral is often the inexpedi-
ent, and that gold monometallism, If
persisted in, will end in the inability of
debtors to pay either interest or prin-
cipal. But the creditor classes of Great
Britain will never advocate bimetal-
lism until they have succeeded in con-
fscating the property of their debtors.
Then, as owners of property, their in
terests will be in restoring bimetal-
lism and raising prices; but not be-
fore. If we wait upon Great Britain,