The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1896-05-27
WHAT Is AN HONEST DoLLAR9

UQ6 question as 10 WQdL IL taxes TO make
an honest and true measure of value was
better understood by the masses of our
people, there could no longer exist any
reasonable grounds for the fierce con-
tention that is now going on about
it. General TOombs, who believed in
the free coinage of silver, said that the
question was-so plain and simple that he
could make his little granddaughter
understand it. Be that as it may, the
question, don't believe, is so mysteri-
ously complicated but that a person of
ordinary intelligence can be made to I'M
derstand it if he is willing to take the
trouble of doing little consecutive
thinking for himself. Now, l claim no
special ability for explaining a difficult
question, nor boast OF any knowledge l
have of the "Dismal Science" but l
have the uTage of my convictions and
am willing to give them for all they
are worth, with no motive whatev-
Ell but to see the country once more re-
stored to prosperity. The single gold
standardists virtually tell us that the pres
ent standard of value (which, by the
| policy of the government, is the single
gold standard) is ,"honest, sound and
STABLE and that to remonetize silver
would be dishonest. If what they claim
is true, then it must be admitted that
silver should not be remonetized, for
! those who believe in it's remonetiza-
| ton don't want ''dishOnest money!"
The question, then, as to what 1t takes
to make an honest dollar appears to be
the only question in dispute. Just here
| wish to introduce an extract from
speech of John G. Calhoun on the sub
ject of money. 1t throws much light
upon the subject that / am discussing.
1t shows what an easy matter it is to
make an honest dollar dishonest. He
says that in a civilized community
the proportion of money necessary to
to properly transact business to all 9TH
er property was about one to twenty
FIVE or thirty, or three and half to four
per cent. of all other values. Expert
ence has proved this about correct, but
whatever the amount is it measures all
other values. Mr.. Calhoun then goes on
to say. eff there is $3O,000,000 worth of
property and 100000 of money let
81, 100000 be taken from the money and
the value Of property would be reduced
one tenth orto $27, 900, 900, or if it be in
creased one tenth then the value would
rise to So, 100000 because the measure
of money is the measure of values. If
money is scarce it takes more property
to get it; If it is plentiful, it takes less
property to get the same amount of it,"
1t will be seen from the above extract
that it is not altogether,Quality but guam.
tity that makes the same kind of money
| more or less valuable las the case NAV
'be) by the manner in which it is manip-
ulated by those who control it. There
W s no change in the real value of the
property, neither was there any change
in The quality of the money, but when
$4,000, 900 had to measure $3O,000 600 of
property of course the property
had to drop to $27,000,0O0 in
order to accommodate itself to the yard
suck that was to do the measuring. [
will say just here that when money is
spoken of as a measure of value il is
used in the same sense that a half bush
Ell measure is used in measuring corn, or
yard stick in measuring cloth. The
yard stick that is used in measuring labor
and It's products, or property, we call
money. Now, is il not plain that the real
value of the property remained the same
while the yard stick that did the meas.
uring increased its length just ten per
cent. in order to cover the property.
J AhiS 10 pam AiObA tAhC 1dCt tl1dG dlG6t Tile
81 ,OO0, 900 had been withdrawn from cir.
culation as much property could be
bought with the remaining nine-tenths
of the money as could be bought before
with the whole amount. This process
OF contracting could go on unit one
i half of all the money was withdrawn
from circulation and then, with the he
manning half, buy as much property as
hn IN,,G al IL,
amount; OF in other words, one dollar
would buy as much as two We might
pause long enough just here TO ask at
which period was the money most
'SoUnd, honest and stable?" 1t must be
kept 10 mind that there is very import
ant connection between the past, pres
ent and future of our economic life.
Obligations have been incurred in
the past and these are payable
in the present or in the future.
Now to decrease the amount OF money
not only raises the value of money but
raises the value of every debt and con
sequently ADDS to the burden of every
| debtor, public or private. 1t increases
1 the value of notes and mortgages, as
we'll as bonds of every description. 1t
enPiches the creditor at the expense of
the debtor. The question may be asked,
has the United States contracted it's
currency to one-half of what is necessa-
ry TO properly transact its business? liz
the extract have given from Mr.. Cal
houu's speech on the subject OF money
he says that fr I'M three and half to
four per cent of all other values was nee
essary to properly transact the business
of civilized com munity, and that all
experience had proven this about cor
rect. The estimated value of property
in the United States is $4,000, 900
Three and half per cent. of this would