The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1897-08-02
KLONDYKE A
GREAT CURSE
Antagonistic- Views Of
George Cumming on
!. the Situation.
The Rush to the Mines De-
olared to Be Injurious
+ to. the. Country.
He Says That Gold. Causes the Fall
of Nations and.Is the Evil
-. of. the Age.

|. The popular subject of the gold of the
! KlondEke was discussed at the meeting
| of the Colum bian branch of the Socialist
Labor party last evening, but not in the
| feverish manner in which it is talked of in
other places 1t was discussed from an
economic standpoint and finally the YER
dict was that the discovery is not IN the
long run so much-of a benefit; as it Is or
will be a curse. The speaker was George
Cumming, the manufacturer, and his sub
iect was, 'What benefit will result to So
ciety from the. discovery OF gold on the
+ Klondyke?' Mr.. Cum ming is well known
in this City, having been prominently be-
fore the people in mum Der OF progressive.
and reform movements. The chairman,
R. T. :McIyor, introd uced him as one who
is not yet 8. socialist, but who has done
much good in aiding i'll the cause OF
humanity.
Mr.. Cumming began by saying that
there are two ways of looking at the sub
ject One is that the discovery will add
greatly to the CIRCULATING medium of the
world. furnish employment for large
number of idle men and cause business to
boom. The other is from the standpoint
oovery have upon society? Before answer
ing his own question the speaker re-
viewed the situation in this State, and
cal lea particular attention to the fact that
here we have everything that the human
family could wish. Yet for all that men
are compelled to tramp the streets in idle
ness, while their children suffer for the
common necessaries of life and the women
go in rags. At the same time the Stale
could support many thousands OF more
people.
Then he's spoke of gold as a medium OF
exchange, and said that men have raised
this metal to the position of god. This
excitement sim ply means that thousands
Of men are rushing off to the new fields for
the purpose OF digging more OF the same
god out of. holes in the frozen ground in
order that they may DO some more wor-
slipping.
In regard to the effect on the country,
Mr.. Cum ming stated that the discovery
will be OF no benefit. whatever. He said
that a great gold mine was never benefit
to country. He cited Spain, which in
her palmy days had the wealth of the
werld poured into her lap, but where is
she nov? Mexico and Peru, also rich in
the wealth of precious metals, are
countries to be pitied, Tor their people are
:the most degraded in the world.
Hequoted 2 Mexican saying that ga
rich gold. mine never benefited
county, Many an ancient country, he
stated, owed its downfall TO its wealth,
which always flows into the Golfers of
favored few : while the masses became
slaves. Mr.. Cumming made no exec ption
of California. He said that it was not
her gold that made this State great, but
. the other natural advantages of elm ate.
+ soil, its situation for commercial purposes
rand the opportunities for men to labor to
advantage. 1t is true the gold mines first
attracted the attention OF the world TO the
State, but other features made the State
/ great. He declared that the mines now
are no benefit 10 California.
The hydraulic apparatus have torn UP
beautiful and productive valleys and
brought ruin to hundreds OF farmers and
orchardists by the overflow of debris
/ washed from the hills ana valleys. In
other words, " said he, 1--WE have torn our
beautiful State into barren gulches and
frightfui holes in order to get out little
gold, for what purpose-to pour into the
pockets of the Rotbschilds in Europe,
Leaving us the holes"
Mr.: Cumming commended that this rush
for. gold is but the gambling fever-a de-
sire 10 become rich all at once and with
out the long labor that alone should go
with wealth. His remedy for all of these
evils is the substitution of paper money
as a representative OF la Dor and the aboli-
zion of the precious metals as IL edium
of exchange. He advocated the use of
notes simply to represent labor, the true
wealth of evey country.