The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-11-22

the fall in prices was to be accounted
for by the scarcity of gold, which had
been left for the last ten years or so,
ever since the German government be-
gan TO take steps to have a gold coin
age"
Summing up the evidence brought
before them in relation to the currency,
the commissioners conclude that the
characterization of silver has had Sc
rious effect upon prices, and that the
chief question to consider is whether a
reversal Of that policy is not possible.
They see no other prospect of arrest
ing that constant and progressive fall
in prices, which, by universal admis-
sion, has been the cause which lies at
the root of agricultural depression;"
and they strongly urge the government
to cooperate with foreign powers in
arranging for an international confer
ence upon the question, thus giving eff
feet to the resolution unanimously
agreed TO in the house of commons on
Feb. 26, 1895.
The views of the majority of the
commissioners, as expressed in the re-
port just noticed, are powerfully Yup-
ported in separate report by Mr.. r.
L. Everett, in which he shows conclu-
sively that all past periods of agri-
cultural depression have ~ en- periods
of currency contraction, While times of
prosperity were coincident with cur
rency expansion, verifying his state
ments by the evidence of the highest
contemporary authorities.
Sir Robert Giffen, though a mono
metallist, admits that gold has appre-
ciated, and makes this curious declara
ton:
An this can be said also without i'm
plying any objection to the proposition 81
largely supported in the main report that
foreign competition is THE (hiS italicS)
main cause of the agricultural depression,
and that the progress of invention. the
cheaDening of means of communication,
and the like influences, are to be regard
ed as permanent causes of lower and low
er prices. There is nothing inconsistent
between this latter view and the view
that the contraction of gold during the
last quarter OF century IS connected.
with the course of prices. The cruX OF
the question is that whereas for 20 years
before 1873, owing to the state of the gold
supply and demand. the progress of in
vention, cheapening of means of commu-
nicaton, and the like influences, We're at
tended by no general fall in prices, but
prices rather advanced; now, owing to the
difference in the conditions of gold supply
and demand, the progress of invention.
cheapening of means of communication,
and the like influences, have been accom-
panied with a fan of prices. In other
words, the phenomenon to be explained is
why the causes referred to produced NO
fam of prices before 1873, but were ever
found consistent with a rise and why they
produced a fall after 1875"
Does the dog Wag the tail, or the tai
the dog? In spite of all inventions, i'm
Drovements of communication, and the
like influences in the 20 years before 1873,
when there was an expansion OF the cur
renc-r. prices rose: and with contrac-
ton of the CURRENCY after 1873, plus the
Influences mentioned, prices fell enor-
| mouslv Yet Sir Robert Giffen thinks
{ ho re
obviously when assisted by contraction
of the currency may be styled the cause
of agricultural depression produced by
the fall of prices. Surely the more potent
influence upon prices was the one which
! prevailed when the two were in conflict
and not the one which was then beaten
and only showed its effect when its for
mer opponent became transformed into
an ally. So long as the state of the cur
rency was against a fall in prices, the
/ cheaDeling of production and transport
/ was obscured, and it was only when the
I state of the currency was in favor of a
/ fall that the fall occurred. 1t is obvious
! that the former was the stronger in the
first period, and there is, therefore, every
! reason to believe that it was the stronger
/ in the second. How; then, can Sir Robert
/ Gi@en contend that the latter may rea-
/ sonably be regarded as the cause of agri-
! cultural depression? Besides. it is demon
strabe that there has not been any suffi.
/ cient production and transport to account
I for q quarter of the fall in prices; and
! AGAIN, the reducUlOn that has taken place
/ IS itself in great measure the result in
stead of the cause of the fall in prices
/ Moreover, Sir Robert reminds his readers
/ that ne predicted the fall in prices before
/ it set in, his reasons for anticipating the
fall being based mainly On monetary con
siderations.''
From the fact that money wages have
not generally fallen, while the purchas-
ing power of those wages has increased
it does not follow necessarily that work
men are not losers by the fall in prices
In all probability, if prices had not
! dropped, wages would have risen greatly
/ in consequence of the prosperity which
would have favored producing industries
AS it is, although wages have been gen
/ orally kept up. employment in many in
dustries has been much less regular than
it was when those industries We're in q
| prosperous condition. It is certainly sc
/ in agriculture, and. besides, farm labor
ers wages have fallen in many English
counties. If agricultural prices had beer
maintained at thu general level attained
! in the first half of the seventies there
! can be no doubt that there would have
| been such development in farming en-
4 terprise as would have produced a con-
siderable advance in agricultural wages
| Even now, after years OF cutting dowr
! farming expenses to the utmost. farm