The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1898-09-02

tel keepers accompany information as TO
their rates by reference to the fact that
1t is certain amount in Mexican sill
yer, which they tell you is only so much
In American money or gold. The pur-
chase and sale of Mexican dollars are car
ried on in little shops, as is the sale Of
railroad transportation in the ticket
scalpers' quarters of the larger cities Of
our own country, and like the ticket
scalper the dealers in Mexican dollars
make large profits in handling the 30
called money, because Of its variable
and uncertain value. The value of the
Mexican dollar is given day by day'in
the daily newspapers Of the republic, as
the value Of iron and coal and variations
In the quotations or the former are as
frequent and as comparatively wide as
in the case of the latter, but the man
who tolls in the mines or at the smelter
hears nothing and knows nothing of the
existence of any money in Mexico save
the cheap silver, even though the cor
poration for which he tolls receives its
returns in gold and adjusts its business
to that basis. The laborers in the fields,
the artisans in the shops, the deft fin
gered weavers at the looms and in the
homes, and he who from daylight to
dark upon the streets and highways Of
the republic bears burdens upon his
back that horse would soon tire with
all these, laborers, farmers and me-
chanics, are the free silver servants Of
the subsidized corporations and import
ers who receive their returns in gold.
There is no cheap silver i'll Mexico for
the workingmen or their families They
give the constant labor of their lives for
a few coins, now so shrunken in value
as to barely prevent starvation, in or
der that Mexico may be proclaimed as
the unique possessor of prosperity
through its twin blessings of free silver
and cheap labor.
Subsidized Corporations.
have referred above to subsidized
corporations, and in order that it may
not be assumed that / am merely deal
ing in phrases to create prejudice it
should be explained that Mexico has
paid and is paying liberal subsidies to
the railroads, manufacturing plants,
breweries and almost every other desira-
uals may view them. Even the boast of
cheap labor, rich and undeveloped re-
sources and the assumed blessings Of
free coinage of silver were not sufficient
to prevent the annual payment from
the Mexican treasury in some recent
years of as much as one-fourth of its
entire customs receipts to but four rail-
roads alone, and the fact that many
other railroad charters have been issued
with accompanying generous subsidies
in addition to the government gifts law
ishly bestowed for various other pur-
poses leaves it not matter of surprise
that in addition to issuing bonds to the
amount of nearly $50, 600, 600 for the
payment of railroad subsidies, as was
done i'll 1890, Mexico has been compel
led to adopt and maintain system of
taxation probably the most excessive of
any nation in existence when compared
with valuations involved and the amount
of business transacted. Relative to the
bonds above mentioned, it Should also
be said that they were sold at a dis
count of M per cent, bearing per
cent interest, and were guaranteed by
IL per cent of the customs receipts. In
addition to the subsidies granted the
corporate and individual interests so fa-
vored have their federal taxes RENTED
for the term of years covered by their
concessions.
There is no other country on the globe
in which corporations are so favored
aud monopolies so dominant as in Mex
a Il 49,
that the free coinage of silver is sys-
.em necessarily favorable to the inter-
ests of the common people as against cor
porations and monopoly is surely an in
diligence in extravagant and cruel irony.
PERRY +. POWERS
'City of Mexico.