The Indianapolis journal., 1898-01-26
Arguments Of Silverites Against a
Gold Standard shown to BE Based
on Erroneous Theories.
RENTS, PROFITS AND WAGES
HOW THEY WOULD he AFFECTED
BY MONETARY CHANGES.
Financial Facts OF Interest to Work.
ingmen, Manufacturers and others
Ranking and Currency Reform.

PHILADELPHIA, Jan. 25.-The seventh
annual meeting of the Trades League of
Philadelphia was held tonight in the Acad-
emy of Music, at which the principal
speaker was Hon. Lyman j. Gage, secre-
tary of the treasury. w. w. Foulkrod,
president of the league. introduced Secre-
tdry Gage. He was warmly received and
held the attention of the large audience
throughout He spoke on the subject of
Finance" and his remarks were frequent
~ punctuated with applause Mr.. Gage
said, in part:
There are two opinions OH the money
question now, more or less firmly held by
those who entertain them The one supports
the re-establishment of silver in the privi-
lege of free coinage at the mint at the ratio
of 16 20 /, irrespective of all consequences
near or remote, and without regard to our
membership in the family of nations. The
other opinion Is that the present gold
until by international agreement the pres
ent disparity between the commercial and
the legal ratio of silver to gold shall be
How can we learn to correct erroneous
opinion? A reasonable sympathy is a pow
erful solvent of misunderstanding. Unrea-
simply harden the mind they neither win
conviction nor compel the judgment. The
more thoroughly a man is convinced of the
truth and justice of his position, the better
ought to be the assurance to him that time
IS working for the cause in which he be-
lieVes, and the greater should be his faith
that with patient effort it will triumph.
What, then, is the argument by which
sitions? Many letters received from the
most intelligent of these, and notably one
from. the leader of a great organization,
case. The following IS a favorite, but mis-
leading. argument against our monetary
Under the present industrial system all
products are the result Of three necessary
factors--land, labor. capital-and among
in some proportion divided. 1t is then
averred that land Tor renD has the. ability
to fix its share, and that capital (fnterest
and profit has almost equally absolute
power. As the division is made In dollars,
the result of price, falling prices must be
will not engage in productivity except upon
the terms they themselves dictate. Gold,
prices Of commodities have fallen. and be,
cause of the exacting power of land and
capital, the evil effect has been felt by
wages In the form of diminished share.
Now, If this statement We're true it would
of necessity be evidenced by an actual fall
in wage prices.
THE TEST OF FACT.
This brings the question to the test of
fact 1t has been asserted upon authority
and l believe it to be approximately true.
that within the period 1s72-s1 prices have
fallen an average of 2711 per cent. am at
liberty, therefore. to adopt the same au-
thority as to the course Of wages. 1t APP
pears from the exhaustive figures of the
commissioner of labor the authority cited,
that within the period 1921 wages have
increased an average of 10 per cent TAX
ing the greater power OF wages to command
things by reason of their lower price, the
economic advantage gained by labor is still
further emphasized. In 1872 800 in gold
would buy a certain amount of living; IN
"a win fal
2l12 per cent. more than it did in 1872; and
wages having increased 10 per cent. in the
800 in 1872 received $110 in 1891. From the
double advantage of decreased prices and
increased wages it follows that in 1891 the
same labor would purchase 81 7-f0 per cent.
more of living than it did in 1872. Let US
apply these. advantages by example.
In 1891 the labor that supported fifteen
people supported only ten in 1872. In 1891
from the same labor in 1872, man living
upon the same scale would have over one
third of his wages to put in bank or better
provide for his family. / am further borne
out in this demonstration by the statistics
of savings banks covering the period under
consideration. Since 1871 the number OF
depositors in such institutions has increased
from less than two millions to more than
saving in the United States has increased
Sc per cent.
Which of the three participants in pro-
duction-rent, profits, wages-has suffered
from this falling price? None of them nec-
essariy, but IL any it is demonstrated that
best takes the minor share, but interest, 1t
can be clearly perceived, has fallen 50 or 40
per cent. within the last thirty years;
Dividends on railroad capital have fallen IS
per cent 1S79-1S95. What is true of interest
IS in the long run true of profits, since In
an economic sense they are one. How is it,
then. that prices have fallen. since no sacri-
flee has necessarily resulted to any of the
three factors in production? An Illustration
or two viii be- more suggestive by way OF
answer than page of argument. A few
weeks ago manufacturer said to me:
which win save a by-product worth to our
establishment $4,000 year. For thirty
Years we have helpiessly Witnessed a waste
until hundreds of thousands of dollars in
forever lost
We'll said better late than never.
THAT $4,000 year will make a good addi-
fion to your former annual profits
No, he answered, that's the worst of
IL. We can't keep il. Our neighbors in the
same line have put IN the same appliances
and the whole saving comes right off the
price of our goods. The consumer gets it,
Neither rent, profits nor wages were af-
fected. except that wages became more ef-
fective as TO the command of soap, the COM
modify in question.
THE PRICE OF OIL
Thirty years ago the price of refined pc
troleum was $3.50 per barrel, or 81 cents per
gallon. The price of crude oil was $5.Ss a
barrel, or II 7-iO cents a gallon. The charge
for converting the crude oil into q proper
iiluminant for the poor mans cottage was
therefore, SSH a barrel or 19 $40 cents a
gallon. Last year the average price of
crude oil was 80 cents a barrel aud refined
$3.50 a barrel: thus the price of transform
Ing crude oil into refined was reduced to
Sll0 from $S.17. the price of thirty years
ago. The only one of the three factors
named as elements in production which
yielded a penny 10 the great decline was
iand or rent, since the raw petroleum de-
Chned. Science discovered many things be-
lore undreamed of i'm the raw products.
Iiere Was great saving to the humble
Ihere was more work for labor. There
was equal or increased reward to both prof
us ana wages. A multitude of similar
oases could be quoted which all would rec
osnizs. IN forty years steel has fallen TO
Less tnan one-fifth of it's former price.
transportation. the joint product of land
.dUor ana capital, controlled and managed
py anlity, has fallen more than one-half
but II wages have been sacrificed in these
great economies IL is nowhere discoverab bic.
IN the argument from the other side
tnere IS not strict uniformity Some admit
that the fall In price is partly due to econ
olnlzlng processes but maintain that gold
mas advanced, and thus helped the decline
III prices. The assertion that gold has an
areclated ~ difficult of proof nor is il easy
70 feIute the proposition. Dogmatic asser-
lion Is not proof either for or against that
proposition. IT II be true that II has appre-
clated and the higher value has been man
\ ifested by fall in the price of things for
which II Is offered In exchange that fact
could not be cited prejudicial TO wages
PAID labor. since the same wages pafd in
Boid or It's equivalent were thus rendered