The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1898-09-16
The rlilk in the Cocoanut /.

platform politics" from which we clip
the following paragraph
For the first time in the history of
the country the exports are twice as great
as the imports, with trade balance of
over $500, 900, c 10 in our favor.
lust why it should be a matter for re-
joicing that in the exchange of commod-
tiles with other nations we have given
them two dollars in our commodities for
every dollar worth received i'll return
would puzzle any mind but that Of a pro-
tectionist. England imports every year
some one thousand million of dollars
more than she exports, and if there is any
falling off in this excess of imports, her
statesmen and people view it as calanl-
ity, because that represents her increase
of weelth i'll trade transactions with the
other nations. While here if we send
twice as much wealth ont of the country
TO other nations as we receive in return,
our protectionsts rejoice greatly. From
which it is logical 10 infer that the pro-
tectiouist mind is built upside down."
The above will be more luminous with
further explanatory additions which with
the Majors permission we will add.
The reason the Republican press gives
for rejoicing over this ''trade balance" is
that the balance has to be paid in British
gold, and on account of this happy con-
dition of trade we will receive gold i'll
place of paying it out to be shipped away
and have Uncle Sans credit ruined by
having his Sacred" 500, 900, 600 of gold
drawn on to pay interest on foreign debts,
and thus endanger the gold standard in
the estimation of the people, by the gov
ernmeut selling bonds to buy gold to pay
interest on stocks and bonds held abroad.
This $500, ooo, 900 of goods serves to pay
that interest and dividends, and make
the "sacred reserve" safe for the time
being, which is lying idle in the U. S.
Treasury while the people are paying a
per cent on bonds that it represents. Four
per cent on 500, 900, 900 amounts to
S4,c 10000 annually of tax paid for keep
ing the sacred gold reserve. The
national banks own these bonds and get
the $4,000, 900 of interest. They get in
addition 500 900, oco in currency for which
they pay per cent per annum for the
use of 20 years. Now we begin to see
through the magic glass which shows it
to be good thing to sell $500, 900, oco
worth of goods and get back in return
little gold and some railroad stocks and
bonds. 1t helps keep the sacred reserve"
from being drawn down to pay foreign
interest. The farmers wheat and manu-
facturers' goods paid it last year, and Mr..
Mckinley didn't have to sell the bonds to
pay it as Cleveland did, to protect the
gold standard.
But why is it good thing for England
to 'import every year some one thousand
millions of dollars worth more than the
exports" when it would be ruin to the
United States to do the same thing? The
reason is very simple. Gladstone said
the people of foreign countries owed Eng
land $40, 900, ooo, 900 and probably much
more. This thousand millions of
imports which England receives is paid
for with the interest due on the debts the
English hold on the people of other
countries. The interest from the debts
they hold against this country alone, of
States, cities, railroads, street railways
mines, agricultural lands,-they own
100000 acres of the latter-etc, is esti-
mated to amount from $3.50, 600, 900 to
$500, 600, 900. Now it is a very nice thing
to have all the people of all the world
working for and sending things to Eng
land i'll payment of this interest The
English live out of this thousand millions
of products they import and pay for with
interest. To view the condition micro
scopically it is like man sitting in his
arm chair at his ease, who holds mort
cages on half dozen farms. The farm
ers work and sweat through the whole
year raising grain, hay, cattle and hogs,
eggs and butter to pay the man in the
easy chair interest. He is importing"
their produce and consuming it. The
farmers are 'exporting'' more than they
get from the man in the easy chair but
they are not Dragging about their balance
of trade.
Our rogues and fools are Dragging over
the same thing when transferred to
national affairs. If the people of this
country who hold no obligations against
the people of foreign countries were to
import a thousand millions of goods and
consume them as the English do, we
would be bankrupt i'll year.
The gold standard makes this produce
cheap which the English buy with their
interest, because it makes money scarce
and scarce money makes low prices |
When products are low in price their
interest will pay for more of them. In
place of having low priced products to
pay these English interest with, our pro-
ducts ought to be high priced, or nor
mally high. Do you see what pesky fools
we are to advocate gold standard and low
prices, and how worldly wise the English
money loaning, debt owning class are in
advocating them?
The way we give other nations two
dollars in our commodities for every dol
lar we receive is by giving the English
two dollars worth of produce for one dol
lar OF interest. The exchange of products
for products is fair swap because all