The broad ax., 1898-02-19

LET Us REASON lOtfE rEn
Tar money question ought to Be
one Of the easiest Of all to settle
If We viii only allow our plain
common sense to have fair play.
Our wise men ell agree that
amorey Is merely an instrument
for Facilitating exchanges" Such u
the definition given BY ali the gold
standard authorities. Bat when
you ask them, s'why must this
mere instrument for exchanging be
made out of such rare and costly
metal as gold or silver" they re-
ply, because those metals have an
intrinsic value that enables them
to pay the debt at tie last resort." "
In other words the debts of COM
merce that are forever floating
about and represented by paper,
are redeemed or cancelled by the
precious metal. But, Is there
nothing else that will cancel this
volume of debt but the small
modicum Of gold kept for that pur-
poser aCertainly there Is" they
viii reply. sThe credit which the
very existence of the floating debt
presupposes, whenever it meets the
debt wipes it out, as is daily IL
lustrated in the. proceedings at the
great CLEARING houses of cities, and
BY the operation of checks at the
banks everywhere"
Then it must be admitted that
the bill of the debtor Is cancelled
BY the bill of the creditor as soon
Is il falls into the debtors hands.
There is, then, something else, be-
sides the supposed intrinsic value
of the metals which is payment at
the last resort, and it is the float
ing credit. Upon investigation We
find that at all ordinary times this
credit is performing this business
of.payment to an amount equal to
at least % per cent. of all the
business done In the civilized
world. How comes it, then, that
we permit this paltry amount Of
less than five per cent. In metal
money to master the situation?
What are the means employed TO
vest such potency IN such a small
sum. The one rule means by which
this is done is the legal tender Law,
which declares that nothing but the
coined metal shall be sta lawful
tender for debt" The devil him.
self must have laughed In glee at
the cunning Of the eontriver of this
and at the stupidity of mankind in
submitting to it, while at the same
time pretending they were living
under governments of liberty and
equality. So much for that.
The facts above stated show that
money is really nothing but credit
In circulation, represented by
popular tokens. Proof: Subtract
this credit or confidence We put in
the tokens, such as bills or metal
pieces, and they no longer pass for
money. Neither gold nor silver is
money because, if no such metal
existed, we would still have money.
Credit in motion Is the money, be-
cause If there were no such thing
We could not have any money. But
the law steps in and violates the
whole nature of the thing by de-
claring that nothing is legal tender
but the metal. How many fool
things have been made into law
and of all things that is the most
foolish. Here Is one great nation
with revenues of some six hundred
millions; here are over forty states
and a hundred great cities with
revenues equal to three times more
almost three billions of debt due
and accruing all the time from
their people to their own govern
ment, and yet not a dollar of all
this precious credit dare be made
legal tender. Why2 Simply be.
cause the vast money power seated
at London says '.No." Were such
sensible thing to be allowed, then,
indeed, "0thell0's occupations
gone" Hour.