Kansas agitator. [volume] (Garnett, Kan.) 1890-1905, 1898-04-15
ANOTHER CONFLICT.
THE USURERS AGAINST THE
WORLDS PRODUCERS.
how the Laborer Even Upon Ills Own
Land Is Robbed by the Exclusive Gold
Stsndard-First Principles of Money
Clearly Illustrated.

in long articles, even through whole
volumes, when by adopting a natural
process of reasoning and going back
to the origin of labor 1t can be made
plain. First, it will be conceded that
all wealth was made by labor. And
Mill truly says that all the capital we
see with few exceptions has been made
by human labor and care within
very few years, so rapidly are things
destroyed by time and use. Now let us
imagine the first man at work.
Whence came his wages? They must
have come out of the product Of that
labor. In some way through that
product he must have gained his sub
sistence, even If no more. No old cap
ftaIs could be called on to pay him.
And the whole product was his own,
no one else could demand any portion
OF it. AS other men began to labor
and produce things, a system OF barter
ensued- That is, the exchange Of one
thing for another. We can see that
here was small opportunity for one
person to get advantage over another
by cheating or abusing the necessities
of others or by forestalling markets for
some articles. Thus some would get
rich above others. Moreover, the in
dustry and dexterity of some would al
ways make them weather.. Also. as
all are not alike, in every free society
are some who care not to acquire
wealth. But no wrong could be done
to others, on any large scale, under
this condition. Every person would
get the whole value of his labor 80
far as his own will was concerned.
AS it often happened that in this bar
tering one thing might be worth more
than another, and could not be divided,
the trade would be uneven and would
call for boot (from Botan, Anglo-Sax.,
whence one of the two words but
used in England, meaning beside,
moreover. etc.,. Then credit began.
Then this credit was by custom given
to some article handy to carry and
generally desired. Shells, bits OF
metal, ETC., were long used. Still the
Iaborer received the whole value OF his
products, if he desired it. No one
could deprive him Except by slavery
which grew out of war;, no one grew
all powerful by riches. The govern
ments that raised revenues were paid
In kind. Cattle, grain, etc., were PAID
in taxes, at enormous cost to collect
and care for such things. Then some
one naturally said: why go to such
expense to collect and pay out these
revenues? The people pay these reve-
nues. and government distributes them
to its soldiers and servants. Just
give to every man a billet or wedge
of metal marked at so much value and
let each one collect his own. A SIM
pIe invention like our postage stamp,
but saving enormous labor. These bill
lets so used and wedges or coigns
(whence our words bill, coin, today.
were called billeting, or quartering on
the people, and they became very pop
uIar money tokens. Still labor re-
ceived its entire product and nothing
was taken from it but taxes to support
the simple government estaDllsheq.
Later, when the spirit of conquest grew
and force became greater slavery ana
IandIordism were established, Wnlcn
robbed the laborer of all but meagre
subsistence Still the free laborer re-
ceived all he produced in his own
ground. The instruments of exchange
were simple and did the work thor
oughly. AS ocean commerce grew the
device of bills and drafts on such banks
as Amsterdam and Genoa did all the
money work in the great wholesale
transactions for centuries. 1t was not
until the court jewelers. got influence
enough with rulers to procure the en-
actment of laws declaring the billets,
wedges. coigns and other devices to
represent the instrument OF exchange
should be made out of precious metals
and skJuld be the sole lawful tender
In payment of all debts, dues and
obligations, public or private, that any
peculiar advantage over labor was
given, and in a way little dreamed OF.
The so simple seeming law converted
the common medium of exchanges into
the most potent lever for mastering
the world-an engine OF TREMENDOUS
and growing force-the master or all
values, prices, policies and labor.
Henceforth labor, instead OF being
paid out of its products direct, began
to be paid out of old capitals accumu-
lated at interest. Says John Adams in
his inaugural: prior to the downfall
of feudaIism nations paid their war ex-
penses by direct revenues raised at
the time. Since then they have run
into debt and issued bonds for the
money to carry on wars"-and ne
warns this nation to beware of this.
He might also have said that labor
the war against difficulty and to sus-
tain Iife-also was paid its wages d.
rect, but that now its wages came from
borrowed capital. .t
See then-prior to this legal tender
Law labor subsisted and progressed on
its own produces then 1t subsists
out of old capital gathered by usury
snd borrowed by speculation at inter-
est to hire the laborers. What be-
comes of the wealth made by labor?
All the surplus is piled up to make new
eaDitals. to lend at interest. These