El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1900-11-02
THE SIMPLICITY OF THE MONEY
QUESTION.


to make it. the money question is real
" the simplest and most lucid of all
economic questions.
The compleXity is all in the minds
of those who cannot or will not think
clearly on the pIainest and most OBJ
vious of every day matters. II is they
who confuse counsel with words of
unwisdom. and would befog even the
multiplication table with a swirl OF
sounding verbiage. They mistake the
obscurity OF their own thought. for
complexity of the subject.
In nothing outside of religious dis
cussion has this class of purblind, al
legged thinkers, who prefer sonorous
words to- ideas. and jingling phrases
for truths. been so successful in jug
CLING with public opinion as in the
money question. Though the money
question is naturally as clear
and easily determinable. as the
cardinal points of the COM
pass. yet the exhalations of this quack
thinking have raised Newfoundland
fog which obscures the north star even
To navigators from whom We should
expect better things.
In the FIRST place. the consideration
OF all economic questions begins prop
erly and scientifically with inquiry as
to what the common. average. every
day man really wants. This is the
Alpha and Omega OF political economy.
and no wilderness OF words can
change it. The average. ordinary man
is a thousand times more numerous
than any other class. and his wants
make the iron laws OF the economic
universe substantially. this man
wants the same thing. whether he be
a free American citizen. in Ell Paso. or
u lately emancipated serf on Russian
steppe- That is. he wants to exchange
the products OF ais own labor for the
greatest possible amount of the pro-
ducts of the labor of others. This is
substantially the ruling thought in the
mind of every man in the world he he
civilized or savage. Jew or Gentle.
bond or free. \ piece of money sim
ply represents To him an equivalent
for his own labor. which he can ex-
change for the products of other mems
labor.
II is absolutely all there is of the
question. though a million volumes
be written in description.
Just so long as he is satisfied that
the money offered him will be accept
ed by other men Tor like amount of
the products of their labor then that
money is good money" The moment
that he begins to have fears that they
will not do So then il becomes poor
money" deprecated money. free sill
ver." and so on through the whole
dreary catalog of impositions upon the
people.
The power Of the government no
matter how strong nor how ruthless
ly exercised. is impotent to change
this. The government can. il is true
any kind of money TO be re-
ceIved for taxes. to be accepted for
judgments of the court. and in pay
ment of debts previously contracted.
But there its power ends. and after
all. such transactions as these form
but very small part of the business
Of life. II can compel the baker to
sell the bread he may have on his
shelves for a certain amount OF this
But IL the baker says Il will
bake no more bread for that price.
that ENDS IL and the baker loses. Ii
can take away a farmers crop. and
pay him in that money. buff the
farmer says. II will raise no more
grain unless | get good money for it,
the government is helpless and the
farmer ruined.
An everyday transaction between
Two citizens of FL Paso will illustrate
the science of money better than
could be done in thousand ponder
ous tones.
A says to Is: I'D like to- have you
do some work for me-"
asks: How much will you pay"
A: $3.50 a day"
There comes instantly into BIS
mind what that amount means to him
in securing the products of other mems
labor He is sure that the men who
sell the things he wants will be glad to
give him sI.5O's worth for the product
Of his days labor. and he accepts AS
offer.
But if MIR. Bryan should come in.
and carry out his policy of. opening
the minis to the free and unlimited
coinage of all the silver that the eager