The representative., 1900-10-04
MINNEAPOLIS THURSDAY. OCTOBER 1900

ue trOuDIe, my Qeaf DOCTOR, Is not 1r
the trust as an Institution, but in the
manner in which the trust is manipulat-
ed. The trust itself il most economic
institution but under the present unfair
distribution of capital in this country
the enormous advantages of the trust
all accrue, not to the public or to the
producers, but to one small class of
capitalists. The great saving in pro-
duction and distribution resulting from
cooperation is diverted from its proper
channel and turned into the pockets OF
the rich.
DoctOr-Um-well-w is your plan
for dealing with the trust?
Socialist would say let the public
own and operate all the factories, mines,
railroads, telegraphs, etc., just as they
now do the postoffices, highways and
public school system. Let every citizen
be capitalist as we'll as worker. Then
there will be no waste of labor and every
man by working FEW HOURS EACH
DAY AT SOME USEFUL EMPLOY
MENT MAY EARN A SPLENDID
LIVELIHOOD.
Doctor-But how may this be attain
ed? Would you seize by force the prop
erty of the rich?
Socialist-Oh, no; such proceedings
as that would be unnecessary. All the
government has to do, If the capitalists
refuse to sell on fair terms, is to es-
tablish plants Of it's own and sell goods
at cost price, so that the advantages
of cooperation may be reaped by the
people themselves, and the whole system
of private ownership would vanish as
If by magic. No private concern manu-
featuring for profit can compete with
the government manufacturing for use
only. Do 1 make the matter plain to
you?
Doctor-Um-yes. I think under
stand. But how about bimetallism?
That is one plank l hope we agree on,
eh?
Socialist can't swallow Bimetallism
either. 1 will explain my views on free
silver after your manner.
Doctor-How is that?
Socialist-Why, after the manner of
a physician. Now, doctor, suppose you
were called to the bedside of sick man
the first thing you would do would be
to acquaint yourself with all the
symptoms of the disease, would you
not?
Doctor-Certainly.
Well. having ascertained so much
concerning his case, would you proceed
to allay or rather beat back some certain
one of those symptoms and no more, or
would you attack the very groundwork
Of his disease?
Doctor would fight the disease in
its entirety to the best of my skill.
enthusiastically. And our coun-
trys ailments present a perfect analogy.
The panics, financial manipulation,
trade depressions, all the multitude of
evils which you claim birnetallism would
alleviate are merely symptoms of the
malady we Socialists call CAPITALISM.
Under capitalism, or the private owner
ship of the instruments of production,
the worker Is paid not more than one
fourth of the amount which the public
pays for the product of his labor. The
other three-fourths Is either wasted in
the warfare incident to a useless COM
petition or is swallowed in the million
aires profits. The worker is supposed
to buy back out of his one-fourth the
whole produce of his labor. He can't
do it, therefore his capitalist employer
seeks a foreign market, or If he can't do
that he must, perfOrce, shut down his
factory and panic ensues. So you see
this panic which you claim the gold
standard brought about really resulted
from the fact that the people out Of
their meagre wages were not able to
buy back every article their labor had
produced. Hence, overproduction, no
work, starvation. Under public owner
ship the instruments of production, all
this waste Of competition and the capt
talist's profits will be saved to the work.
er. Poverty and the panic will be for
ever abolished and we will then have
the first country on the face of the globe
in which men may truly enjoy the priv
ilege of life, liberty and the pursuit Of
happiness" PREYTON BOSWELL.
Herrin. Ill.