The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1900-11-23
The Laborer Is the Capitalist.

The savings banks of the United States
have on deposit over so, 500, 600, 900. The
national banks on an average for several
months past have had on deposit somewhat
less than So, 500, 900, 900.
| Let Us suppose the two amounts TO he the
SANE. Que represents the savings ~ the
work ingmeD, which are his property sbso
| lutey. The other represents the surplus
capital of the manufacturer and merchant,
aarge part OF which Is indebtedness. Little
or none OF the savings banks deposits repre-
sent debts, for the farmer or mechanic does
not put money in the savings bank when he
| owes anything.
Study thu figures as you will and they tell
| that the prudent farmer am laboring man
Is furnishing the money for borrowers in
every industry. The laborer has become
the capita ist and is lending his employer
the money with which he does business.
This was most wildly illustrated recently at
a campaign meeting
A real eatate dealer and builder who was
something of a speaker was addressing an
audience in his home city. Every one
knew the builder. who had put up hundreds
OF houses and sold them on the instalment
plan. 1t took large capital, which the
builder borrowed from the savings banks,
giving mortgages on the finished houses as
security. Suddenly the speaker said
SIS John MaDgan here?"
John Mangan rose up
"John," said the builder, You have
worked for me several years"
81 have" said john
'And you have earned a good many
dollars and saved some, suppose@
81 own my house and have 81, 200 in the
bank" said John.
"Thank you; that is all" said the speaker,
and. continuing to the audience, he said:
NOW, what is Johns 81 200 doing? I'll
tell you. am borrowing it and paying 5
per cent for it. am borrowing the savings
of several hundred men and using 1t In de-
veloping real estate and putting up houses,
which sell to these men and other people
on installments. So, really, John is the
capitalist and am the labOrer."
The audience was quick to see the point
and got new insight into the difference
between capital and labor. The incident
and lesson here conveyed should convince
every one of the importance of continuing
our present monetary and tariff laws. We
must not only see to 1t that these laborers
continue to have work and good wages, but
that their dollars shall be worth 100 cents
when they are deposited in the bank and
worth 100 cents when loaned to the builder,
and still worth 100 cents when withdrawn
to send the boys to college, or for any other
purpose
And there Is another view of these COM
parative bank deposits. The money in the
savings bank Is the absolute property of the
depositors, most of whom are farmers and
mechanics. The money of the manufactur.
ers and merchants on deposit In the nation
al banks represents In great measure In.
debtedness for goods and labor. So that
large part of this vast sum also belongs to
the laborer when Saturday night comes.
Nor does even this measure all of the
laborer's wealth. There are millions more
ia loan associations, trust companies and
insurance premiums, invested In real estate,
mortgages, stocks and bonds. In no other
country on earth does such condition exist.
In no other part OF the world is the ~
called workingman 81 we'll off as In pro,pc
ed, sound money America. To the work.
ingman of no other country in the world is
the economic and financial policy OF his
government of such vital, far-reachipg i'm
portance as it Is to the workingman of the
United States.