The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1902-05-31
lSlT POSSIBLE TO OVERPRODUCE?

I Of wealth as the voluntary process Of nature in
producing the tree.
| just as production Is a creation Of utility and
valuc, so consumption Is destruction Of utility
| and value. Food Is consumed by eating 1t; coal
Is consumed by burning It; lumber, stone, brick,
| and iron are consumed by using them in the
manufacture or construction Of things desired by
| man. Houses, ships, machines, clothing, and
untensis, are consumed by wearing them ont.
| Take the article Of milk an illustrations:
| Delivered In cans on the farm, It may he worth
cents per quart; delivered at the railroad depot
! in a city. II may be worth cents; delivered TO
| the merchant it may be worth cents; delivered
to the residences OF the citizens. it may he worth
| 10 cents per quart. II Ave thousand quarts OF
| milk had been consumed on the farm, II would
| have been a consumption Of 800 In value. II
consumed in the city at the residences Of citi.
| zcns, 1t would have been consumption of $500
| IN valuc. although the same quantity was In.
| volvcd in either case BY the process Of farm.
| ing 500 Of cxchangcablc value was produced;
| by the acts OF commerce, s4O0 of exchangeable
value was produced.
| In short, creation OF value. utility and wealth,
| is production: destruction OF value. utility and
wealth is consumption. When therefore the
words production or consumption are used in
this paper It must be understood to mean pro.
| duction Of wealth or consumption Of wealth.
PRODUCTION IS CREATION or POWER TO
| The theory Of ovcr.production Is founded upon
the belief that by tho introduction OF machinery,
| improved methods. etc, it is possible for man
| to produce more than man is able to buy, or
more than man desires to acquire. Let us
| analyzc these propositions.
Is it possible for man to produce more than
man is able to buy? The members Of an uncvil.
! izcd tribe who each produce only what is ncces
sarily consumed in the daily maintenance of cx-
| istcnce, possess nothing with which to buy the
products of Others. While such conditions
tnue, wealth and buying power do not exist in
that community, end the different members Of
The tribe can only exchange personal services for
| personal services. But when each member of the
| tribe produces something of value in excess OF
| daily necessities, something desired by another
| then each has something with which to buy
the products of others and the production of
! wealth,-the creation of buying power-has com.
mcnced in that tribe. In other words, products
| are buying power; money is only the medium by
| which products exchanged.
| Money is necessity to modern civilization,
| but unfortunately its use obscurcs or dstorts in
| dustrial facts. Producers. especially wage.work-
| ers, apt TO think their comforts would he
| doubled if their pay was doubled. To analyae
| this. let us suppose that at given time the pay
| Of all persons engaged in any gainiul occupa-
| ton be doubled, while production remains the
same. Is ii not clear that tine cost OF everything
would be doubled, and that each one with his
double pay would be able to buy only as much
as he did before? On the other hand, suppose
| that the pay remains the same to each, and that
| at given time by improved machinery or other
| wise, the productive force Of each worker he
| doubled; is it not plain that the cost of every.
| thing would~hc reduced onc-half, and that each
| one, on the same pay, would be able to buy
twice as much as before? The only practical way
to double the reward to workers. is to double
| their products.
W. Stanley Jevons says: ''It is absurd To sup
pose that people can become richer by having
| less riches. To become richer we must make
more richcs'' Furthermore, wealth accunula.cs
only when production exceeds consumption. The
| ninety-four billions of wealth which existed in
the United States in 1900 was simply the result
| Of an accumulation Of products-an accumulation
| Of nnety-four billions of exchanseablc values
ninety-four billions of buying power. There can
be no year, month or day, when the value of pro-
| ducts is not exactly equal to the buying power
| which exists in those products. Hence it is not
| possible for mankind TO increase products, so
! rapidly or greatly that it would exceed the
ability of mankind, by purchase or barter 10
acquire from each other all Of those products
THE DEMAND FOR WEALTH is LIMITLESs.
Is it possible for man to produce more than
| man desires to acquire?
1 There is no limit to human desire Every man
| who owns factory, house a yacht, would
| like to own larger n better one. The man
who controls bank, would like to control i.
| number of banks and a number of trust com.
| panies; having gained these. he would like 10
| control great railroad systems, steamship lines,
| coal mines and manufactures; having gained
| these in one country, he would like to control
them in all countries. Mans desires increase with