Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1908-02-19
The Road to FAIR Prices.
Jennings, La. Feb. IA, OS.

J. !
Editor Democrat
Not long ago in the apnuls of eter-
nifty we hear that all men were mon
keys and those who took to the
woods are monkeys still but those
who took to the prairies developed
into men. Not long ago the finan-
ces of the world were in the hands
of the monkeys, it was give and
take, Barter" In New England,
cod fish was money; in Virginia, to.
bacco; in the South, beads and shells
in the West, wampum. Those who
took to the prairies took gold, silver
and government paper; with its use
they invented labor saving machin-
cry. Naturally opposition was de-
veloped by the same old kickers
who burned witches, destroyed
sewing machines and harvesters,
burned greenbacks, and used all
that cunning and trickery derived
from nearby ancestry to make mon
ey scarce and money panics regu-
lar thing.
You see we are still in the mon
keys hands at set tines, at least as
often as we accumulate anything
worth taking, and now they are
monkeying with the currency to
make it as elastic as their conscien-
ces.
| note that the agricultural pro-
ducts of the United States are seven
billion. four hundred thousand dol
lars, the largest ever made, owing to
larger yield and better prices, and
yet some monkey says our prices
are too high. (High prices bring
prosperity, low prices bring panic
Panics are not necessary evil, they
are an unmitigated evil in a new
and growing country. "You are 60
ing too fast. prices are too high"
is the robbers cry Stand and deliv-
err. The greatest criminal is he
who knowingly and maliciously
makes money scarce. Having been
through seven panics and suffered
in common with the world, J. know
what makes men desperate and fills
the criminal cells in prisons. i
know tho criminal calendar is
heightened by hard times for want
of what? Money. Who profits by
panic (cent per cent? and the man
who gloats over and rejoices at the
misery of his fellows. Low prices
on account of large yield are a
blessing to producer and consumer
but low prices on account Of scar
city of money are a curse. Panic
prices are disasters brought about
by too little money to do the ever
growing business of the country. In
Twenty years our money has increas-
ed so per cent, but our business
over 300 per cent, besides we use
more money than ever in proportion
to business done. Zone price and
30 days" are a late invention, sixty
years ago we carried discounts 6
q year to settlement.
How can we have more money
that will save the country from pan.
les and general disaster? Free
coinage of gold and silver, ther
gold and silver certificates Of small
denomination and government
money legal tender Tor all debts ant
demands. | will quote John G
Calhoun in congress 1887, and lie
me say that his veiws expressed ii
Congress sew nty years ago are jus
as new and true today as then.
quote
"On what then ought pape
currency to rest? On demand an,
supply, simply which regulates TIL
value Of everything else. 1t woult
contain within itself a self-regula
ting power-the right kind O
!, elasticity supply and demand
"Again the revenue is the state and 0
|, course those who control the revenu
control the state. Should tina
tremendous power be given to an
{ individual or any combination G