Montana news. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1904-191?, 1909-07-22
Getting Something
For Nothing.
By Charles II. Digit, N. d.,
University of Minnesota.

Inlividualism demands profit in the
production and exchange OF COM
modities. Socialism demands that
production and exchange OF commodi-
tics be for use purposes. and not for
profits ~
The capitalist class generally wants
TO maintain the profit system which
extorts from wage earners IS worth
of labor for 81 of wages. and whose
purpose i'm other respects is to get
something for nothing.
Suppose 1 have $1,000 in the bank,
and / ask you how much you viii
give for IL. You might reply that
you would not give more fthan a
thousand dollars.
II should say that wanted three
thousand and would get II. you might
advise me to take 1t II i met any
person so lacking in cerebral gray
matter as to offer me $4,000 for
81 900.
The next day I buy a corner lot
with my one $1,000. Some time
later l meet you. and knowing that
you want a lot to build on. I ask
you to look at mine. You do so. II
pleases you. and you ask my price.
Four thousand dollars. reply. You
think II too much. but offer $4,000.
which I accept. How much. now. did
you pay me for my s1.ooo7
So long as my $1,000 was In money
and you knew its value. you would not
give me more than its value; but when
exchanged 1t for something else Ano
concealed it's value from you. you gave
"a OOO0 for si.ooO. and l got some
thing (s2.000) for nothing-no. not
for nothing. but for my superior
earning capacity" which the fndivid-
ualist would not have restricted.
This method of profit making Is the
order all along the line In the busi-
ness world under capitalism. II applies
to the sale of everything. from pa
per of pins to a palace.
The system is so foul as to be
stencil in the nostrils of millions OF
right thinking people, and will have
to go under the advance of Socialism.
Those who would keep the profit
making system but would regulate
it," would not have the robbers stop
robbing. but would only have them be
a little more kind and considerate In
their robbing methods.
Under Socialism a certain period OF
social labor time would be the unit of
value. and this work time necessary to
produce any commodity would fix its
yaIue commodities would then be ex-
changed value for value or bought at
a price thus fixed. instead OF at the
highest price which deception can Sc
cure for them.
Again. to illustrate how capitalism
enables the cunning and the strong TO
live i'm idleness and luxury on the toll
of others. suppose that family OF
ten persons retires from civilization
and goes out into the wilderness to
live.
At first 1t requires the combined ef-
forts of all of them to gather suf-
ficient food onwhich to live. But as
time goes on they bring a patch of
land under cultivation, they build a
hut and improve their crude tools OF
industry. and finally come to produce
a little more food than they consume.
Suppose that at this stage one MEM
ber of the family ceases to do any FUR
ther work that helps to support or
benefit the group, but continues eat
at the same table and partake of the
same food that the other members OF
the family have gathered. Now II
would make no difference. as NJ n.
Rogers has expressed 1t, whether he
sat in the sunshine, preached to the
birds. ran a race with the deer, sold
bad whiskey or worked hard making
useless articles: IL he continued to eat
food gathered by other members OF
the family he would be living from
their labor"
AS time passes. another family To-
Gates just across the creek from the
first one and begins producing COM
modities.
After a while IL is found out that
one of these families produces more
potatoes than II needs and the other
family produces more corn than II
needs. So they commence to exchange
their commodities with one another,
which opens up the way for the capt.
talist business system.
Then suppose that one member of
one of these families, who has what
is called a"superior business qualifca-
tlon," commences to buy potatoes for
so cents per bushel and takes them