Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1911-09-29
OLYMPIA WASHINGTON FRIDAY MORNING. SEPTEMBER 49, 1911
UNREST AND REMEDY,
THE PRIMAL CAUSE AND LOGIC OF
DISRUPTION OF THE CURRENCY

DISRUPTION OF THE CURRENCY.
Time and Events Prove the Wisdom Of
the Democratic Contention for Bimetal-
ism.
The statesmen of England are dis
cussing the cause of the seemingly
worldwide unrest and possible RENE
dies.
The unrest in the United States is
quite as pronounced, but most of our
statesmen ignore the fact, and not
one, so far as we can see, has a more
intelligent remedy than to make over
the tariff, or to put in motion such
forces as would in ten years result i'll
something like a French Revolution
in half the of the Union.
Money was invented at first as
both measure of value and a medium
OF exchange. If a man lived in Thes-
sally and drove ten beeves down to
Corinth and sold them, he received
ten pieces of money each valued at
what one OK was valued at, and car
rled the ten coins home in his pocket.
That money was good on its face for
what he had paid for it. But after
awhile there came time when before
he drove his beeves away he wanted
to fatten them. So he went to a
neighbOr who had hay and barley
equal to the value of one OK. So the
OK owner bought the hay and barley
and agreed to return the value of
one OK when he sold his oxen. That
was trade, but a shrewd neighbor,
seeing what might be done, went to
all the men who had hay and barley,
paying a part down and agreeing to
pay the rest later. Then when the
men who had cattle and wanted
to fatteu them, went to the man
who had all the hay and barley
to purchase enough to fatten their
stock. But this first merchant was
canny. He raised the price and COM
PEELED the men with the ten oxen
to agree to give him two instead of
one for the accommodation. That
was the first cinch; it is now termed
monopoly.
But the merchant, while exceed
ingly prosperous, saw his business
expand beyond his capital, so he
looked around and finally sold half his
business to man named Isaac. That
was the first firm. Isaac looked over
the books, and then said to his part
ner, You arc good man, but not
a good business man. Let me handle
these stock men when they come
again. The barley and the hay were
bought as usual, by the original buy
er and small payment made, and
the rest made payable after awhile.
Then Isaac, who was in an outer office,
asked each one how much he would
deduct from bis account to get the
ready money. The poor natives had
never heard OF such a thing, but
Isaac explained that money w.ts very
scarce, but he had little and would
cash the amounts if they would throw
of ten per cent. In that way he got
most OF the accounts. That was the
first discount for cash. Then when
the man with the ten beeves came, he
exacted the price of two beeves for
the hay and barley and o third OK
for the risk. That was the first in
terest.
Well, since then money has ceased
to be either fair measure of values
or q fair medium of exchange, but
the idol before which most men fall
down in worship. And the world is
divided into three classes; the few who
are very rich, those who have some
capital and industry to gain more
wealth, and the great mass who de-
pend upon obtaining employment to
earn a little money. For this great
class there is no way through which
they can obtain money except they
dig it from the earth or obtain it in
wages.
But since silver was demonetized
and there has been no real money ex-
cept gold, the business of the country
has expanded, so much faster than
the volume of money has increased
that the second class mentioned above
cannot borrow what money they need
to carry on their enterprises. The
result is they are filled with unrest,
and they cannot employ the men who
need employment. And there we
are. The government might relieve
the local strain by issuing $500, ,000,-
900 in one and one-half per cent.
twenty-year gold bonds, of the size
and denominations that would enable
men to pass them from hand to hand
as money. and with these pay the ex-
penses of the government as long as
they lasted, which would be but half
year. They would enter at once