Denver labor bulletin., 1918-05-11
The Open Forum
HOW TO RELIEVE THE MONEY
STRINGENCY.
editor Denver Labor Bulletin:


billion dollar business on slightly over
three billions of money. How is this
possible? By the substitution of
bank and other forms of credit money
to the extent of over ninety-seven bill
lions of dollars. Thus we stagger
thru. but at an enormous cost in the
shape of an exacted tribute, politely
called interest, which alone annually
absorbs the entire net products of all
our industries combined, leaving an
annual deficit of over one hundred
million dollars. This was the coun-
try's economic condition up to our
entry in the great war. 1t is worse
today.
We are bonding the people of this
country by fetters which many gen
erations to come will not relieve We
have not forgotten the three billion
dollar civil war debt Of half a CEN
tury ago, which is not even yet liqui-
dated, nor substantially decreased.
How NAV we expect to take care of
war bonded debt ten fold greater
perhaps twenty fold greater, before
the war ends?
There is but one correct way to
finance the war. and save the Ameri-
can people from present and future
slavery TO the money autOcracy, and
that is to coin our wealth by proper
certificate process. In other words,
monetize our land wealth, IN the
same manner we monetize our gold,
silver and government bonds. In
stead of circulating our gold and bonds
as money. we mainly monetize them
by issuing gold certificates and ma
tional bank notes. respectively, based
on them. the certificates and notes per-
forming all the offices Of money. Why
not do the same thing with our i'm
mense wealth in the shape of i'm
proved real estate and railroad prop
erty? The government has taken
over the principal lines of railway
property while the war lasts. Why
not condemn these lines under emf
nent domain, and pay for them by
issuing full legal tender non-interest
bearing certificates 70 the present
owners. to be used as money!
In addition to this, amend the pres
ent monetary laws, SO that owners Of
improved real property may monetize
the same at. say 20 per cent Of their
assessed or real value. and receive
the same form Of government certiti-
Gates to be used as money by the own
erS in return This alone would open
up an ample resource 20 finance the
present war. and relieve the people
Of the threatened ruiuous incubus Of
an interest-bearing bonded debt which
promises so much hardship and mis-
ery to this and succeeding genera
tions. This plan Is no wildcat or
visionary scheme, but emInently prac-
ticable. and based on acknowledged
principles of MONETARY science with
out contravening a single one of them.
II simply proposes to extend the
IL Of
ply. by embracing land values as an
additional basis against which to issue
government money certificates. This
plan. If adopted, would put into the
channels of trade the amount of real
money that is so sorely needed to
effect exchanges with cash. and avoid
the use of private credit in CONNER
cial dealings; and. at the same time.
il would abolish the vicious custom
of paying for the transient use of
the artificial agency called money,
which causes ninety five out OF every
hundred business failures that dis
grace our country every year
/ know of but one objection TO this
plan. and that emanates solely from
interested moneyed men who fatten
on the present absurd money system,
and whose occupation would be gone
if the plan were inaugurated. These
objectors exclaim in sotto voce. in
fate the currency. would you, and
create general business havoc ;" We
plead guilty TO the first part of the
charge, but deny the alleged havoc to
legitimate business
We admit the havoc to the banking
business. or rather, banking robbery,
but then the people could well dis
pense with this luxury, when they
can substitute something better, and
entirely in their own, and not alone
as now. in the bankers interest.
The dread of an initiation of the cur
rency has never been felt by the peo-
Pile; it is purely a bankers fiction,
gotten up to scare the public, and
thereby preserve the spoils they reap
from the present rotten system. The
plan we propose would take the
money system from the money auto
Gratis and place il where it belongs
in the hands of the people.
We have never known in this coun-
try period of time when the people
had too much money in circulation.
and the fear of general havoc" is
wholly unwarranted 1t arises from
the false assumption that money Is
the measure Of value and that ris
ing prices, therefore, are the direct
result of an enlarged circulating me
dium. Prices and values of commodi-
ties are fixed by the economic law of
supply and demand" and money has
nothing to do with either of them.
Money does not measure value, tho it
often expresses value. But there is
a vast difference between measuring
and expressing value. Value is hu-
man opinion Of worth, and is ascer-
tanned. and even expressed, without
the aid of money, as in all cases of
barter. And when value is expressed