The Washington times., 1920-06-13
TO-DAY
(continusd from First Psgs.)


there are a hundred books that
you may read. The best for that
and many ether subjects Is Mon
tesquieu's admirable spirit Of
Lave" But Montesquieu's book
Is not easily bought and Is heavy
reading" A sufficiently complete
history OF ancient law, curious
superstitions. and ingenious evas-
ions bred of usury will be found
In the second volume OF Whites.
q history OF the welfare OF science
with theology in Christendom. A
very intelligent man should read
that book.
Montesquieu fought against laws
forbidding all lending of money at
interest because he knew those
laws were fatal to prosperity.
After twenty years OF lsborious
work he published his book as late
rs lT4S in the century OF the
French revolution. Yet he was
compelled In his criticism to con-
f1ne himself to the Mohammedan
laws forbiding the lending OF
money at interest. For his safety'5
sake he di dnot dare to criticize
the laws of the Christian church.
That was too risky.
In days long gone people suffered
fearful usurious practices. which
explains the fact that so many
religions forbid any interest on
money at all. Religions like polit-
ical systems, seek to remedy past
evils. In ancient days the creditor
could take the body of the debtor
II he failed to get his money. In
The Merchant of Venice" you see
the money lender eagerly waiting
to get the pound Of flesh that was
to be given II the money failed.
And while Dickens was alive, In
the debtors prisons of England
miserable creatures were rotting
In jail, their crime being inability
to pay.
Philosophers of ancient Greece
taught that any interest charge
was a crime, although Greek mer-
chants, keen then, and now, ig-
nored philosophical teachings, and
thus built up the wealth of Greece.
Aristotle says that money is by
nature "barren" and that Of money
to give birth to new money by
bringing in interest is unnatural.
He condemns what is unnatural.
The Christian Bible offered no
quibbling "reasons." The law of
Moses allowed the taking of usury
from strangers, but not from
Jews. Read Deuteronomy, twen-
tieth verse, twenty-third chapter:
unto foreigner thou may lend
upon interest. but unto thy brother
thou shalt not lend upon interest,
that Jehovah thy God may bless
thee"
In st. Luke's version of the Ser
mon on the Mount stand the
words, Lend, hoping for nothing
again."
The Old Testament forbids in
terest of any kind, Interest Of
money, interest of victuals, inter
est Of anything that is lent upon
interest"
Any young :. student wishing
fuller information on the Greek
idea of money lending will find it
in Grote's History of Greece" in
Aristotle's "POlitics" and Eco
nomics." The public librarian will
be pleased to dig these out for you.
The fathers of the Christian
Church were violent in their ha-
tired of any interest on money. St.
Chrysostom asks: "What can be
more unreasonable than to SOW
without land, without rain, without
ploughs? All those who give
themselves up to this damnable
culture shall reap only tears. Let
us out of these monstrous births
of gold and silver; let us stop this
execrable fecundity."
You gather from the Belgian
loan, with its lottery attachment
and its 10 per cent the first year
that "execrable fecundity" is COM
ing to life again.