South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1921-11-28
DESTROYED BY MONEY?

soleu1nly warns his country that It must call a
financial conference call of its loans to the allies
and rearrange a sound. stable financial system for
Europe or all Of civilization VIII be wiped out.
His theory Is that the misery OF European ma
lions IS caused by the fact that money has become
worthless in most OF the nations. Consequently.
20 bring prosperity money must have a stable value.
It Is true that the money OF Russia and Germany
has reached the point where It costs as much 10
print its paper currency that currency is worth.
that French franc and the italian ira are
worth but fraction OF their former values and
that the English pound is deprecated considerably.
The thing has happened before in the history OF
nations.
Back in 1888. French revolutionists needed
money. They printed 600 coo francs OF treasury
notes. The first Issue or these sold at par
BY 1873. about 1000. 100000 OF these paper francs
In circulation and their value had deprecated
four-hfths.
French authorities did everything possible 70 re-
store their paper money to par. They passed laws.
making it a death penalty for refusing to accept
the face value. These laws had no effect.
King Finance had no respect for the sharp edge Of
the guillotine.
Late in 1896, there were 45,OOO.OOOOOO paper
francs in circulation Their face value was $1,000
600 600, but the total purchasing power whole
lot less than 50 100000.
These paper francs. known as "assignats" were
worth only One-thousandth OF their face value So
the French government refused to accept them.
The wastepaper carried them away.
The trouble lies the that the currencies
OF these nations have been inflated beyond the
values behind them
Money is simply the medium OF exchange an in
strument by which the old system of barter which
ed
MERGE
The dollar. the franc the mark or Ira was hit
of common valuation whereby the
man who had labor, shoes. bread or coal 20
sell and wanted to buy theater tickets or meat
could be reasonably that he was getting the
proper amount OF meat for his wheat or work.
The nations in which the money has reached
a low ebb OF level OF value spent FIVE years in
killing other men and in raising nothing to trade.
The printing presses went putting out the pretty
pictures but behind them was TO work no substan-
tiai values
The paper money no longer represented work and
thrift It became only a hope for the future-that
at some time the and women whose govern
ments printed this paper, would labor and save
enough from useful tasks life to make It of real
and lasting value, 10 plumber other nations TO
make It good.
That money. in itself, could destroy civilization
is 10 deny the stability OF the Ideals which prompted
do the things which formerly made money
o real value
That any system could be devised by which
there can be given real value the ink and paper
of nations which have bankrupted themselves by
years Of destructive effort is inconceivable.
Money IS not a Frankenstein. It Is a means OF
doing business
financial gathering is necessary. one would
have been held continuously under the League of
Nations whereby the world over would be
freed from the necessity Of destroying and turn
their efforts creating the things that make for
permanency in prosperity.
What the world needs is not new financial
system any trick of statescraft that tries to
make valuable things that valueless
world conference should devise means by
which the men Of Russia will raise wheat the men
OF Italy go back unterrifed and unburdened to
their olive orchards; the men of France free from
military turned again their manufactures;
the people of Germany, in justice and hope given
chance TO work
Money represents values in labor and in thrift
II is valuable just there is the power to redeem
it, not in gold but in things OF material value which
the world wants.
The fear Of Wells that a money system can de-
world negatives the ideals which have lifted
man from savagery to the civilization which existed
before 1914.