The Rathdrum tribune. (Rathdrum, Idaho) 1903-1963, 1923-10-12
The PERIL OF
EDISON-FORD'S
MONEY SCHEME
Would Create More Paper Money
Than RuSSia's TriIions But
Add No Real Wealth.
SOME DANGEROUS FALLACIES
Would Remove Safe Restraint Of Gold
Basis and Open Way to Endless
Issues Of Paper Money.


swamped, under greater volume o
! worthless paper money than ha'
ruined Germany and Russia, by thu
Edison Ford commodity currency plaI
Is pointed out IN the present article
concluding the reviews. prepared by
the American Bankers Association
OF the recent exposure of the folly OF
the whole scheme by William T. Eos
ter, Director OF the Pollack Founda-
ton for Economic Research. Mr..
Foster says:
1.-The supply of money says Mr..
Ford, is inadequate. There Is more
wealth than there Is money to move
It, He draws vivid picture Of the
golden dam to the stream of pros
perity.' From a hundred quarters
comes the demand for the govern.
ment to speed up the printing presses.
in order to crush the money monopo-
ly,' reduce interest rates, and make
1t easier for everybody to get money.
Initiating the currency, however.
though 1t enables people to get more
units OF currency, does not enable
power, and 1t does not reduce interest
rates. In all her history Germany
never had so much money or as high
interest rates as In 1922. Money, I'M
like other forms of wealth, Is not
easier to obtain simply because the
total supply Is increased. On the con-
trary, increasing the supply OF money
ord ;yo a-i1w <Ln
money, and interest rates depend not
on supply but on the relation between
supply and demand
Dangerous FaIlacy
I'VE are assured, however, that the |
FordEdison plan provides money for
he farmer at virtually no expense to
he government or to anyone else.
All the government has to do Is to
Print the money. What could be sim
bier? Here We come to the most dan
,erous fallacy in the whole project.
{ Is dangerous because of the uni
'ersal desire to get something for
lothing.
Here is the gist OF the matter:
foney will buy whatever is produced.
ot a particle more by any trick OF
lchemy, or legislation, or finance.
he Russians, having multiplied their
honey $4,000 times. cannot buy as
luch with 1t as before. When we
rint more money there are no more :
GODS for money to buy; not a single
dditfonal plow, or hat, or potato.
Some OF those who get the newly '
rinted money can buy more goods
ian before; all other people can buy
wer goods than before, because their
oney has fallen OF in purchasing =
,wer. Since there are no more y
ows. and hats, and potatoes, and o
on, to distribute, II some people o
t more. others must get less. Il
Imitation under the Edison plan is A
nited mainly because, on account of 70
indefensible discrimination, most y
cups Of producers OF goods and j.
rvices are not allowed to partici- E
tie. II all groups were included. as M
fairness and IN politics they would B.
We to be eventually. the possibilities H.
initiation would be- vast.
The Deadly Spiral
The total income of the United ]
ties Is now in excess Of fifty bill M M
as Of dollars. The total money IN or
culation, including bank deposits
,ject to check, Is not far from
billions. It follows that ia
annual production, II used a. q
Us for new issues on the Edison ,sr
n, could at once greatly increase -
volume Of money In circulation.