The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1923-01-18
Stabilize Money
Or Face F0cisti
BY IRVING FISHER
Professor of Political Economy, Yale
University.

Professor of Political Economy, Yale
University.
New Haven, Gonna recent circular
sent to bankers and employers express
es deep anxiety over the Fascist vic
tory in Italy and the gains of the
Labor party in England and elsewhere.
1t predicts that the same idea of the
political domination of labor will soon
appear more explicitly in America and
will threaten the existing order.
l believe that, bankers and employ
ers, not to say the rest of us, have
cause for anxiety. But what the cir
cular overlooks is that, as Roosevelt
so often warned US, the only real es-
cape from the danger of an overturn
lies in redressing real grievances.
What is needed is to interpret the
recent labor unrest as symptoms of
social diseases needing to be cured.
There are several such social dis
eases which 1 could name, and prob
ably several others which would be
revealed by searching investigation.
But here / shall point out only one
probably by far the most important.
This is the unstable money growing
out of the war;
UNSTABLE MONEY
is ROOT OF EVIL.
But what has unstable money to do
with recent labor unrest? We do not
remember seeing any mention of it in
the newspapers. Yet to find it we do
not have to seek far. We can trace
our way back in three simple steps
from the recent political demonstra-
ton of labor discomfort to unstable
money as a prime cause.
The first step brings us to unem-
ployment as the grievance which, more
than any other, caused labor to make
its recent political commotion The
English labor prediction manifesto"
said, among other things:
Unemployment and low wages,
caused largely by the policy of the
Liberal and Unionist government, have
brought distress to the bulk of the
working people"
Since the election in which labor
came off second best, the unemployed
have been demanding hearing with
Bonar Law.
UNREST is
MIRRORED IN VOTE.
In other words, labor in England held
the Lloyd George government respon-
sible for the vast unemployment dur
ing the last two years and will hold
the Bonar Law government responsible
for putting an end to unemployment.
The opportunity to work is likewise
the demand of the Fascist in Italy.
In America also the back-swing of the
last election is largely because of the
depression of trade and unemployment.
Next we trace back this depression
of trade and unemployment, whether
in America, England, Italy, or else
where, to the fall Of prices in 1920
and 1921. Always and inevitably great
fall of prices kills enterprise, closes
factories, discourages farmers and
throws men out of work.
Going still further back, we may
trace the fall Of prices to the defation
Of credit and money beginning early in
1920. AS Professor Cassel, of Sweden,
shows SO clearly in his Money and
Foreign Exchange After 1914" just
published, and as every other econ
omist knows so we'll, this restriction
of credit which bankers in so many
countries began in 1920 was the main
reason for the fall of prices which
bankrupted thousands of farmers and
business men and made millions of
workers idle.
CAUSES WORK
IN VICIOUS CIRCLE.
And there you have It'll The chain
of causes: Defation, fall of prices, un-
employment, producing political vim
dictiveness.
Whenever defation or imitation oc-
ours somebody's toes are trod on and
discomfort and unrest result. First
we complain over the high cost of
living and then over the depression
of trade.
If those now so anxious over labor