, 1924-02-21

4 III SN'N iNS 'Sl'b ~ llNt0NoNh.
still the whole problem of agricul-
ture has its effect upon livestock.
Going back through history for a
foundation to base an analysis upon.
the first troubles of the Pilgrims
seem to give us the key to the con-
dition that has followed us through
nearly three hundred years of agri-
cultural ills. Construction advance
ment and improvements in agricul-
tural methods during that time have
only enlarged and made more com
pick those initial problems. but gen
orally speaking the lack of a safe
and dependable credit-capital has
been the one serious drawback to
agricultural endeavor in all these
years.
The Pilgrims. beginning agricul-
tural operations in this country,
which was the necessary and only
occupation open to them at that
time, came here with little money,
no credit, and capital an unknown
quantity. They required seeds to
grow crops: cattle to produce beef
for food and leather for shoes and
harness horses for power; sheep to
provide wool for clothing; and i'm
plements with which to work the
SOIL. these HtttSSllltS Hiu 10 ne nm
ported. and transportation then was
indeed a serious problem. There
was no Government, no currency
system, and a very incomplete con-
dition upon which to start either.
What little money the Pilgrims
brought with them was 500 ex-
pended for imports. The Indians Of
those days had a crude currency of
black and white beads called wan
pun the black beads being worth
twice as much as the white. Their
use by the Pilgrims for want of a
better currency. led up to the fixing
of prices upon their agricultural
products. The old original Massa-
chusetts General Court even went Sc
far as to fix "A price by statute upon
corn, wheat, rye, flax, beef, wool,
tobacco and other commodities. This
led up to endless disputes and much
confusion. Tobacco was perhaps
the most stable of all commodities
and was used as money for many
years in Virginia. The English es-
tablished bonded warehouses where
the tobacco might be stored and re
ceipts issued. These receipts were
also used freely as money. Too
much production, however, led to a
sci lohS ulOp III ll' value VI A'bh'A'H
Destruction of re crops and greatly
reduced areas were resorted to in an
effort to hold the prices stable even
in those days. Their conditions We're
not vastly different from ours to-
day. What the Pilgrims lacked in
their efforts to develop an industry
and a new country, was a depend
able capital.
of nc anrNn IN IN the yaur lAla
which is nearer to our W times.
For some years previous to 1893
and on up to 1900, our country was
a hotbed of passionate discussion as
to what was the best plan for a
stabilized currency. Bi-mettalism,
Mono-metallism, The Silver Stand
ard and the Gold Standard held the
boards. In those years of discussion
we forgot almost everything else.
The proponents of each idea figured
the decline of agricultural products
depended entirely upon stabiliz!nG
his particular brand of currency The
panic of 1898, which was the most
disastrous we have ever endured.
serves us with some concrete OK
amples. We had two separate and
distinct panics within two or three
months from two different causes.
The first was caused from the fact
that The owners of the foreign
capital which had been supplied to
build up our growing industries. had
lost faith in u aimless currency
discussion and in our ability to pay.
They sold their securities and With
drew their capital in the form OF
gold from this country. The second
panic was Immediately caused from
,A. rnt,-nl faar nf nnr nwn nQnnIn
that the sudden and serious deple-
ton OF our gold reserve would Cause
a great depreciation In the prices OF
all commodities. and they began TO
hoard the paper money then In cir.
culation. The two conditions caused
q stagnation OF all business.
Two OF the main points which
wish TO bring to your attention from
this panic are:
First. That money Is simply n
medium OF exchange. Its principal
and primary use is to consumptc n
deal between two parties. neither OF
which a hold thai money indefn-
itely with advantage to themselves,
and
money, but II IL a credit hat may
be transferred from one party to
another through the medium OF
money. They both may hold
thing OF value from the deal. but
neither will keep the money.
The withdrawal OF capital from
thi. country In 1893 was because we
had no stabilized currency system.
The owners OF foreign capital had
no faith in our medium Of exchange.
because we then had no standard
currency system. and our ideas re-
garding one were SO many n varied
| that these owners lost confidence In
our ability to pay. The frightful
conditions OF 1893 brought people
back to their senses. This led up
to the National Monetary Congress.
which recommended the gold stand
ard for our currency system; and