People's Pilot, Volume 5, Number 23, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 12 December 1895 — COMMON HONESTY. [ARTICLE]

COMMON HONESTY.

REASONS FOR AN INCREASE OF MONEY EXPLAINED. The Philadelphia "item” Kaye the Government Should Take the Dletribntloa of the Nation’s Money in Its Own Hands by Government Banks. The Item’s attitude on the financial issues of the day is stirring up a large comfnotion among the hundreds of thousands of its readers. The Item is the only daily that is printing accurate reports of the able and interesting speakers who arejiow daily exposing the nefarious ways of the goldites, ways which the public cannot be too quick in analyzing for their own self-preservation.

In connection therewith the Item is receiving many communications from hearty sympathizers with its attitude on behalf of common honesty, as opposed to the rascally deception which is more or less practiced at the instigation of the Rothschild “ring.” Some of these letters show their writers are not fully posted In what the Item is recommending In the shape of currency reform, consequently they criticise what the Item does not say or sustain. One such correspondent who signs himself W. W., writes a long letter, saying that "We all have something to learn about money, currency, ete., and should be tolerant of others’ views and willing to believe that there is some truth in them all.” This is one of those platitudes that means so much that it means nothing. The Item eeeks facts, asd is tolerant in all things that are facts. Bnt that does not mean that the Item tolerates proved fraud and corruption. The Item here repeats Its declaration for the benefit of W. W., that the whole trouble with this nation’s finances as well as the finances of all gold basis countries, is, that there exists a widespread secret conspiracy, headed and primarily composed of the Rothschild “ring,” to rob all people of nntold millions of money by foisting upon them, by means of well oganized pressure, a rotten financial system, that necessarily ruins all who support, it, as well as those who don’t, wherever it is contiuued in or put into operation. The Item has all proofs of its attitude In this particular, and here tells W. W. that because a fraud advocates a fraud, is no reason for giving It or him a respectable hearing, or assuming that there "is some truth In it.” W. W. assumes that the Rothschild "ring” has the welfare of the American people at heart; this the Item denies. A thief will argue from his standpoint with an honest man to get possession of the honest man’s property, but the honest man would be a fool to tolerate or recognize any seeming truth in the argument, merely on the plea that there “might be some truth in it.” W. W. sends with his communication an editorial extracted from a Boston financial paper and asks that it be answered. It is too schoolboyish to answer, filled with contradictions,and to anyone posted in the plain facts, it is strikingly apparent that its writer does not understand what he is talking about. This Boston article is against free silver, and says: “The setting up of two standards is an infinite element of confusion.”

The Boston paper goes on: “If the quantitative theory that prices change In proportion to the volume of money, has any value, the doubling of the volume of money simply doubles prices, without adding to the real value qf the products of the world.” That is rank nonsense! If the business increases, more money is needed to carry it on. Or, If you circulate more money, business increases. Any groceryman knows that. To say that such additional supply of money, the permitting a man to do business who could not do it without money, doubles the cost of his products, is rank ignorance of the A, B C of what N it Is that permits the doing of business, and what it is that in the additional competition permitted, “evens up” or cuts down prices. Increasing the money in active circulation adds to the volume of business so long as all are not engaged in business which the additional volume of money would permit. But W. W., if he read the Item carefully, would have learned before this that it is not advocating fr§e silver for the additional volume of money it would permit; other free silverites may be doing that, but not the Item. The Item advocates free silver to stop this criminal competition with silver basis countries, a competition of 100 per cent in favor of these free silver countries, which to-day is ruining the industries of this country, and which threatens to be far worse in the immediate future if it is not stopped. Neither our manufacturers nor our farmers can compete against this fearful 100 per cent competition. But the Boston paper does not know that: it knows, as above said, too little about the subject to talk intelligently upon it. Free silver obtained here at 16 to 1 might or might not increase the volume of money in this country. In all probability, judging from the experience before 1873, this increase would be too small to balk about. W. W. seems to think that the Item has, in its own estimation, solved the currency problem in advocating free silver. He is entirely off the track. Free sit ver, the Item has repeatedly said, is but a stepping stone in the direction of a greater prosperity. That once ' obtained, and silver bullion restored to its old par relations, then the Item advocates the wiping out of gold and silver currency entirely, and in their place put a government paper that will remain at par In all parts of the world with the best of currency In use.— Philadelphia Item.