1855. 



NEW ENGLAND F.\E»IER. 



290 



For the Neiv England Farmer, suppose that all agricultural productions coulti 



jjjQjj PRICES &C i^^ ^^^ ^* *'^*^ same ratio at that time, then, oi 



T,, T> » 1 J- \- ^ '■ course, SO far as a man's living was concerned . 



Mr. Brown :-A leading artic e in your paper gf^ ^^^^^ ^^^^^ ^^..^^ i^ .^^ ° ^,^j^ ^^ .^ j^^l^, 



of April 14, on high prices, kc. , has caused some jg q^w. But was fifty cents in silver then wortl, 

 reflections as to_ the cause ofjuch prices as we v^g ^.^^j^ .^^ ^ ^^H.^^. -^ ^.^^.^^, j^ ^^^^ , ^^^ ^^^^.^^ 



pork, &c , were as high as they are now ; though, .^^.^^ of (.^urse, its value is fixed io, in reality, 

 taking the round of agricultural produce as a i claim that you cannot make money any the les^ 

 whole It did not range as high then as now. ;,.,j^^.,|,ie ^^ ^^^^ ^^^^ tj^..^ another, though you 

 But then It IS, or maybe asked, what is the cause i,.,^^ to give more gold for productTons at 



of such prices? And, of course, the war _ in ^^ t^j^g than another. But, then' "Wall Street 

 Europe will be named as one thing, emigration' ^^ State Street" talk about money as being cheai 

 for another, speculation for another, and so on.|j^Q^ dear— that is, now they have to pay two pei 

 I^ow, for one, I do not put so much stress on the,,^^^.^ ^ ^^^^^^^ .^h^^.^ th ^^g^i ^^ ^ ft ,-^j. ^„,. 

 "war question to miike high prices as many . ^.^^t., &c. Of course, this means that their 

 will, though It may affect us some, indirectly on , bugj^^gg compels them to pay two percent. ; but. 

 gram and flour. _ During our late war with Mex- jjj reality, the money is worth no more thai, 

 ico which was in operation fi-om 18-4b to 1848 .^jj^^ ^i' ^^^ 4lf ^^^^^ 



1 think It did not aflect our prices of agricultural Another and great reason of the present higl 

 produce ma erial ly any way, though we were a' j^cg, j considcn-, is in tlie constant drain of goh: 

 party and directly interested in that war as a ..n^igji^-gr (since California has opened) to Europe- 

 nation; and yet it had the effect to draw away t^ ^^ imported goods, manufactures, arts, 



a large number of our population from farming &(,., which, in the mam, we could just as wel. 

 and the productive arts. j^^ake at home. Now, suppose a railroad is to b- 



But what I consider to be one of the great ij^iit through your town, and five thousand dol- 

 causes of the present prices is, the constant drain [.,j.g ^.0,.^!, of railroad iron is wanted to carry th^ 

 of productive labor from all partsof the country, ro^d through your place. Which is the bettei 

 durin- the last six years, or since California policy, to raise five thousand dollars and send to 

 opened in search of gold. Of course we have gj i^nd and buy the iron, or have the rails ai 

 had less producers and more consumers in shape ^^^ ^^e^ ^^^ ^^.^^^ , ^^^^^ workmei, 



of emigration, which emigrants do not produce ^^ home? In the latter case, the five thousanu 

 much in the first six months, but after that they, (j^ California gold) is paid out to workmen i, 

 can make producers as well as consumers. A\ ell, ^ ^.^^ to,^Q° A gets a part, C a part, and B 



the consequence of Cai forma may be said that .^ ^rt. It is all there among you ; what one ha. 

 we have had less produce and productions and^n^t ^^ another has. But in the former case, it 

 more gold, which is true to a certain extent, g ^^^ ^f the country, and it is a matter ol 

 though I am not aware that many are ovei-l)ur- chance whether any part ever gets back again, 

 dened with that "article ' at present. But lam gut the policy of the government appears to b- 

 not one of those who believe that a large influx: to have the balance of trade against us all the 

 of gold and SI vcr mto a country will, as a con- .^^iie, go that the Unitod States appears to be the 

 sequence, make high prices directly let it .qi,af-way house," where the California gohi 

 might have the effect to stimulato all kinds oijgtops over night ; next day it takes the steaiuer. 

 business, and so produce may rise m consequence I oes to Europe, and that is the last seen of it. 

 But you say, m substance, "that an mflux of y^w, as it appears that we have got to have a 

 gold, like an inflation of the paper currency, adds j,, ^ share of European emigration now and for 

 nothing to the real value of property.* Its effect' uptime to come, would it not be a good plan to 

 18 merely to make money less valuable, so that!g.,^e .,11 the productive labor we can, and so keep 

 noneof It IS given for articles of real value, as ; the gold here in the country to produce and re- 

 the products ot theear li and of the arts.' .\ow .^duoe and pay its own way. 

 1 do not see it lust in that light. It may bo true, -r> ^ xi • , .. , 



that a large amount of g.dd laid dofvn on a: ^"'^ then, again, as to high prices of produce 



worn-out soil, will not impi-ove that soil directly ; "«"' r'VU" ""Tf ^^'T" "^"""l A''^ '^''''^ V' 

 neither can it produce improved scientific labor, ! ^'-"^" ^' l^^o and G, m the spring of that year, hay 

 if that labor is not to be Ibund. Still, it can he.^^'^«"-«i-th twenty-five dollars a ton in all thu- 

 made to produce the best labor at hand, and in^V^'^^"'^: "^""^ ^'""''^ W^" go at that. Since that 

 that way the soil can be renovated, and soon the f^'"*^''' ^'^ several times been iip to twenty dol- 

 productions on the soil will l)e worth as much, !^'? *''^ *^",' ''* ^1"^ ^'^'•'*^'" '^^ ^''^ ^^^'^1; '"^"^ "«^^ 



and more, than the original gold laid out. For 

 instance: thirty years ago (or in 1825 say,) corn 

 could be bought for fifty cents a bushel, and now 

 it is worth a dollar a bushel, (in 1855.) Now, 



•• An inflation of the paper currency means, of course, an 

 amassing of i)aper money, say four or five dollars of paper to 

 one of i;ol(l and silver. But, then, as the paper currency is only 

 the representative of money, the true standard of property comes 

 down to tlie actual amount of coin in existence and circulation. 



If this be so, then gold and silver, or coin, cannot "inflate" the i&l ''^/f n'or hiKsirpl'- hiiffoi- o),;.,.imo' V,! T 9 

 currency, be there ever so much of it, because it is the real *'"*''^" P^'^ busliel , iKlttcr, Shipping ^0. 1, Z- 

 standard of property itself. So we understand it. |No. 2, 22 cents per pound ; COrn, $1,90 to $2,1 



it is worth froiu sixteen to seventeen dollars the 

 ton. But to show that tliey had high prices for- 

 merly as well as now, I will copy a list of pre 

 ducer's prices from your paper, taken from the 

 Porlsmonth Journal. This was the price current 

 for February, 1S17, or thirty-eight years ago, and 

 these are wholesale prices ; of course the retail 

 were higher. "Bacon 15 cents per pound ; bar- 

 ley, .'^1,25 to $1,50 per bushel; beans, $4 to 



■ " 24, 



10 



