Wisconsin State Agricultural Society. 
239 
result. The high rate of interest has taken the entire surplus earn¬ 
ings of our people, leaving a bare substance, as witness the mort¬ 
gages, trust-deeds, and other forms of incumbrances upon the books 
of the register of deeds in each county of the state. This out¬ 
rageous rate of interest is a cancer which is eating at the very vi¬ 
tals of our industries. 
This terrible evil and injustice must be met by the people. The 
problem is perhaps not easy of solution; first, because of the power 
and influence of capital; and second, because the masses of the peo¬ 
ple are not yet aware of the terrible financial disease which afflicts 
them, and hence do not know the proper remedy to apply. When 
the people understand this question in its true light—and the agen¬ 
cies for their enlightenment are rapidly increasing on every hand— 
then will they demand of their representatives in Congress that the 
interest on money shall be regulated by the power that creates it; 
and that the rate shall be so low that the productive industries of 
our people shall be stimulated, instead of crippled asunder the pres¬ 
ent laws; so low that the laborer shall receive a larger share of the 
profits his labor produces, and be enabled to place something to his 
credit for old age, sickness, or when his labor is not in demand. 
While I would have the Government fulfil existing contracts to 
the letter, I would have it raise annually a large tax upon the lux¬ 
uries of life; pay the debt as rapidly as possible, thus lifting a bur¬ 
den of interest which has to be paid by labor; fund the debt on 
such time as the maturing bonds could be met by the accruing rev¬ 
enues and at low rates of interest—say not to exceed three per cent. 
—then supply money to our people upon undoubted and unques¬ 
tioned security at a similar rate, so that capital could not combine 
to extort higher rates, allowing them to return such money at 
their pleasure for bonds bearing a similar rate. Wdien the Govern¬ 
ment fixes the interest which money shall annually accumulate, 
and so guard it that capital cannot obtain a higher rate, then 
“supply and demand 11 will legitimately obtain, and not till then. 
The General Government must step in and protect the industries 
of the people or the representatives of these industries must organ¬ 
ize co-operative banks similar to those established in Germany 
some twenty years ago, and which are said to have proved a great 
blessing to the producers and laboring masses. The capital of these 
banks consists of funds known as active and reserve. The first is 
