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EDISON SUGGESTS GOVERN MENT CONTROL OF PR,)DUCE Wellesley Hills, Mass. November 11 1922. Thomas Edison has submitted to the staff engineers of the Babson Institute his plan for establishing business and breaking the backbone of the High Cost of Living. He has authorized the following popular de scription of his theory. With characteristic audacity, he goes to the heart of economic life. He proposes to afford the ordinary con sumer cheaper commodities, to fur nish the producer wit-r ready capital and security and to eliminate such parasites as unnecessary middlemen and dishonest speculators-by estab lishing the government as the coun try's great Middleman ant y making ordinary commodities as well as gold the basis of currency. The Government On The Job Sometime ago, at the suggestion of Henry Ford and others, Edison devoted himself to study the causes of economic unrest. His solution of this momentous problem is now under the scrutiny of the ablest economists and business experts at Wellesley. His plan is simple and startling. He would have the government list some forty basic commodities, such as cotton, corn, copper, wheat, flax, iron, and then taking the prices of the last twenty-five years as a basis, establish an average price for each. This price he would have determined in terms of gold and called a unit or a dollar. He would have the government take over or establish great ware houses and storage plants, When the producer is ready to market his prod uct he brings it to the agent at the government warehouse, who gives him a certificate covering his whole deposit and at the same time pays him half of the value of the deposit, 's computed on the 25-year average basis, in cash. The government then stores the product. When a dealer wants wheat, coal, cotton, or any other commodity he buys the producer's certificate on the market; he presents it at a ware house, pays the government back the money advanced, and takes the prod uct awray. The government-fixed average price safeguards the producer from the ravages o dishonest. speculation. The one-half payment he receives from the government affords him a ready capital. The certificate he receives is put on the market subject to the ordinary laws of supply and demand. But the certificate does not depend on the gold in Treasury vaults but on the commodity in the warehouse. In one sense the Edison plan is a return to the ancient system of barter as fa- as the complexity of modern life will allow. How the Far'mers Would Find It. Unit money in the Edison plan is not money in the popular conception -that is,metal money with a metal basis. The day when metal furni'sh ed the most exclusively practical bas is for a medium of exchange as well as a measure of value has, according to Edison, gone by. His money would still be determined in terms of gold. But instead of gold in Treasury vaults being its only basis, you would hav.e wheat 'in the Government bins, coal in the Government pits, rice in storage, cotton in 'the warehouses, etc. "All articles deposited in the ware house," said Edison, "bear the same ratio when loan of unit money is made, only one kind of unit money is issuedl together with the dleposit certificate. "Suppose a farmer puts in the warehouse 1,000 bushels of wheat graded by the Government as No. 1 Red. The average price for 25 yearg of this grade, including high war prices is, say $1.00 per bushel. The farmer is given $500 in unit money -he then can hold his wheat by means of his certificate until he thinks the price is satisfactory and thus be independent of the specula tors who now set the price ahead months before the crop is reaped. This certificate is bought on the ex change, at market price ' now, say $1.15 for No. 1 Red. The farmer would get $650--as the wheat is high er than the 25 year average. If, on the other hand, it was selling at 96 cents he would only get $460. "But the unit money would not va ry. It would always be the same, because wheat would not be likely to be sold over a period of one year for 59 cents. In other words, the certificate or equity would have to be valueless to impair the value of the unit money. "The averages are changed every year, a new year being added and the earliest year of the 25 is dropped. Backing Up Gold. "In 4 or 5 years the 25 year average would be less and the three year high war prices will bring the average down so if wheat sold at even 59 cents it wouldl not impair the value of the unit money. "If a person wants peanuts he buys peanu ertificates or if he wants rice he buys rice certificates, or any thing else which the Government ac cepts for storage; hands in the cer tificate and the amount of unit money loaned, and the commodity is at his order for shipment. The unit money you notice is common to all articles. "The unit money cannot fluctuate. The capacity or possibility of fluctu ation is entirely transferred to the certificate which is subject to the prices due to supply and demand. "It is not necessary for the govern ment to pass any laws legal tender or otherwise with unit money. "This unit money together with gold for paying foreign balances mirht well be the basis of our cur rpncy. The business of the world is rapidly increasing; in a few years a single commodity like gold will not be sufficient. "If it were not for the War we should not have probably more than 40 per cent of our currency backed by gold and even that subject to be ing partly taken away from us. We should have behind every paper dol lar commodities of the w;arehouses type, including gold worth more than one dollar on forced sr.les. "As most of our business is done with credit money which is also based on credit and commodities, there seems to be no reason why the pres ent Reserve Bank and system shoul-! be disturbed. The commodity or unit money could be made the legal re serve instead of gold alone. Taxes To Build Warehouses "You note that unit money is re deemed and again paid out probably every fifteen months. When wheat and cotton comes into warehouses un it money is issued in huge amounts, just when needed by the farmers. This automatically solves the bank ing problems which now arise at peak :emand, for currency expansion and contraction of unit money can never do harm. There is not any illusion in it. Tt can't stay out because they must have the unit money to get their cotton or wheat out. "Again, these commodities are quick liquidators. The certificates can be sold on the Exchange by tele pone. "In books on the history of bank ing, I find for eight centuries it's the same old story-'Suspension of Specie Payments.' This need never take place in an agricultural country. There are a number of administrative details, such as, if the stored material is not removed within the time alot ted the same will be sold at kpublic auction. The equity after storage charges is placed to the credit of the owner as shown on the duplicate cer tificate. "The warehouses are to be built gradually ovir a period of years oy money received from taxation. The arehosing charges include depre ciation and 5 per cent interest on the. ost of warehouse and handling ma chinery." Knocking The Bottom Out Of Coal Prices In the light of current events, the working of Edison's plan in regard to coal is interesting. A coal producer would mine a ton of coal. This he hauls to the near est government coal reservoir. The overnment gives himi a certificate for one ton of coal and pays him half of its value, on the 25-year-average basis, in cash. This enables the pro (lucer to mine coal every day the year round, practically financing his opera tion on the money the Government turns over to him every (lay. Now, a buyer wants 100 tons of hard coil. He purchases certificates for 100 tons on the r~pen market- at the prevailing price which has been determined by supply and demand. turns these certificates into the Gov ernment delivers 100 tons of hard coal to him from the. nearest reservoir. He in turn, delivers this to your house, adding areasonable charge to his cost for shipping and handling. The Speculator Squelched The result, in general, would be this: A ton of hard coal today costs about $6.60 at the mine-a cost whicn would be reduced by the steady op eration allowed under the Edison plan. The average freight charge is about $2.50 a ton. The actual net cost of coal should be about $10.00 which it would be under the Edison plan. But today it actually costs a bout $14 a ton, the difference being created by interest, storage charges and speculative profit. "Coal should be: stored," says Edis on, "in concrete reservoirs sunky in the ground, 1000 feet long, 80 feet wide, 17 feet deep and kept under water, (Bituminous coal deteriorates in air.) The mine owners could then give their men steady employ9ent and produce cheaply. Supplies tb all would be certain and price variations less. The storage charges would be trifling, and best of all, the miine companies would get one half of the value of the coal in unit money without interest, to help carry the coal." The Edison plan would be of great assistance to the farmer. At present the farmer sells his wheat because he must have money to live on. If he tries to hold it and borrow money for operation he has to pay an exhor bitant rate of interest. Nine times out ofte he must sell his pronduct when it is in marketable form. It ts or'dinarily bought by a speculator. held in'warehouses for higher prices, and may be sold back and forth a doz en times at a profit each time before it finally reaches the hand of the man ufacturer who must use it. Edison's plan would enable the farmer to hold his crop by paying a small warehouse or storage charge and without paying, any interest whatever. He could live on the 50 per cent money that the government advances him and could sell the crop whenever he thought the market was right, but must sell a percentage each month. There would necessarily be a cer tain amount of speculation, but it would be in the hands of the farmer, the actual producer of the material, and not in the hands of a non-pro ductive trader who is watching the board in some brokerage office. Price fluctuations would be gradually re duced as forced sales by the producer would be practically eliminated. As a net result, the farmer would get more'money for his crop and the mil ler would pay less for his wheat than they do today. Gold Standard An "Absurdity" It is of interest to note that when Edison first began to 'work out this problem he said! "It seems absurd to me that all our values should be based on boxes of metal in the Treas ury. They are put into values, the vaults are locked, and immediately everyone belives that all is well. They are taken out and their contents distributed and everyone believes that all is wrong. "Sometimes a ton or so of the gold which has been locked up in the Treas ury vaults in put on a steamer and sent to Europe, immediately re-ship ped back to New York and business stability is brought to pass, this shuttle-cock business being kept up because no one comes out with a plan to stop such childish actions. "It is an absurdity, but everybody SATURDA Anita Stewart in (7 Pathe 1 WE V NEXT We .will'ha of a $1.00 I %4-PK CORN MEAL, 1 LI VAN CAMP'S PORK AN] GOLDEN BLEND COFF 1 C; 1 C: 4 C 4 C 2 C 1iC THl WINNS has been educated to believe that this absurdity is common sense-serious and not to be controverted. Every body believes because everybody has been educated to believe that values can be estab!ished and held stable on ly by the creation and maintenance of a standard based on the so-called precious metals. In reality, civiliza tion has become too complicated for the continuance of such a system. "What is gold's real usefullness ? It makes pretty jewelry and picture frames, and is used effectively for filling teeth. Otherwise it is almost a wholly useless substance. Yet, we hold it the standard of all values!" All that is necessary to put the Ed ison plan into operation is a govern ment ruling which would name the standard prices over the 25 year peri od, for all basic commodities and set up the necessary machinery to re ceive and store the commodities. Whatever its defects, it would great ly simplify and stabilize the operation of all basic industries. It would mean all'year employment for the majority of our workers who now'suffer from seasonal trends. And it would in large measure reduce the high cost Of living. While the Babson experts are still studying its ultimate'effects, the plan offers much for the average citizen to think about. COPY SUMMONS FOR RELIEF. (Complaint Served) State of South Carolina, County of Fairfield. I The S. M. Jones, Plaintiff, vs Caesar Mitchell and W. M. Patrick, Defendants. To the Defendants Above Named: You are hereby summoned and re quired to answer the complaint in this action of which copy is herewith served upon you and to serve a copy of your answer to the said complaint Y, NOV. 11th "Sowing the Wind." Reels) t IT ews No. 82. a S. ISH TO ANN THURSD ye on sale som lasket, consisti , RICE, 2 LENOX SOAP, 1 OCT A ) BEANS, 1 CAN SOUTHERN S EE, AND 1 CAN BR'ER RABI ALL OF THE ASOVE IT E -ALS n Libby's 2-lb. Can Roast Beef f n Webster's No. 3 Spinach. ins No. 2 Corn ............. ins Tall Salmon........... ins No. 3 Sunkist Peaches. ins Red Devil Lye ..... .. n No. 3 Tomatoes .. n No. 3 Sunkist Cherries. ADDITION YOU WILL FII ~OUGHOUT OUR STORE THAT ~BORO A on the subscribers at their office in the City of Chester, S. C., within twenty days after the service hereof, exclusive of the day of such service; and if you fail to answer the com plain within the time aforesaid, the plaintiff in this action will apply to the Court for the relief demanded in the complaint. GLENN & GLENN, Plaintiffs' Attorneys. Chester S. C., October 21, 1922. To the Absent Defendant, Caesar Mitchell: Unless you appear and answer the Complaint herein, which has been filed in the Clerk of Court's office for Fairfield County, State of South Car Clipper B Anyone having a No. 2 Old! will be glad to allow them $7 a No. 3 Lacer, making the p send your check for $17.50 w cel post prepaid to us, and v a No. 3 for $17.50. COLUMBIA SUP 823 West Gervais Street Columbia Lumber Ma Manufac Sash, Doors and Blinds, I press and Oak, Flooring ing, Moulding, Door and Columbia VEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY House Peters and All-Star Cas Do you love nature in her calms and h( > see a double snow avalanche imperill an beings, a fire among kings of the : winter in the magnificent Northland' torm." [OUNCE TH"A AN, NO~ ething new in ng of the folio' GON POWDER, 1 CAN VALU TYLE HASH, 1 CAN TALL P IT SYRUP. MS FOR ONE DOLLAR or ......................... ... JD A LOT OF OTHER ITE] ' ARE VALUE MONEY SAVE] 4IL LS S2 olina, within the time allowed by law, 1W. the Plaintiff will apply to the Court for the relief demanded in said Com plaint. GLENN & GLENN, Plaintiffs' Attorneys. Chester, S. C., Oct. 21, 1922. 31-33 Burns aM krisi? MENTHOLATLUM cools and heals, elt Lacers style Clipper Belt Lacer, we .50 for it on the purchase of rice of the No. 3 $17.50.. So ith the Old No. .2 Lacer, par re will give you in exchange PLY COMPANY Columbia, S. C. nufacturing Company ;urers of nterioi- Finish, Pine, Cy Ceiling, Weatherboard Window Frames. South Carolina , NOV. 15th and 16th t in "The Storm." r tempers? Do you want ing the lives of frail hu *orest, and the ferocity of Then you'll like "The TON V. 16th the shape ~ving items E TOMATOES, 1 CAN INK SALMON, 1 PKG. 9cRE