Eagle Pass Guide. (Eagle Pass, Tex.), Vol. 7, No. 25, Ed. 1 Saturday, February 16, 1895 Page: 2 of 8
This newspaper is part of the collection entitled: Texas Borderlands Newspaper Collection and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the UNT Libraries Special Collections.
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THE ISLAND OF OMEGA;
An Eastern Legend.
Written for the Guide by Dr. Clias Tarver.
(CONTINUED FROM EAST WEEK.)
CHAPTER III.
The plan proved a wonderful
success. Nobody doubted that
the wheat was safe in the gov-
ernment granaries. Everybody
knew that every certificate issued
was based upon an equal amount
of solid wheat deposited, and
thus the certificates were univer-
sally held to be as “good as
wheat,” a phrase yet current in
the world whose origin Prol.
Mackaye dates back to the time
of the Omegans. Scarcely had
the certificates began to circu-
late before a change, that seemed
miraculous, came over the island
through the wonderful impetus
given to every form of industry.
With money (for the certifi-
cates may rightfully be called the
money of the Omegons) the
worker in disposing of his pro-
duct, no longer had to a wait the
slow and uncertain process of
barter, that is the meeting oftwo
persons each having that to dis-
pose of that the other wanted,
but sold his product to whoever
wanted it, for certificates that
gave him no trouble to keep or
transport, assured that at any
time he could get back an equal
value in any product that he
might need. The exactness that
the purchase and sale of products
for money offered to calculate
the profits on handling them, in-
duced many enterprising island-
ers to become general dealers,
that is they would purchase dif-
ferent kinds of products, not for
their own use but to be sold to
those who wanted to buy them.
Entrepots were thus established
where the producer could be sure
to sell what he had to dispose of
and also to buy what he want-
ed. Having then no fear that
an excessive product would be
left as a burden on his hands, the
worker put no limit to his labor.
With the unusual stimulus of
of money, in a few years Omega
had progressed more than in the
ages before its invention; but an
unexpected difficulty suddenly
came to disturb this unwonted
prosperity.
The fact that wheat could at
once be converted into money
caused many new fields for its
cultivation to be opened, and
one year, when providence had
smiled most benignly on the hap-
py island, blessing it with seas-
ons most propitious, an extraor-
dinary crop of wheat was gar-
nered.
The government,notwithstand-
ing the most strenuous exertions,
had not been able to construct
granaries enough to receive even
half of it. The excess was thrown
back on the hands of the people
and naturally caused a great
fall in the price of that grain.
The certificates whose value was
measured by that of wheat, suf-
fered an equal fall. A horse that
had sold for 20 chams of wheat,
now readily brought 40. A
farmer who had sold his crop for
a thousand chams, now found
that the thousand chams would
not buy back half that product.
He believed that he had been
swindled in some way. People
who had products and sold them
for twice as many chams as be-
fore, thought themselves richer,
but complained of being robbed
when they found that these same
chams only bought half what
they once did. Merchants no
longer cared to buy or sell, not
knowing but that with a change-
able measure of value their deal-
ings might result in loss.
The wheels of industry, that
had been moving so smoothly
and rapidly, clogged now at the
hub—ceased to hum throughout
the land. Something being evi-
dently wrong with their money,
the wise men were again called
in council and asked to seek the
remedy. Now under the new and
greatimpetus of money, timehad
moved rapidly in Omega There
had been wonderful progress in
all branches, but nothing had ad-
vanced so much as monetary
science. The financial lights that
had been called together as most
fit to consider the matter now be-
gan a great war of words, bewil-
dering the people with a jargon
incomprehensible to thecommon
mind. The council divided itself
into two parties, known as infla-
tionists and contractionists,
whose scientific conclusions were
directly opposed. The contract-
ionist demonstrated clearly that
the distress and stagnation that
had brought starvation to so
many homes was due to a su-
perabundance of money. “We
have issued altogether too many
of these certificates,” they said.
“This is evident from the fact
that they are now worth but
half what they formerly were,
when the circulation was normal.
The value of money, like any oth-
er commodity, is subject to the
lawsofsupplv and demand; when
the demand is greater than the
supply it will rise in value, when
the supply is greater than the
demand it will fall. This last
was precisely what had occurred
with the certificates. The sup-
ply had gotten to be double the
demands of commerce, hence
they had fallen to one-half their
natural value.”
This party insisted that the
remedy was to levy a special tax,
so as to call in the superfluous
money now current which should
be destroyed until values had
been restored to their normal
condition. They demanded that
this be done in the interest ofthe
poor laboring man, who was be-
ing robbed daily of half his
wages, inasmuch as the d--d (?)
capitalists only paid him, at
present value of certificates, un-
der present conditions, half of
what he claimed to do.
On the other hand, the infla-
tionists, by equally as conclusive
reasoning, proved that all the
trouble and distress resulted
from there being an insufficiency
of money. “There never has
been money enough,” they said,
“Even in the days of prosperity
the per capita of currency in cir-
culation had not been sufficient,
as was evidenced by the eager-
ness with which the wheat crop
had been converted into certifi-
cates. Since the rise in values,
though the nominal per capita
was the same, it was practically
but one-half what it was form-
erly, since the purchasing power
of the chain had been reduced
that much. With a medium of
exchange insufficient for the needs
of commerce, clearly business
must become stagnant, industry
be paralyzed, and labor suffer.”
They declared that the move to
contract the currency was at the
dictation of the rich creditor
class, who, by requiring from the
debtor payment in a medium of
constantly increasing purchas-
ing power, would thus exact yet
more blood money from the poor,
suffering laborer.* The infla-
tion party demanded that the
government print certificates re-
gardless of the storage of wheat
and put them into circulation in
some convenient manner, until
enough had been issued to make
the per capita sufficient for the
needs of commerce.
There were a few eminent finan-
ciers in the council that agreed
with neither party. “It is not,”
they said, “that there is too little
or too much money, but the
trouble lies in the fact that the
demands of commerce are con-
stantly changing. At seasons
when the crops are being moved
there is a brisk demand for
money, increasing its value.
When this is done, and the wants
of the people have been supplied,
there is a lull in business, and
money becomes a drug on the
market.”
(to be continued.)
do YOU RIDE A VICTOR F
* Though nothing is said in the legend as to
the form of government on the island, Major
McPherson judged from the continued anxiety
exhibited in their debates about the welfare of
the poor laborer, that Omega was a republic,
and that its officers were dependent on the labor
vote for their positions.
Facts About the Eucalyptus.
A recent number of the Con-
sular Reports contains a quan-
tity of information about the
eucalyptus tree sent by consuls
in France, Spain, Italy, India.
Taken together, these reports
furnish a great deal of informa-
tion, and some tradition and
romance about the eucalyptus
tree, which, it must be under-
stood, is not one species, but
150. This fact in itself explains
some of the contradictory opi-
nions that have been expressed
about the famous product of
Australia and the New World.
Looking first merely at some
of the facts noted by different
observers as to one or another
of these species, we learn that
one variety furnished a red sac-
charine sap, rich in gum and
sugar, and so abundant that
fifty gallons may sometimes be
drawn from a single tree. An-
other has roots which lie partly
above the ground, and which,
on being cut, yield a clear, white
fluid which is palatable and
thirst-quenching. The bark is
used for tanning, and so is one
of the products of the leaves.
From the leaves also are dis-
tilled essences used by perfumers
and liquor manufacturers; also
oils used in medicine and oil for
illuminating use, which is con-
sidered especially valuable by
reason of its brilliant and inodor-
ous flame. Oils produced from
varieties of the tree are held to
be of the highest antiseptic value.
The wood is variously described
as soft, spongy, and hard. That
of some species is used for car-
riage-building and cabinet-mak-
ing, and is reckoned better than
teak. It is not attacked by any
kind of borer. Another kind pro-
duces wood which is soft while
the tree is young, but which, after
fifty years’ growth, is “hard
enough for any purpose.” The
tree, in all its varieties, is of rapid
growth, so that one writer says
that within three or four years
it becomes a large tree, and in
twelve years attains a height of
60 or 70 feet. It dries wetlands,
and “exhales a resinous and
pleasant fragrance.”
Popularly, the tree is best
known through its supposed
power to reduce the danger of
malarious exhalations. Perhaps
the most direct evidence cited in
favor of this belief is that as to
the partial reclaiming of a part
of the Roman Campagna by
Trappist monks, who went out
day after day, after the fog had
risen, planted eucalyptus trees,
and within a few years were able
to live in the region thus Im-
proved. They and others who
lived near them suffered at times
from malarial fever, but in a
much less degree than would
have been anticipated before its
planting of these trees. The evi-
dence as to the real value of the
tree as a protection against mal-
aria is quite conflicting, but the
popular opinion that the tree is
a safeguard finds fair support
when all stories are weighed to-
gether.—Hartford Times.
The grandest outdoor sport is cycling; the best bicycle is a A' ictor^
made in the largest and finest bicycle plant in the world.
OVERMAN WHEEL CO
Makers of Victor Bicycles and Athletic Goods.
BOSTON. NEW YORK. CHICAGO,
DETROIT.
SAN FRANCISCO.
DENVER.
PACIFIC COAST.
LOS ANGELES.
PORTLAND.
MEXICAN
International R.R
“Eagle Pass Route.”
THE STANDARD GAUGE SHORT LINE
CENTRAL TIME.
5:05 p. m.
MEXICAN TIME
4:35 p. m.
Ar..............
................C. Porfirio Diaz...............
.............Lv.
7:25 a. m.
7:30 p.m.
Lv..............
.................C. Porfirio Diaz...............
.............Ar.
6:45 a. in.
5:30 a. tn.
Ar..............
......................Trevino.....................
..............Ar.
9:45 p.m.
8:10 a. m.
Ar..............
....................Monterey....................
5:10 p. m.
12:05 p. m.
Ar..............
......................Torreon....................
..............Ar.
12:55 p.m.
11:25 p. m.
Ar..............
....................Zacatecas...................
..............Ar.
3:50 a. m.
2:30 a. m.
Ar..............
................Aguas Calientes..............
..............Ar.
12:15 a.m.
8:30 a.ni.
Ar..............
......................Irapuato....................
..............Ar.
6:30 p. m.
6:30 p. m.
Ar..............
...................Mexico Citv..................
9:00 a.m.
9:40 p.m.
Ar..............
..............IvV.
6:50 a. m.
Pullman Palace Buffet Sleeping
Cars Between San Antonio and
City of Mexico» Eagle Pass, Tex.
Witliout Cliange,
ONLY 47 HOURS TO THE CITY OF MEXICO.
Round trip rate from Eagle Pass, Texas, to
City of Mexico,
$30*75 (ii. S. Currency),
good for SIX MONTHS, permitting stop-overs
for sixty days on going trip.
T. G. George, J. W. Anderson,
Ticket Agent, Eagle Pass. Ticket Agent, C. P. Diaz.
E. M. Johnson, C. K. Dunlap,
Gen’l. Manager, C. P. Diaz. Gen’l. Pass. Agent.
Sterling’s Royal Remedy
A - POSITIVE - CURE - GUARANTEED
For the Most Dreadful of Diseases—SYPHILIS.
No. l is
This remedy is prepared in two bottles. j.
taken three times daily, No. 2 at night. By the ALTER-
NT A U A O/1vT TV NT nf tPi ooo m Arl 1 oin oo ‘r'*OiSO*"* A0
», NATE ACTION of these medicines the poison is exter-
r minated and drawn from the system through a princi-
4 pie of science unknown before the discovery of this won-
£ derful Blood Purifier. Send for pamphlet containing
( history of disease and method of treatment through the
ALTERNATE ACTION of John Sterling’s Royal Eem-
/ / \ edy. Pamphlet sent free. Address
/\ THE JOHN STERLING
7 l«i \\ ROYAL REMEDY CO.
A No. 127% W. 8th St. Kansas City, Mo.
For sale in EAGLE PASS ONLY at the
EAGLE PASS PHARMACY,
E. H. COOPER, Proprietor.
S. WALTON, President. LUCIEN H. COCKE, Secretary..
CHAS. C. WENTWORTH, (Civil Engineer), Vice-President and Treasurer.
American Bridge k Iron Co.
DESIGNERS AND BUILDERS OF
Iron and Stnnl Dridges, Viaducts,
Rnnfs, Irnn Furnacn Platns, Etn.
ALSO
Machinists and Founders.
FACTORY = EOAHOKB ‘VYA.
WM, PAYSON. Agent. Southwestern Office :
Room 307, Mackey Building SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS
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Eagle Pass Guide. (Eagle Pass, Tex.), Vol. 7, No. 25, Ed. 1 Saturday, February 16, 1895, newspaper, February 16, 1895; Eagle Pass, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1105678/m1/2/?q=%22%22~1: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting UNT Libraries Special Collections.