The Reading
List of an Economic Radical
by
Keith
Wilde
The list appended to this introductory essay describes documents that were the personal reading materials of John H. Blackmore, first leader of the Social Credit Party in the Parliament of Canada. Mr. Blackmore put them into my hands shortly before his death in response to my question of what it was about Social Credit that he found appealing to his cultural and environmental background. I found them opaque at the time, and they have only become illuminating to me in very recent years.
Issues of ER over the past few months have provided commentary on Social Credit as one important exemplar in the general theme of monetary reform. It is also a variant of political economy that has been very generally and frankly misunderstood, a situation which has made it vulnerable to misrepresentation, disrepute and dismissal as unworthy of serious consideration by policy analysts and governments. Examination of the writings of C.H. Douglas and of his most faithful expositors leaves no room for doubt that his ideas were and are anti-establishment. That is sufficient to explain influential opposition to open and careful consideration of them. Opposition has been abetted, however, by the interpretations and applications of Douglas’ ideas by some of his enthusiastic adapters. Thus, Douglas purists are prone to complaining that the malign reputation of the proposals and rationale is due about as much to proponents as it is to persons whose interests would in fact be disturbed by implementation. Furthermore, reports of unsavory behavior (hate propaganda) perpetrated in the name of Social Credit are too widely attested to be denied as a factor in its reputation (in Alberta and also in Quebec).
Close students of Douglas seem to be generally agreed that political movements under the label of Social Credit have not been effective in advancing the kind of social transformation he had in mind. They may in fact have retarded it by inadequate understanding and clumsy efforts of application/adaptation. And purists point to statements by Douglas himself in affirming that it is not the kind of transformation that can be put into effect by a political party in the governmental systems of most existing democracies. This underscores its radical nature, entailing significant adjustment to those systems. Purists are not impressed by the analyses of academic political economists either, finding them either short on understanding or having deliberately obfuscated.
Although the reading list of a Socred politician is obviously not the place to go for an understanding of Social Credit orthodoxy, therefore, it does have uses for exploring and illustrating issues in monetary reform generally, including lessons from history for those still intent on realizing the Douglas vision.
Money Reform Themes Follow the Evolution of Financial Techniques
A cursory review of modern economic history suggests that criticism of the monetary and financial system rises during times of general discontent, especially when extremes of wealth and income inequality are highly visible. We are in such a period now. Previous high points have included the Great Depression and three decades of deflation, “gilded age” excess and the “greenback” and “free silver” agitation that followed on the US Civil War.1 It seems plausible that periods of discontent and renewed scrutiny follow from developments in financial technique that are exploited by their inventors and adapters at a speed and to a degree that exceeds the capacity of society to comprehend and to civilize them in the general interest. This is the pattern with technological development in general and there is no apparent reason why financial technique should be different. The people and companies who develop it can be expected to exploit it in their own interest to the limit that they are permitted by rivals of one kind or another. Sometimes the rival can be an informed and aroused citizenry.
Unfortunately, an aroused citizenry is rarely if ever well–informed. As Jose Ortega y Gasset observed in his seminal Revolt of the Masses (1929), “when the mob goes in search of bread its first action is to wreck the bakeries.” In the democratic societies of contemporary experience the mob doesn’t get quite that far. Instead, the disillusioned and indignant citizenry is misled by fresh faces (and voices) from the currently dominant plutocrats into accepting a modest revision of the system that permits the shell game to continue. Rumbles of discontent also continue, fed by the resentment of the relatively well-informed who are more or less forced by circumstances to retreat into nursing various targets and theories of conspiracy. Because non-specialists cannot keep up with changes in technology in any field these days, it is inevitable that the cogency and volume of criticism lags the sophistication of technique and the political influence of its practitioners and supporting institutions. And because the financial system is the nexus of technological exploitation in every domain, failure to understand the institutions of money, property and credit, etc., may be the most debilitating form of ignorance to individual survival and to social stability and prosperity. That seems to have been the attitude of John Blackmore, a school teacher-cum-politician who wrote Money, the Master Key in the cause of an informed electorate. Although most of them do not appear in the references cited in his book, it seems reasonable to infer that the stack of documents handed to me along with it contain the background context I was asking for.
The dynamism of technology means that the content of monetary and financial criticism should be different as time passes. In the current era of discontent there is a renewed interest in money reform literature of the ‘thirties, judging by Internet search engine results. It is pertinent to ask how much of the ‘thirties argument is still relevant. How much of it was even on the mark when it was written? That question is prompted by the emphasis in the ‘thirties literature of “Lincoln’s Monetary Policy,” meaning his issue of “greenbacks” to finance the Civil War and an extrapolation to the principle that money supply should be under government control. The seminal role of Robert L. Owen and Gerald G. McGeer, high-profile politicians in the United States and Canada respectively, in promoting that idea has been detailed in ER over the past year (May 2004, January, February, April 2005). The speed with which their interpretation was picked up and the words attributed directly to Lincoln is manifested in several of the documents listed below. McGeer’s statement became an instant phenomenon, and not just in the United States. One can’t help wondering how long the idea had been cooking. Was his interpretation of Lincoln’s writing an original, or was it an extension from secondary sources that had developed the main arguments for government control of money in the late 19th century? The new generation of writers in the thirties was very aware that they had to go beyond the simple issue of government currency, for in their own time cheque-book money had become the norm and the largest element in money supply. Because of his age (b. 1856) and long focus on the subject, Owen is the most likely among those writers as a link to the past. Access to the Blackmore collection was nonetheless helpful in digging up the origin, context and nature of perhaps the most famous of the ‘Lincoln quotes,’ and I expect it has more light to shed on the general theme of monetary systems and policy.
But Economics does not “Follow the Money”
The line of thinking in the foregoing paragraphs suggests that the primary element of education in economics (and the focus of economics research) should be the nature of money and the history and conduct of financial institutions. That is what laymen think economics is about, and doubtless many young students expect their first exposure to the discipline to take them into that territory. Given its centrality to all “economic activity,” the monetary and financial system might be expected to be the central focus of political-economic evaluation and prescription. But it is not, and has not been the focus of standard economics for more than a century at the least. Money is taken for granted in many applications of economics and even those economists who specialize in the subject tend to make only piecemeal criticisms for improving the efficiency of the existing system, not for wholesale reform of its fundamental nature. The system itself is considered by political scientists to be outside of their domain and it is accepted as given by economics. One possible explanation for this avoidance is that to explore the system deeply would inevitably get into comparing the power and wealth that some people in the system have relative to others, and this would violate some economists’ understanding of “scientific objectivity.” That very avoidance, however, is an acknowledgment that money is a private affair and is shielded from public scrutiny–not very consistent with the political principles of a constitutional democracy.
Because reform of the monetary and financial system is ultra vires of the relevant academic disciplines, however, it is also off-limits to policy analysts and advisers employed by governments. In this situation, education and pressure for reform can only come from self-help among concerned citizens. That was recognized by desperate reformers in the Great Depression, who organized “study clubs” and wrote text materials to assist in the development of an informed electorate. Several of the items in the Blackmore collection make mention of that citizens’ initiative and affirm that they were written for the purpose.
The government of Canada maintains a site that provides detailed information about every federal election since 1867. It affirms that the Social Credit Party elected 17 members in the 1935 election that returned the Liberal Party to power. All but two of the Socreds were elected from Alberta, the other two being from Saskatchewan. Only two ridings in Alberta did NOT return a Social Credit member. One of those was that of the sitting Prime Minister, R.B. Bennett (Calgary West). Among the new Members was “John Horne Blackmore (March 27, 1890 – May 2, 1971), a school teacher and principal by training...the first leader of the Social Credit Party of Canada. Blackmore became leader of the party in 1935 and was first elected to the Canadian House of Commons in the 1935 Canadian election as Member of Parliament representing Lethbridge, Alberta. Blackmore remained party leader until 1944 and remained an MP until he was defeated in the 1958 Canadian election in which [the Liberals were defeated and] Social Credit lost all of its MPs.” In 1935 MacKenzie King was elected from Prince Albert (Saskatchewan) and Gerald Grattan McGeer (Lib.) from Vancouver-Burrard. There were a few Social Credit candidates in BC and Manitoba, but a fairly careful reading does not show any in the other provinces. The last previous federal election had been in 1930, and there is no sign of a Social Credit presence in that one.
There is another collection of Blackmore papers at the archives of historical materials relevant to Alberta maintained by the Glenbow Foundation in Calgary. I found the list of its holdings at ww2.glenbow.org/archhtm/blackmore.htm. Only twelve items are listed, preceded by the observations that QUOTE Blackmore was a conscientious writer, always striving to document the facts contained in his speeches. This feature is reflected in this series of books and pamphlets. Not only are they reference sources on topics – Social Credit monetary theory and communist conspiracy – which he dealt with frequently, but also are extensively annotated with certain sentences marked, important passages underlined, some pages flagged, and extensive notes made, either in the margins and inside covers or on separate sheets. ENDQUOTE
The Glenbow list is not reproduced here since it is readily available via Internet, but a couple of observations about its content are pertinent.
Garden City Press and Depression-era Money Reform
Larkin’s book is important in the spread of Douglas’ ideas not only in Canada but also to a broader audience outside the English-speaking countries. That is because it converted a Roman Catholic missionary from France who founded a movement in the province of Quebec whose members dedicated themselves to propagating the Social Credit ideals as part of their religious commitment. For an interesting short account of how this came about, turn to www.michaeljournal.org/evenbioa.htm. Louis Even was working as a printer for Garden City Press on the west end of Montreal Island when Larkin’s book was taken on by the publisher, J.J. Harpell, in 1934. Even seized on Larkin’s exposition as the answer to questions he had wrestled with in his vocation as a teacher committed to uplifting people by improving their material circumstances. Larkin’s title was From Debt to Prosperity and he described it as a summary of Douglas’ key ideas and prescriptions. The book does not appear among the Blackmore documents, but it is described in one of them. The book by I.A. Caldwell, Money – What is it?, is a traditionally bound (sewn) hardback and has a few sheets left over in the last folio segment which the publisher has used to advertise his other products. Included among them are the Larkin book and a title by G.G. McGeer, which I conjecture to be The Conquest of Poverty in a pre-publication draft. Note that Blackmore’s own book was printed by Harpell a few years after the latter had “presented” a copy of the Caldwell book to the Socred leader. Note also that the one book in my Blackmore collection that mentions “Social Credit” in the title is the one by Maurice Colbourne. Histories of Social Credit in Alberta note that William Aberhart experienced an epiphany similar to that of Louis Even when he encountered Colbourne. Thus it was second-hand expositions of Douglas that sparked both of the main movements for Social Credit, in Alberta and Quebec, in the same depression circumstances. The federal party apparently had links with both wings, even though its MPs were all elected from the West. Garden City Press was an important facilitator. For more details on Harpell, see the Even biography.
1. Ref. the article by Roper et al cited in previous ER article.
The items described below came into my hands in 1968 or 1969. I have recently been summarizing and comparing them, and will make the results available as time and space permit.
BOOKS
Colbourne, Maurice. The Meaning of Social Credit. Revised Edition (1935) of “Economic Nationalism.” Copyright by Figurehead, London, 1933. Published by The Social Credit Board, Edmonton. Hardbound in green cloth, with a very worn, yellow dust cover. 284 pages. Inscribed “To John Blackmore M.P. A veteran in ‘Money Reform.’ With the compliments of O.A. Kennedy, National Organizer.” In another hand and different ink, “Edmonton, Oct. 2nd, 1953.” A quotation from p. 11: “It was the American version of this volume (1928) which sowed the seed of Social Credit in the mind of…William Aberhart.”
Caldwell, I.A. Money – What is it? Garden City Press Study Club, Toronto and Gardenvale, Quebec. Hardbound in brown cloth; 181 pp. No date of publication, but the inscription reads “Presented to Jno. H. Blackmore March 27, 1936, by J.J. Harpell.” The title page says that “…this volume gives expression to the school of thought on the subject of money for which Mr. Neil McLean of St. John, N.B. is responsible.” (The cover identifies Caldwell as a resident of Bristol, NB.) Advertisements in the back of the book include one for J. Crate Larkin, From Debt to Prosperity.
Bjorset, Brynjolf. Distribute or Destroy! A Survey of the World’s Glut of Goods with a Description of Various Proposals and Practical Experiments for its Distribution. (translated from Norwegian) Stanley Nott Ltd., London, 1936. Hardbound with blue cloth; 188 pp. The handwritten name inside the front cover identifies it as belonging to “Archie H. Mitchell, Rm 609 – House of Commons.”
De Witt, W.E. and Keen Polk. Free Money. Subtitle What it Means to Industry and Agriculture; A New System of National Finance Under a Co-operative Government. Free Money Study Club, Salt Lake City, 1936. A well-bound paperback with black cover. 158 pp. The inscription says “From Wm. Donaldson. March/55.” It is very clearly in harmony with the “Stable Money” movement, making several references to Sen. Robert Owen and giving liberal exposition to the unwisdom of regarding the precious metals as the only sound money. It also provides a source document for one of the other frequently quoted statements by Lincoln. Starts right out with the international bankers, Rothschilds and Paul Warburg as their emissary to get the Federal Reserve System crafted according to their design.
Allen, Stanley F. Money: The Question of the Age. Published by the author, in Sydney, Australia. Sixth edition, 1942 (first edition in August, 1938). Paperback booklet with yellow cover; 48 pp. The most well-worn of the items, with quite a lot of inked-in notes by readers. Has a name written in (ballpoint ink) on the front cover, plus a green rubber stamp identification of The British Columbia Social Credit League. Author identified as a Chartered Accountant. The same familiar themes, but factual and mainly circumspect in style. “Money Power” is clearly the adversary, but there is no direct reference to the international (Jewish) cabal. Remarkably, however, it does reproduce McGeer’s inferred statement of “Lincoln’s Monetary Policy” and attributes it to Lincoln himself. I have so far not detected mention of Robert Owen, however.
Blackmore, John H. Money: The Master Key. A large format paperbound on pulp, with a faded blue cover; 191 pp. The printing is good, but on the title page where one would expect to see a publisher’s acknowledgment there is a rubber-stamped mark (at an oblique angle) in black ink that has blotted slightly. It says “Printed by Garden City Press in Gardenvale, PQ.” There is no date, but the most recent references inside suggest early 1939, before the outbreak of WW II. The author describes it an effort to educate laymen about the simple facts of what money is and how it works. A footnote gives favorable reference to a speech by G.G. McGeer in the House of Commons, but I have not noticed references to McGeer’s book or to his interpretation of “Lincoln’s Monetary Policy.” Makes no overt reference to Douglas or to Social Credit that I have noticed, and only gets round to proposing solutions that I recognize as Douglas-inspired in the final short chapter–where part of it sounds more like Keynes on an international reserve currency.
Russell, Etta M. Basic Principles of Constitutional Money: A Textbook for High Schools and the General Public. The Constitutional Money League of America, Washington, DC, 1940. Printed on good quality coated paper with a black paper cover and bound with a metal cirlox; 119 pp. Attractive layout with a few illustrative diagrams and several tables of data, most of which are attributed to the 1939 book by former US Senator Robert Owen that is frequently referred to here and elsewhere as Senate Document 23. Also cites the Caldwell book above.
Elsom, John R. Lightning Over the Treasury Building: Or An Expose of Our Banking and Currency Monstrosity – America’s Most Reprehensible and Un-American Racket. Meador Publishing Company, Boston. It says “Fifth Edition,” but I suspect this means essentially “fifth printing,” for internal content suggests it was written in 1940, before America entered the War, and John Elsom secured copyright in 1941. A nicely bound paperback with an excessively dramatic cover illustration. 111 pp. Like the Russell book, it acknowledges the contribution of Robert Owen’s Senate Doc. 23 (p. 27) and uses the phrase “constitutional money.” Remarkably, however, given the very short time span entailed, he reproduces a portion of the “Lincoln Monetary Policy” written by McGeer and attributed already to Lincoln himself (p. 78). The cover illustration and the introduction give an unfortunate impression of extremist content. The text is even-toned and factual, although it presents what are by now hoary anecdotes about the history of banking in Europe and the US, including letters that purport to prove evil intent on the founders of the Federal Reserve System. Given the one quotation that I know to be apocryphal, I can only be skeptical about some of the others. The general argument is unmistakable, however, and seems fully consistent with the Russell book and the “Stable Money” proposal that Owen claimed to have wide support among leading industrialists and economists. One of his more interesting points is that Hitler turned a prostrate Germany into a major industrial and military power by taking control of the money system.
Mullins, Eustace. The Federal Reserve Conspiracy. Common Sense, Union, NJ, 1954. A well-made paperback with brown cover. There was no inscription when I received it, but it now says “John Blackmore” in my hand on the title page, written there when I loaned it recently to a trusted colleague. Stephen Zarlenga made significant use of this source in his Lost Science of Money.
Vennard, Wickliffe B., Sr. The Federal Reserve Corporation: 42 Years of Subversion in 100 Acts. The Hidden Government, Money, War Plotting and United Nations Exposed. Meador Publishing Company, Boston. It is a well-made paperback with blue cover; 320 pp. – without chapter divisions. It does have a code of abbreviations and an index of “important” subjects. There is no publication date, but it says Fifth Edition and a pencil inscription on the title page says “Rec’d July/57. The title suggests first publication in 1955 (1913 plus 42 years). A quick scan confirms the strident tones of extreme frustration from a prophet whose message is not stirring his audience sufficiently.
PAMPHLETS FROM LONDON (clamped together)
A Twentieth Century Economic System. Author anonymous. Published by Williams, Lea & Co., Ltd., London, 1941, and distributed by the Economic Reform Club. (Main themes are underconsumption and the creation of money out of nothing by the banks. Is accompanied by a piece of paper from the owner’s file noting that it was loaned to Doris on April 10, 1953. That will be his secretary, Garry’s aunt from Saskatoon.)
Report of the London Chamber of Commerce on General Principles of a Post-War Economy, 12th May, 1942. 14 pages on the general underconsumptionist theme and the necessity of putting it first in considering remedial measures.
The International Monetary System. A single sheet, printed both sides (British wartime), attributed to the Economic Reform Club and dated October, 1943. It is about Washington discussions of Keynes and Morgenthau plans with advice on where it should be going.
Economic Democracy by D.N.L. The Economic Reform Club, London, January, 1943. (Focus on insufficient demand; not supply.)
Report of the London Chamber of Commerce on the FINAL ACT of the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference at Bretton Woods. December, 1944. (Expresses skepticism about the wisdom and effectiveness of IMF design.)
Report of the London Chamber of Commerce on the Economic Crisis. September, 1947. (Heavy emphasis on food in international trade and the deleterious effects of IMF. Shows physical signs of having been read intensely.)
SLIM PAMPHLETS FROM BC AND ALBERTA
What Does Social Credit Propose to Do? Manifesto 1936 of the British Columbia Social Credit League. Contains a variety of statements from a variety of people, including the following, attributed to John H. Blackmore, M.P. Lethbridge, Federal Social Credit Party leader, in House of Commons, May 5, 1936:
Monetary reform must take two forms: First of all, a method of obtaining money without interest and without debt; second, a method of distributing money so that it can get into consumers’ hands….
The Dangers of Douglasism: A One night Study of the Craze Called National Dividends. Economic Safety League, Drumheller, Alberta. No date, but it opens by saying that for two years Albertans have been listening to radio broadcasts by Aberhart.
W. M. Davidson, The Aberhart Plan. The Economic Safety League, Calgary. July, 1935. (Immature, Unconstitutional, Economic Fallacy)
UNPRINTED MATERIALS BY MR. BLACKMORE
Handwritten notes on the backs of two House of Commons envelopes about “The German Inflation of World War I.” There is no date, but there is a reference to his book so it must post-date 1938 and the title suggests that World War II has become a reality.
Carbon copy of a typescript on seven pages titled “August Radio Broadcast by John H. Blackmore, M.P.” It is not dated, but internal comment requires 1944. The occasion was House debate on “King’s Family Allowance Bill,” and Blackmore crowed that it reflected Aberhart’s dividend proposal of 1934.