The Hillsborough recorder. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1820-1879, 1838-03-30

snks. annunlinE 20 St75.ou0s GOO, lie
,leress upon xhirh. constituting ah0nt
~ sam ol 25.000 600. forms The ex.
eo,ionsble lar. Now. this SUN i not
ala bY ne whole community, boz Only /
= Hose inIiEllusls Who obtain discounts
rom lhe banks. They barrow money
!, slx per cent. interest. and invesl Il in
,roslable adEeninrcs. or Otherwise employ
4. They would not harTua il IL they !
10 not suppose they could make profit BY
4: and Ihe probability j. that they do
mske profit by il. Insleaj, therefore. Of
here beng any Inss in the operation, there
is m actual lin lolhe community, By The
excess Of profit male beyond SIX per
cent. interest. which they pay. What are
banks! They are mere organized sgen-
eies for the loan Of money and the transae-
lion Of monetary business: regulated
agencies, acting under the prescriptions
Of Law, and subject 10 a responsibility,
moral and legal. Ear transeending that
under which any private capitalist aPe-
rates. A number Of persons. not ehoos-
ing 10 lend out their money privately.
associate together, bring their respective
csni,sls into q common stock, which is
controlled and managed by the corporate
government of a bank. IL no association
whatever had been formed, alarge portion
Of this capital, large paTilOn therefore.
Of ,ha, very deb, Of S475. 00O. 600. would
still exist. in The shape Of private loans.
The Senator from South Carolina might
IS well collect the aggregate amount Of
all the mortgages, bonds. and notes,
which have been executed in the United
States for loans. and assert that the lnie-
rest paid upon The total sum constituted
a tax levied upon the community.
In the liquidation Of The debt due 10 the
banks from the community. and from lhe
banks 10 the community. there would not
be as much difficulty as the Senator seems
10 apprehend. From the mass oI debts
due 10 the hanks are 10 be deducted,
first, amount Of subscriptions which con-
slilule their capitals; secondly, the amount
OF Ieposiles 10 the credit Of individuals
in their custody; and, thirdly, the amount
other notes in circulation. How easily
will these mutual debts neu,rslize each
other! The same person, in numberlcss
instances, will combine in himself The
relations both OF creditor aud debtor.
The only general operation Of banks
beyond their discounts and dep0siIes,
which pervades the whole community,
is that Of furnishing circulation IN
redeemabIe paper, beyond the amount Of
specie TO redeem IL in their vaults. And
can il be doubted that this additional
supply Of money furnishes powerful
stimulus 10 industry and production, fully
compromising any casual inconvenience,
which sometimes. lhough rarely, occur
Banks reduce the rate Of interest, and
repress inordlnale usury. The ssluiary
influence Of banking operations is demon
s,raled in countries and sections OF coun
Try where they prevail, when contrasiet
with those in which they are not found
In the lormer. all is hustle, activity
general prosperity. The country is beau
tiled aud adorned BY the noble works q
internal Improvement; The cities are iillet
with splendid ediiices. and the wharve'
covered with the rich productions of ou
own or Of foreign climates. In the latter
all is slugsIshness slothiUIness. ant
inactivity. England, in modern times
illustrates the great advantages of banks
Of credit. and Of stimulated industry
Contrast her with Spain, destitute Of al
those advantages. In ancient times, 4
,hens would present an lmage Of full AM
active employment Of all the energies a
man, carried to the highes, point Of civil
zaiion, whilst her neighbor, Sparta. will
her iron money, affords another Of III
boosted benefits Of metallic circulation.
The Senator from South Carolin
would DO the banks no harm; bu, The,
are deemed by him highly injurious 1
The planting interest According to him
they initiate prices. and the poor plante
sells his productions for hard money. an
has 10 purchase his supplies a, the swol
prices produced by paper medium
Now. | must dissent altogether from III
Senator's statement Of the case. En-
land, the principal customer Of III
planter, is quite as much, il not more
a paper country than ours. And th
paper.money prices Of the one counir
are ueulralized by The paper-moncy price
Of the other country. II the arguner
) were true. that a paper-money counIr
trades disadyaniageously with hare
money country, we ought 10 continue
employ paper medium, tn counierba
auce the paper medium Of England. An
IL we were to Danish our paper, an
substitute altogether a metallic currency
We should be exposed to the very Unequal
. W which has been insisted upon. b.
there is nothing ia that view Of tie matte
which is presented by the Senator fror
South Carolina. IL, as he asserts, price