Marshall County Democrat. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1855-1859, 1857-10-15
LegaliZcd PRIVILEGES.

esanee Of the great producing classes? and. after
having grasped the arteries of commerce and ex-
change, turn upon them, like the poisoned asp,
And sting them to the death.
Every bank chartered BY the Legislature is per-
na,tted to do business on three times the amount Of
TIC capital actually paid in. A bank chartered
With a capital of 100000 is permitted to issue
bills to the amount of $500 900. This is unfair
the legislature will not authorize and empower an
individual, having thousand dollars, to transact
business, on three thousand 1t is unfair to assist
an association of capital by giving it triple ad-
van.ages, when small, individual means, are denied
equal favors. II is great evil to lcgislate with
partislity-to favor the strong and neglect the
weak. Equal and exact justice to all should be
the basis of legislation.
One bank is built upon the paper promises Of 9th
ers. To illustrates: a. has $4,000 on the Bank of
Pittsburgh; B. has an equal amount on the State
Rank Of Ohio; E. has large amount on the State
Bank of Indiana; and others of the stockholders
have the paper promises Of neighboring banks,
which paper they throw together and apply to the
Legislature for charter Of a bank with a capital
of 500 O09 stock all paid in, with privilege to do
business on 100000. Capital, without special ia
vors Of legislation, entirely unaided, has advan
t-ge labor labor Greats capital, it clears your
forests, raises provisions and breadstu, builds
nails and railroads, locomotives and steamboats,,
delves into the mine and brings forth its riches, it
finds the gold and silver, manufactures the dies and
coins the money. 1t is wrong to cripple that which
produces, fy any means, but more especially by
granting special PRIVILEGES to mopeyed corpora
ton which produces nothing-saye its irredecmable
rags. b. flvoring capital you rob the producer,
and cripple the energy of the laborer.
But the banks do hot restrict the issues to trip
ple ,heir capital; they 60 far beyond this, and to
such an extent as 70 become alarming even to
themselves as Is evinccd by the proceedings of
meeting of bankers in Philadelphia, October sth,
convened to consult upon the present money crisis.
They urge upon the extra session Of the Pc. Legis
la,ure the necessity for the passage of law COM
pcll;ng all banks in that Commonwealth to have
one specie dollar for every three paper dollars is
euei and this in a State where the laws in regard
To banks are quite a. stringcnt-perhaps more So
'han in any other State in the Union. As much
to say" If you have % cts. il would be unsafe
20 put aaoat more than 70 cents in shin plasters
One bank being built upon the promises to pay
Of other banks, ard flooding the country with its
paper issues, initiates the currency, and gives rise to
'he widest and most visionary speculations. The
price of labor, of merchandise, of everything, is
erha cel in ratio equal to the issue Of paper
money beyond the actual me'alic capital and this
only TO be Frustrated below its proper level soon
- the bankbaloo are tapped for specie. 1t is a
safe estimate to say there is four times much pa
per money afoat as there is gold and silver to re
deem it; there is therefore unreal value attach
I'd TO every article Of commerce as we'll to real
estate. To see how easily crisis panic may
occur, il Is longer necessary to look at the coun
try laid waist BIZ famine, Frustrated by p'stilencc,
~ devastated by war ; but surrounded b. PEACE,
health and abundance, our energies are parali1ed,
t.rde crippled, our credit dishonored and our
notes protested, while our pockets may be filled
With irredeemable bank paper. See what effect
tue banking institutions Of one commercial CITY
alone can have upon the currency of the country.
In July last, the banks of New York expanded
their issue 81. 100000. and in August and Scptem-
her, contracted it $4,000, 000-SI9 900 900 below
me issue Of July, and an actual difference in the
money market of S3s, 900 900. This paper money
does not go abroad. 1t is essentially home cur
rnncy and, notwithstanding the richest mineral
e well as agricultural resources our specie is ship
ed abroad whenever the balance OF trade is against
vs., while the rags remain break in the hands OF
Inc million at home.
The banking business opens wide the door for
dcfrauuin3 the laborinS Masses. Who ever heard
Of a bank breaking whose paper was not scattered
among the many and poorer classes, Bankers
know the assets and liabilities Of almost every /
bank in the Union. If they do not they are unfit for
the business. They study it and learn it just as |
mechanic learns his trade. Where there is dis |
tincton leGalzed in the currency of country, the
least in value will be kept u circulation, while the
llore precious viii be boarded. This il natural
such being the fact, by the ordinary and natural
course of trade, the producing and business classes
become the sufferers from bank failures But the
evil does not stop here; bankers in the west ascer-
tain that some bank in the east is about to 90 by
iae board, and while ts honey is vet quoted par
'ns on large quantities and pay it to the laborers
upon railroads and canals, or buy up wheat, -four
and 1--we stock; scarcely has this money been paid
into the hands Of the many, before the news reach
- Us by telegraph, that the bank has failed. Is
not this true ? Look at the bank mob at James
Tile, Wis, recently; Ito be found in this papcr) it
VAS precisely analogous to the case put They paid
cut Hartford, Conn money for wheat, and when
the news of its failure arrivcd-wlich it spcadily
did--the GAINESVILLE bank refused to exchange the
money with the farmers hence the mob. Now
The Hartford money is deprecated, the GAINESVILLE
bank can send out its agents and purchase up the
iaPer at 25 so cts. ON the dollar and pay their
debt 10 the Hartford bank in their own money, out
IT which the Wisconsin bank has realized a very
iirgc per centage. and the producing classes been
defraudcd Of their grain and labor This is legal
1ed robbery with vengeance.
One bank being built upon the issues of other
banks, all must necessarily be equally affected by
,aoaey rrcssurcs. general rule there are ex-
options. They may be compared to q row of bricks
set on end start the first, and all in the will be
Frustrated. Thus: The Ohio Life Insurance and
Trust COMPANY failed for about 81, DOC. 900 she