Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1869-08-26
Banks and Railroads.

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say disgrace, OF the partisan press,
that ~ soon a. a question affecting
the public interest becomes a polite
al issue, party exigeney precludes in
dependent comment. Whatever the
PARTY, as "A whole, resolves upon, the
organs Of i. must advocate. We are
not TO discuss the merits and demer-
its of such a state Of things, but simp-
w advert to it 10 show the infrequen-
cy of really independent discussions
OF questions involved in political
contests. The Copr'ier, owing aliegi-
ance To no political organization, at
perfect liberty IN express whatever
opinion the editor really cherishes,
happily escapes tho enihraiiing in
curry, "Nhat viii be the effect of
this article upon party prospects,"
The skeleton In the partisan editors
closet has no place in ours. We ar
proach The subject indicated above
witnout letters, and shall speak u
men and measures without the slight
estregard 70 strictly party consider
afi0ns.
Everybody knows, who has read
even the ahornbogk" d our political
history, that this Government once
had national hank. IT WAS situa-
ted at Philadelphia, nj that time the
commercial capitol 81 the nation.
The genius If lie Witt Clinton, the
father Of the Erie canal, wrested the
crown from the Quaker city. and
made New York the imperial city Of
the continent. The grand idea Of
the bank was, that there should bc a
central currency, that the money in
common use on the Western frontier,
in the South, in the North and in
the interior, should all be alike good
at the centre OF trade, and that which
was worth par al ono place should be
ut another. 1T took no special pre-
science to see thati the paper money
OF the country should be wholly local
the price Of exchange would be enor-
nous. What was par in one locality
might be at an immense discount
elsewhere.
1t was grave evil that the nation
al banks, overthrow by Jackson,
sought to obviate. 1T was also %
great evil that the anti-bani party
sought to avert, viz: the creation Of
monetary ari5tocracy, financial
monopoly paraIyzing the general
business OF the country, making the
trade Of the land pay toll to crush
ing, rcmorscless monopoly. Glowing
and not altogether visionary were
tho pictures drawn Of the evils Of
such Capitalization Of surplus CAPT
tai. AS one reads and reflects, he Is
inclined to follow in the footsteps OF
the Dutch Dogberry, who decided
that both plaintiff and defendant had
won the case and the suit should be
dismissed at the sheriT's cost; for ii
is no paradox to say both were right;
neither is it to add, both wero wrong.
There was On evil to guard against
on either side; and the desideratum
was to hit upon Il plan that should
avoid both the whirlpool and the
rock. The old bank did not die too
soon. Jackson did indeed lay vio-
lent hands upon it and throttle il
without due legal authority; yet ii
was beginning to assume tho form
and strength Of demon OF despot-
ism. At the Same time, when we
remember The flood Of "wildcat"tha
dclugcd the land, more especially
the West, and the APPALLING disasters
and incaIculable losses resulting
thercfrom, we can but admit that
the old, anti-war system Of local or
state banks was faIlacious in the eX-
IRENE.
Its ono Of the cardinal blessings
OF q divine Providence, distilled for
iis through the alembic of war, that,
to meet the eXigencies of war, that
system was displaced by another
which was happy medium between
the original national bank and the
local banks. TO furnish the necessa-
ny funds it was found necessary to
devise and bring into general use
the present banking system.
That this system subserved the
immediate purpose for which it was
designed, is now unquestioned.
None can challenge fact substantial
ted by the concurrent history of the
current decade. There are, howev-
or, those who say, "The system
worked well In time of war, but is
unfit for period of peace, and should
now bcsct aside.o They would have
MS return to private banking, or else
substitute for national bank curren-
cy greenbaclSs, which would be, sub
stantially, a return to the old nation
al bank system. The object of this
article is not to discuss at length the
pros and cons Of this subject, but to
simply call attention to what expe-
rience teaches, and vindicate thewis-
dom Of system most admirably
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