The Rutland weekly globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1873-10-24

/ AVi a hblilhNi WI .lNdib anu Ntlt SUN hOihE
business. The national banking system
was one of the outgrowths of the rebellion,
having been adopted with the double pur-
pose of affording n market for United
States bonds and a currency for the people.
The entire south being in rebellion, no Ger
tain provision could be made by which,
when peace was restored, a proportion of
banking capital and bank bills, based upon
population could be assured to them, and
hence the additional fifty-four million as
an aid thereto. Without considering this
part of the act any further, may we not
ask whether, of ITSELF it does not furnish
an unanswerable argument in favor of
free banking system? If Vermont can use
the circulation apporioned to those who
have no idea of its wants or use, should we
not haye it? Must it be locked up TO
await the time when that portion of the
country is so far Developed as TO need
it, and have men who can manage it ?
The provisions for the distribution of the
remaining one hundred and fifty millions
of dollars of circulating notes are worse, if
possible, than the former, and furnish,
also, a powerful argument in favor of
throwing the doors for banking open to all.
The remaining half-the whole being limit
ed TO three hundred millions of dollars
the twcnty-frsl section says "shal be APP
"portioned by the secretary of the treasury
among associations formed in the several
states, in the district Of Columbia, and in
the territories, having due regard to the
"eXistng banking capital, resources, and
business of such states, districts and ter
ritories.' So that, rs we have already
seen. one-half of all of our currency
throwing treasury notes aside as we would
gold and silver-is absolutely apportioned
to the states according to their population,
without regard to their business interests
Any one but a dOlt could see that the little
state of Rhode Island absolutely needs more
banks, banking capital, and notes to circu-
late as money, than the states of New
Hampshire and Vermont combined, yet, 10y
thcproyisions Of the first part of the clause
of the act, Vermont and New Hampshire
receive nearly three times as much. Nei-
thcr if we examine the provision, is the
matter equalizcd by the distribution of the
remainder as would, at first glance, appear
Saying nothing about the arbitrary power
given to Il single indivdual-the secretary
of the treasuly-and supposing that it is
honestly and conscientiously exercised, it
must be apportioned or distributed among
all the states, Vermont and New Hamp-
shire receiving their due proportion the
same as Rhode Island, reducing, to be sure,
the edisproportion, but still leaving dispro-
portion. In one sense of the word, popu-
lation and the amount of business transact
cd has nothing to do with the number of
banks required, or the banking facilities
necessary, or even with the bills-that is
currcncy-to be issued to circulate therein.
Portions of the country can be found
where by the strict construction of the
law, both in its letter and spirit, some half
dozen or more banks with a proportion
ate amount of capital and circulating notes
would be located, yet where they would
he no more needed than at the north pole.
Take the same number of inhabitants, of a
different class, and the same amount of bust
ness, of different kind, locate them in
business center and twice the number of
banks would do remunerative business
and still not afford all the facilities re-
quired. Banks cannot be located, nor
their capital and circulating notes appor-
toned upon any such absurd hypothesis,
and yet this is the theory of the national
banking law. We have said nothing in
reference to the additional power granted
to the secretary of the treasury to with
draw from the banks havingthe largest cir
culation, twenty-five millions of dollars of
circulating notes for the purpose of re-dis-
tribution, because it will not alter the case
and the secretary has not, and does not pro-
pose to exercise that power. Otherwise,
we have stated, briefly of course, the law
regulating the issue of national bank bills,
and we submit that they are absurd on
their face, and present a powerful argu-
ment for free banking