Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1874-03-11
The Bank Question.

One of the mostimportant Legislative
movements which has been made this
winter, is that of prohibiting banks
and banking companies and banking
associations from paying interest on
deposits. The movement in Congress
and our State Legislatures looks like
concert of action, and as though some
thing practical was contemplated, but
it may after all prove only "feeler'
or "pincher," and result in granting
no relief TO subtantial business inter.
ests. aii
The bill introduced into the United
States Senate by Mr.. Boutwell,, as an
amendment to the currency act, makes
tho penalty four times that ofshe in.
terest to he paid, or received, and com.
pels the Comptroller of the Currency
to bring suits for the recovery Of the
penalties whenever such violations oi
the law are brought to his notice.
DR.. Potter, our member Of Assem-.
bly,, introduced q series OF resolutions
in that body, three weeko ago, look.
ing TO the same end What the views
of a majority of our law makers are
upon this point, have not been ex-
pressed, but the members must be
very stupid if they do not know that
the banking business is now the only
paying business in this country
While money invested iD bank yields
the owners from 25 to so per cent, jan
nually, that invested in a coal mine,
fire brick works, saw mill, black.
smith shop, furnace, farm, planning mill,
or woolen mandatory, ETC., yields
the owners scarcely any return. Even
the merchant and active trader, who
turns his money often, cannot CON-
pete with the banks, who have be.
come rivals in every branch OF trade,
and by the rare opportunities they
possess, can and do borrow all the
money in the country at living rates
of interest. And whenever an ac-
tive business man wants to use a few
thousand dollars to repair or enlarge
his factory or machinery, he is
compelled to go to bank and pay
double and triple rates of interest
for the money, or abandon his bust
ness and let it run down, or borrow
tho money at sixty days and break
up; just as he likes. These enormous
profits arc paid TO establishments
which do not add single dollar to
the substantial wealth of the country.
They neither spin nor SOW. They
manufacture no wagons, produce no
nails, run no saw mills, or other man.
ufacturing establishments. They put
no chairs, stoves, fuel or provisions in
your house they clear up no farms
and erect in great measure no shops;
but they really prevent all this, be-
cause eight-tenths of them arc spend
tbrifts, live very fast, and soon dis.
cover that they cannot support them.
selves, and then they devise some
means to live off their neigbbors.--
These modern commercial habits and
negative business transactors, and our
debaucbed morality, mistaken for re-
fnement, is what produces panics and
paralyzes productive business enter
prises. hla4a 5dl
Although there are a thousand ac-
tive business men to one banker, the
latter has tho power to control all of
them under our present banking sys-
tem. The banker knows who has
money, and he "goes for it," often at
less than legal interest, and gathers
it in, and when either of the ono
thousand business men want money
they must go to him and pay from l2
TO 20 per cent for its use; and If a
dozen call the same day, the price
runs up to 25 and 30 per cent. This
is commercial murder. Shall We have
o ohange2 We will see.