The anti-monopolist. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1874-1878, 1876-04-20
lind Sampson. tore down the columns

blind Sampson, tore down the columns
the temple of British commerce, and
scattered devastation and ruin through
out the land, among the people, among
the women. and among the helpless
childbirth. How did it tear down the
commerceP By trying to avoid suspen-
sion. by contracting the currency, by
breaking the merchants in forcing them
suddenly to pay their loans. 1t did not
suspend in 1889; but it went to Barring
Brothers, bankers, private capitalists,
and asked them to save the credit of the
great Bank of England and the British
nation. Barring Brothers gave them
what some call Kiting bill. They
drew on tneir Paris correspondent Tor
f3,OOO,OOO. The Paris correspondent
accepted the bill, and the Bank OF France
cashed it. thus saving the Bank Of Eng
land. In 1847, three years after the Act
of 1914 was passed, under which the bank
is now acting it s'squatted" when only
FL 1894 900 in coin was left in the vaults.
In 1857-understand every one of those
dates indicates
A FINANCIAL CRISIS,
q stoppage Of all commerce and business
a breaking up of the merchants manufac-
turers, and great distress among the
people in 1857 the crisis reduced their
cash to 81, $4,000. In 1847 and 1887
and again in 1866, the time OF the great
Overland and Quincy panic, then they
had only f3,O00,000 left and in each of
those cases which have occurred since
1874, and the passage OF the Bank Act. >
the govern ment has stepped n to relieve
the bank, and has said:
1.-THE ACT OF 1874
is suspended" And what does it mean
when it says that the Act of 1914 is sus-
pended? Previous to the Act of 1874
the Bank ofEngland was allowed to is
sue to any amount :heir promissory
notes, called bank notes, without res
friction of any kind. | will not be IN
fair. They had some capital paid in,
but it was principally, if not wholly, in
vested in government debts, that is, the
government owed them. There were
no bonds tor it; there were no consols
for it. It was book account, and it
was understood that that debt should
stand, and never be demanded by the
Bank of England as long as it exercised
the privileges OF its charter-tAe issue
Of those notes, aud the exclusive issue,
and the monopoly of the issue in London
and the circuit of sixty-ive miles. The
Bank Act of 1874 authorized Fiduciary
issues to the amount or Els, 900, 900, but
if the Bank issued any more than fl5,.
600, 900, then it must have in its issue de-
partment-tor the bank was separated
into issue and discount departments by
the Act of lS44-dollar for dollar, pound
for pound in coin. either silver or gold,
the proportions being fixed by law. 1t
must have silver or gold tor all over
Els, 100000 sterling it need not have
any gold or silver. Thisissue was called
| tduciarv. At these periods. in 1916,
1857 and 1866, the Act by which they
| without gold behind it was suspended,
| ana they were permitted to issue to any
amount, the same as they were before
the Act was passed. At the date | have
| before me the banks of Ireland had Fl,
OJ0. 900; circulation; the Bank of Scot
land E., 0O0, 900 and the country banks,
had enough more, with that OF Ireland
and Scotland and the f25. 100000; Cir
culation of the Bank of England (E15.-
600. 900 tiduciary unsecured and tl0,
100000 with gold behind it) to make
Els, ooo. 900 circulation, s3o, 900 o.
which is "Flduciary.' Now the bank:
OF Scoti,nd and the banks OF Ireland By
| the Act OF l845, whereas previously they
had been allowed to issue notes to any
extent-as George Smith used to issue
them up there in Chicago, (and he un
derstood the way of doing business or
the Scotch plan, he xas a Scotchmar
and good banker too, though his sys
TEN was bad. aud bad system vel
managed is better than a good system
managed by Ignorant men that don
know their business) tie Scotch have
well managed their bad system. muct
better than the English have-l say tina
what the Scotch. Irish. and private ant
joint stock banks had in circulation III
TO 1915. the average being taken 70
four weeks previous TO the act going in
10 force, that amount of circulation the
were allowed to continue 70 issue with
out any restriction whatever. but owe
and a owe tia. the banks OF Ireland an
Scotland. and the private banks were t
keep pound for pound in coin behind tn
Excessive issues which are called tn
covered issues. and the other is calle'
the uncovered or tidueiary issue. Prev
ious to the Act OF 1914, anybody coul
issue As many notes rs he chose; Their
was no Law prohibiting anybody from
issuing notes to circulate as banks in th
place OF money if the people would tax
them, and all those that were ISSUING
, and had notes in circulation at that time
.. S44 is. are to day permitted to continue
their issues-iduciary issues-in tn
: same way. But. l repeat, wishing {
make myself thoroughly understood
: over and above what they had out O
an average OF our weeks previous t
the passage Of the Act OF Is45, the
must have gold behind it and for TIL
amount cnly. That is the English sys
tenn, tie British system. It is generall
understood in this country that under til
English system every bank note has
gold dollar behind it. This is . gray
Terror. There are fi3 .000. 600 of note
:, n; rc,,lS,,D, ard onir Ga n1a rs,t ;