The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1876-04-15
Wbv does not the Rock Island Argus and

1.-The Ottawa FREE TRADER break cover ant
throw off the transparent sham under which
they have been attempting TO disguise thcii
advocacy of the national banks? The golt
dust bronzing in which they have been par
aiding is entirely too thin, and shows about
as much of the greenncss, of the national bank
note behind il, rs they must have Originally
supposed the masses of the people 70 be tine
turcd with Princeton Tribune.
The Rock Island Argus can talk for itself
As to the FREE TRADER, it will take better
logic land better grammar to show that by
:, insisting that the government shall redeem
, its promises to the people who hold It's green
backs with the same fidelity with which il
has always redeemed its promises to the bond
} holder aud pon.cutter, the FREE TRADER
! is advocating the national banks. The FREE
; TRADER processes no particular like or dis
like for the national banks AS no CONNER
J cial people can get along without banks, and
} we shall always have them. We know of no
reason why the present national banks are
not quite as good rs any we shall ever be like.
" to get ia their place. Only the FREE IRA
DER objects to giving the banks the munOpo,
ly Of making the paper money of the country
That should be taken from them and the
country have no other paper money except
such as is issued directly from the treasury.
Issuingpaper is no part Of the legitimate bus
! mess of bank, and most OF the natl nal
banks care nothing for the privilege Indeed
many are returning all the currency they are
allowed to by law TO the treasury and are
taking up their bonds. There is a great deal
of ignorance in the idea that the national
banks are making enormous sums by depOs
| iting their bonds in the treasury and having
| 90 per cent. returned TO them in bank bills,
thus enabling them to draw double interest"
on their money. There are plenty Of ways
IN which the banks can make double inter.
est" quite as easily by keeping the bonds in
their own vaults.
The FREE TRADER is Of opinion that the
national banks care less about specie pay
mcnt than many imagine. They now lend
their bills, worth 81 cts. on the dollar, to the
people and take their notes tor SO many dol
lars at par. Specie payment would doubtless
at one bound add 10 or IL per cent to the val.
ue Of Their important item of available means,
"notes and discounts" But after that they
would have their own paper to redeem dollar
for dollar in gold, and in lending to their Gus
toners would have TO lend dollars worth 1OJ
cts. each instead of rs now, dollars worth but
81 Cts each.
The FREE TRADER is therefore not con.
scious that in advocating return to honest
money, or in urging that the only paper mon
ey of the country shall be issued from the
national treasury, it Is either specially friend
ly or hostile to the national banks
Another idea that the FREE THADER is I'M
able to appreciate Is the pet one of the ma
tional bankers, that it would be less safe for
congress to have control of the volume of pa
per money to be issued than the national
banks. Congress has control of the matter
now and will not be likely to surrender that
control, whether the present system of paper
issues by the banks Is continued or not But
IN general, congress is vastly safer to be trust
cd in such a case than the banks. Congress
must at least always act IN such matters with
delihcration and with show Of purpose, in.
ieligence and adaptation of means to ends
but with the banks, the matter OF redundancy
or scarcity of currency is controlled entirely
by the dictates of selfinterest, often misdi- /
rected and running mad after the vii lest delu-
slons engendered by specializing manias. Our
past financial history and abundant wild cat
ard stumptail experience are full of instruc.
ton on that point.
So the Tribune will see, we hope, that the
FREE TRADER is working under no cover
and dealing in no "shams" in its attitude on
thecurency question. 1t wants the best money,
which is gold or its equivalent, at the least
expense, and execrates only the delusion that
the government can make money out of moth
ing, which seems to be the IriJuRe'S idea,
but which is demonstraby bid, slight re.
move from idiocy.