The Portland daily press., 1878-09-05
The National Banks

The National Banks are the 6ete noir Of our
Greenback friends; they cannot speak of them
with patience or in decent terms. They are
great swindling mills in their view; sort Of
machinery for grinding up poor people to feed
rich people upon. ''Don't you see," they say,
shat the bank people are rich and their Gus
toners are poor, and lots of them are failing
every day? Let's put the banks down and
these people won't fail, aud business will go on
swimmingly."
There are many very decent people, honest
people, who talk in this way, having been told
and sincerely believing that the banks are an
injury to the country and a hindrance to its
business The trouble with such people is,
that they have not the smallest knowledge of
banks or banking or of the relation of this
branch of business to the general trade and
business of the country. Many of
these people were never within the walls of q
bank and know absolutely nothing of the mat
ter upon which they pronounce opinions so en-
phatic and conclusive that one would think
there can be no appeal from their Judgment.
AS a matter of fact banks are not owned
only or chiefly, by rich men, but their stock is
held mostly in small parcels, by traders, me-
chanics, widows, orphans, by benevolent, lit
erary or religious societies, by single women.
1t is true there are some banks in which rich
men have large interest, for the reason that
they have large unemployed funds, which they
invest in this way, aud which 20 o1t through
the banks into the business world, and are
active in helping on the industrial pursuits of
the people. The capital of honest banks is
made up of spare funds which the owners
place there, that they may have the interest,
on which they live. This bank stock is con-
stantly changing hands; persons are always
selling out for one reason or another, and other
persons are buying in, always for the reason
that they have some money unemployed, which
they wish to place safely, where it will pay in
terest.
If all business men were rich in the abun-
dant capital of their own, banks of discount
would not be needed, they would have no
place. Banks of deposit and exchange would
be useful and even necessary to render easy
and convenient great variety Of business and
commercial transactions. Banks OF discount
are especially useful for men of moderate or
small means and with good character. This
latter quality goes long way with bank man.
ayers. Is he man of integrity? He wouldn't
ask for accommodation unless he saw his way
clear for payment; and In any event he will
never cheat or swindls in any way.
The talk of our Greenback friends against the
National Banks is as silly, If they'll pardon the
word, as it would be to .denounce railways,
steamboats,, the telegraph, cotton mills or any
other great industry of the country. All these
occupy very important place in the hustle,
business and convenience of the world. II
they were abolished, or any one of them, ths
business of the world weuld suffer fearful
shock and society would be thrown into co.,
fusion. Aud so the abolition of the banks
would make confusion worse confounded
throughout the entire country. "But couldn't
there be q substitute?" L do not say such
thing cannot be, but only this: that this mode