Weekly Chillicothe crisis. (Chillicothe, Livingston Co., Mo.) 1878-19??, 1881-03-03

stabbed in the back for the sole purpose
of depreciating them. Their own
gold and that of the people was now in
their hands and they knew how to use
| it, Thirty-fve thousand dollars of it
bought one hundred thousand dollars
of government bonds to stalt bank
WITH
| In 1864 they had Il law passed to an.
ticipate the interest on bonds one year
in advance. Considerable of the time
that year gold sold for $50 They
| took their interest in advance one year
in gold, sold their gold for $50, making
$4,000 dollars. Then the ninety
| thousand currency the government fur
nished them, they let out ut from to
IL per cent. After paying the govern
ment one per cent tax on their cirCula.
tion they must have received five thous-
and dollars more, making them twenty
thousand dollars income on thirty five
thousand dollars of gold, which be-
longed to them and the people. Sub
sequent acts of Congress make these
bonds payable in coin.)
The eamount of national hank notes in
circulation on January |, 1864, was
S280,0O0; on July |, 1864, $31, ,234, ,420,
and on July |, 1865, it was S146,336,-
03O. Shortly after this the whole
amount authorized by law was taken,
and national bank stock began to CON-
mand premium.
Thus was the national banking sys-
TEN fOisted upon the country, at Il time
when it was neither needed nor desired,
solely for the purpose of enabling the
money power to again usurp the right
of supplying the nation with medium
of exchange. 1t only remains now to
retire the greenback and the money
power of the United States will be
clothed with IL more absolute control
over the monetary affairs of the coun-
try than it ever had before.
National banks are established on
the theory of combining private capi-
tai with public credit. 1t will be found
on examination, however, that this is
merely delusiOn. Private capital is
not an essential element in the estab-
lishment of national bank; private
credit will do us well. This may be
illustrated in various ways. Suppose
A owns 100000 in 6 per cent United
states bonds: i, c, d, L, +, five per-
sons jointly borrow these bonds from
4, agreeing to pay him the interest
regularly, as it natures, and return the
same or like bonds at some specified
time, say in five or ten years; B, c, ID,
+ and +, organize II national bank, de-
post the bonds withthe treasurer of the
United States, and obtain 100000 of
national bank currency from the comp
trOller. So far as the bank or its cur
rency is concerned, there is no element
of private capital involved in the mat
ter Its cOrpOratOrS or stockholders
have not paid in dollar for the capt.
al stock Of the concern, as bonds are
not capital stock, because the people
have already borrowed AS capital and
|, are paying him six per cent interest in
; gold for it. Upon what capital then,
is the bank established? Upon no
, other capital clearly, than the public
, credit, represented by the 100000 of
, bank currency lent b. c. ID. L. and +
, without interest on the strength of
what the government owes \.
There are, of course, innumerable
ways in which individuals can utilize
their capital or credit in the establish
ment of national banks.
, Hon s. $. Marshall. OF Illinois. in Il
= speech on the floor of Congress. July
= q, 1868, mentioned the following in
, stance: "An association of gentlemen
= in an eastern state, raised 100000 in
currency. They went to The office of
the Register of the Treasury and cX-
changed their currency for 100000 in
six per cent gold interest bearing bonds.
Then they went to the Office Of the
, comptroller of thecurrency, in the same
, building, organized Il national bank,
deposited their 100000 in bonds. and
received for their bank $4,000 in
national currency. They had let the
government have $4,000 in currency
more than they received for banking
/ purposes, and had on deposit 100000
on which they received as interest
, from the Government $lS,000a year in
, gold, on the $4,000 in currency which
they had thus loaned to the govern.
J ment. But this is not the whole story
' They had their bank made Il public de
& posltory. They soon discovered that
there was scarcely ever less than 81,
(: 100000 of government money deposited
5 within their vaults. They did not
: like to see this vast sum lie idle. They
/. took $1,000,00O of this government
money and bought $1,000,000 of 5-2C
6 bonds with it, or, in other words, they
5 loaned Sl,000,000 of the government
r own money to the government, and de
0 posted the bonds received in the vault,
s of their bank, on which they received
i from the same government 100000 il
s gold, as interest. Thus, for the $50,
h 900 in currency, which they original,
4. loaned the government, they received
d annually, in all $4,000 in gold. Blu
@ this was by no means the limit of tn,
G legalized robbery which these gentle
/ men were capable of perpetrating un
}, der the national banking law. Sine,
0 they had no scruples about investing
|. the government deposit of $l,000,00(
0 in $40 bonds, and appropriating tn
d interest to their own use, it is not a
J. all likely that they would stop there
T. when by simply depositing the 1900,
( 600 in $50 bonds with the comptrolle
} of the currency, instead of in their banl
|. vaults, they could draw so per cen
v more currency, Or by starting two new
/ banks, of 100000 each, they coul
r draw 80 per cent wore currency to sub
/. stitute for that amount of the origina
s deposit of the government used b.
q them"
, An Extraordinary Hoax.
d The London Telegraph of Februar
e /, publishes the following extraordinar
VI hoax: "In Albany UNITED States) th
n | ,1nn,,Iotio,, nonor1i,,c, fn Tho rano,,t M,