The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1885-08-20

6umpuOu, WHICH, uuSt UlWdyS lOllOW y KUN
provision of the conditions thereto, but
which have always zen checked BY With.
drawing or preventing the obtaining Of an
increasing supply of money, the instrument
Of exchange. and a compulsory recurrence
to gold and eilyerconversion in furthennco
Of the schemes Of the money power Of the
world and the fallacious reasoning Of the
doctrinaires.
/ cannot, Mr.. Secretary, hold you N.
sponsible for the evils existing from the
failure Of our Government to supply this
people with currency which
would insure its progress in
material well being, but must hold you
responsible for not only not having used
in the interest Of the people tho material
at hand, but for having SO administered
your Office as to have increased the evils
under which they suffer. We arc told BY
formed as to such Facts, that the volume
Of money Of all kinds in this nation at
present is approximately 81, 500, OK, 600.
This amount 10 largely estimated, Of course,
and is certainly incorrect. OF the guam
tity Of gold and silver coin the widest
guesswork only can have governed the esd.
mate. No record is kept or can be kept Of tho
coin brought by immigrants or taken out
by travelers, or sent ont and in by mails, or
even by express or other means OF trans-
portation. No adequate knowledge exists
either as to the quantity Of coin withdnwn
for use in the arts. Again, it is well-kno
that greenbacks ard United States coin, -
we'll, probably, AZ some bank notes, arc
circulating to considerable extent in
Canada, Mexico the West Indies, South
America, and. IL limited extent, in other
countries. To -; mate the money avail.
All RSNk kho o01o~w RhAn
contingencies, and we must deduct all
reserves, the si5O,UOO, { 900 III your Treas
ury, the reserves held by the banks and
others. For these reserves are no more
money Tor the suffering industries Of the peo-
Pile than is the Atlantic Ocean rain upon the
farmers thirsting crops. Make all deductions
necessary, aud think that you will find
certainly not more that $7OO. .OOO, 900 to be
the volume of money actually in the peo-
pies hands. II We deduct the amounts
accumulated by capitalists in New York,
or boarded by the people and retired from
circulation, because through lack OF conf.
dence and remuneration it il ont Of en-.
ployment the amount would be still less;
but as that is money only awaiting res
storation of confidence to be restored to
the circulation, it may be omitted from our
estimate. Twenty years ago We had
Of between $40 and $50 per capita. With
this circulation our industries bounded for.
ward and our wealth increased moro rapidly
that at any time before or since. Now how
much per capita have We? Not in excess
Of $13. is not this sufficient to explain
the depression of business? Do you doubt
the deduction? Look abroad and see tho
prosperity Of nations in proportion to the
per capita Of money in circulation. Take
prosperous Belgium first in view; she heads
the list But you may be deceived by the
abundance Of money at the money centers
Of the country. This 10 an Elusive guide.
Having starved our industries OF cir
culation. we have prostrated. them, the
blood no longer circulates. it clogs the
heart. which has no longer stimulus to send
money ID most needed il il scarcest, every
where that it is least needed it is pientiest
Last fall in Kansas, TO perfectly good men,
owning farms and property, for entirely
Legitimate purposes. money loaned at to
s per cent month on short time to meet
the exigencles of the occasion. At the
same time the quoted rate in New York on
same class Of security was not in excess OF
4 to per cent. per annum. Why was
this? Confidence is destroyed, our indus
tries paralyxed. Even the law Of supply
and demand is powerless to effect . tenn
porary relief by making available the sur
plus Of one locality to partially relieve tho
stringency in another.
Mr.. Secretary, yOu succeeded to pie-
thoric treasury. In your hands to relieve
the distress were hundreds Of millions Of
the peoples money available for thcir re-
lief. How did you respond to their need
neA Al~o 80 1s$n 10 Aho;r s,p6rcf1Soo9
Did you make the key to the Treasury the
key to the situation. unlock your strong
box, pay of millions Of bonds which were
sapping the people and restore them
their circulation. No. you pur-
sued an opposite policy, you out
did that most subservient tool Of the Re-
publican truckers to the money power,
Hugh Mccullough himself, in your wor-
ship Of the Golden Calf. Like him, you
violated Inv and Justice in aiding the spolia.
tors Of the people in farth, r robbery.
You undid the work of the people in "turn-
ing the mscals ont" by stepping into their
shoes and doing their maleticent work.
You assumed that You We're required to pay
| the bonds and stand ready to redeem green
backs in gold; the law says coin, which is
gold and silver-nay, gold or silver. You
assumed that you were obliged to hold ono
0UuUICO 40LAnOAAD al SOAA IA s0C 4AO00uAy
| for the conversion of any greenbacks that
might be presented, when there is no war;
rant on the statute book for any such re-
quirement, nor any probability Of the
presentation of greenbacks in any con-
| siderable amount for conversion into either
gold or silver coin. With all this SUPER
abundance Of money, yOu assume that the
Treasury is poor in gold, and higgle with
and truckle to the banks for more. You
assume that the people will not use sill
yer. while you refuse to pay it out for
mast due obligations, thus keeping il
out of their hands. You add to tho
hue and cry against silver money in the
interest Of the money power, thus aiding
them in every way in making money dear,
and everything that money buys CORE.
spondingly cheap, increasing the purchas.
ing power of the rich mans money at the
| expense Of the poor mans labor.
| Now, Mr.. Secretary, most men would be
20 stirred to anger ct this exhibition Of
your weakness as to address you in terms
more forciblc than polite, but give you
the benefit of the only alternative to SO
chnracterizing your conduct. assume
that you are Us ignorant Of finance as are
most other bankers, and incapable in q
moment Of overcoming the fixed habit Of
your life. close by hoping that You are
at heart patriot; that the considerations
which have here brought forward may
convince you Of the error Of your way.
that you will right about face" undo the
evil which You and your predecessors have
done. and restore to the people Of this
country their lost money, caring little of
what material it may be made, but seeing "a
it, simply that it is money, having the
Government stamp and the legal tender
quality. Yours respectfully,
Elizabeth, N. j. BENZ. URNER.
/ -
SHYLoCKs tell us that our greenbacka
constitute forced loan" II this be
DO, what is our national bank currency
If the Government borrowed the
greenback currency, who but toe peo'
pie did it borrow it of, and when does
it intend to pay them?