The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1886-12-17

sOuHu business pOlcy or issuing dlreci
the money which it now issues indirect
ly and thus save the bother Of main
tanning the national banks. the ntcre,
oo the bonds that the banks have de
posted aud prevent the danger ofhav
ing a sudden contraction Of the curren
cy at any moment. Or course there il
no shadow of argument against this.
The bond holders are willing now to
deposit II cir bonds for ten per cent les,
than ace value in notes issued by thu
COVE rnm9nt. hen there can be n"
s0nnd objection to receiving their full
face value in government notes. Il
national bank bills, guaranteed by tn,
government. are good enough to warrant
bond holder in deposltln. his bond
unon rcce pit Of ninety per cent Of it.
value, in such notes, government bill
are good enough to pay the bond IL
full and stop the drain which interes'
makes. Especially is this true ano
must be satisfactory while the govern.
ment agrees to redeem its paper at sight
in the coin Of the Republic. Those
who insist that specie must be back OF
paper circulation will not forget that
the government redeems its paper on
presentation; and that under such
system it would 1T least De as easy t.
obtain coin for paper as it is now. II
is common boast that our national
banking system is the best that the
world has ever seen. Why this boast?
Because our money passes everywhere?
Why! The avetaye answer will b,
because ii is redeemable in coin. Wei,
let the holder of the bank bill MIX,
the attempt to get it redeemed in coin
There is not one holder of the ltiona
bank currency in hundred, and per
haps net one in tn usand. who can
secure in for it unless he goes to
broker and pays premium Suppose
a man in Chicago has hundred dol
lars notes issued by national bank in
California. How is he to get coin 70,
1T except in the W y W" have mentioned?
Chicago banks Will not redeem it. and
United States Treasury and sub treas
urers will not redeem it. With ou
broadcast specie basis system he must
take these notes to a broker and stand
shave to get his coin. A friend of ours
a few days since wished to sxchan! &c
fifty dollars in notes for gold which
lady desired to take to England H.
was compelled to 90 to broker, who
being friend, advised him to have the
lad y take the notes with her, as she
could get them exchanged there at 3
lower rate than he could exchange them
This advice was based upon the only
feature that makes our national currency
worth the paper that 1t is printed on,
viz, the fact that the government is be-
hind it The fact that our money is re-
deemane in coin has very little to do
with lis circulating merit. The { CT
that the government thus agrees to re
deem it, or in other words that it prac.
tica ly issues it, and is back of it i
what makes national bank note W, r ii
one hundred CT hts Gu the dollar in tint
c"ui y and pretty nearly that much Ia
Europe. 1t is good money because as
long as the credit Of the COVE rnment i,
good, every dollars worth Of property
in the country is behind it. The par.
lieu ar bank that issues it gives no rep
utar ion. good. bad. or indifferent. I he
real secret OF the circulating power of
our paper money is the belief that the
endorsement OF the government is good.
Our faith in it may be illustrated by
the expression of the man who offered
the notes Of a bank over its counter for
redemption in time OF panic. The
teller asked him if he really wanted the
money, AMI he replied, If you have not
got it | want it, but if you have l don't.
We conclude that such an opulent
banker as the 6 vernment always has
the money or can get it, and so nobody
wants coin unless he needs it for some
special purpose.
Therefore, currency that is as good
as our national bank currency, because
the government endorses it, would be
no worse if the name Of national bank
was erased from it, and that of the
United States put in its place. If it is
worth hundred cents on dollar now,
it would be worth hundred ceuts on IA
dollar then. If ninety dollars in paper
issued by the government will induce a