The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1888-08-21

commission, and it has been found
that a half bred railroad attorney a
drive a six-horse team through it, and
so it will be with any commission law
they pass. The railroads make no
showing of books and manage their
affairs in secret. How can it be
otherwise? The Knights of Labor,
many of them railroad men, have
given as one of their declarations that
the National Government should own
every railroad and telegraph line.
Many object to it upon the ground that
it would give the politicians too much
patronage. If this patronage be
dangerous to a government, it is more
dangerous in the hands of a syndicate,
for it will control the government.
But / see no need Of the government
having as much patronage then as
now. Organize a transportation de-
partment and postof6ce department by
enlisting men for life or a term Of
years, and not allow them to vote.
The army and navy are SO organized
and no one ever hears of trouble about
patronage in either, or their interior,
ing in any way with elections. The
money system enacted during the war
to sustain the credit of the govern
ment and raise money for wal pur-
poses, is unsuited and burdensome to
an agricultural people in time of peace:
The only arguments advanced in it's
behalf are that it is a safe currency,
and that one dollar of it will buy more
than one dollar would before the war.
AS to it's being safe, any money. the
government should issue ought to be
as safe or it would fail to accomplish
that for which it was made. The
purchasing power of the dollar is no
criterion to judge by, for as you in
crease the purchasing power Of the
dollar you decrease the value of labor
and property. If the purchasing
power of the dollar is a true guide,
then reduce the currency one-half and
a dollar will pay for ten times as much
labor OF property as it does now.
Then again, reduce it one-half, and a
dollar will pay for fifty times as much
as it does now; so that the purchasing
power of a dollar would be on the
side of money kings and against the
producers.
The National Banks are virtually
given a monopoly of banking by the
government, and they virtually de-
termine the rate of interest wherever
they are located. The rate of interest
averages ten per cent, which is much
more than an agricultural people can
stand. The average of agriculture
being less than three per cent. for the
last eight years. This is not the fault
of the stockholders of National Banks,
but the fault of the Government. The
banks were created by the Republican
party, and it seems afraid to give
them any relief, and the Democratic
party seems to regard them as the
Jews of old did the leper. In order
to show it is the government, not the
stockholders, that is responsible for
the high rate of interest, let me illus
trate: Say we wish to establish a
National Bank, with a capital of one
hundred thousand dollars. The first
thing the government requires of usis
to go and pay it's petted bondholders
$3.50 600 bonus; that is, pay $l2S, 900
for 500, 900 of bonds. Then the
government issues us $50, 900 of cir
culation; of that the government re-
tains five per cent. e r fund,
$4,000, and we start our bank with
$84, 500 of the $l2S, 900 we started
out with. The law requires twenty
per cent. to be kept in legal tenders,
so that we have $66, 500 to commence
with. Furniture, fixtures, stationery,
&C., will take at least 81, 600, giving a
banking capital of $62, 500, or less
than half of the $12S, 600. 4
Ten per cent. on the $ea, 500 would be. .......Se,s $50
Four per cent. interest on 100000 government
Donos........... 1900
s1o,s5o
From which deduct expenses, taxes, :,
Rent Mt, and nd Salaries $500
U. s.. tax on circulation. ....... 800
State, county and town tax. 1900 81
f' $1,000 $1,000
Leaves profit, So, $50
or less than three per cent. on the
paid out. The bonus of
$685. 600 paid the b~ondholders will
have to be made out of the patrons of
the banks, or it would be lost to the
stockholders when the bond reached
maturity. This shows how dependent
the National Banks are on deposits.
If there is a tightness in the money
market SO as to induce depositors to