The Butler weekly times., 1890-10-15
shall be operated in the interest OF

portation, the government would
have to pile a mountain OF debt upon
the people who are now groanlng
unl ler the accumulated inIquIties ot
unjust and oppressive tariff taxation,
imposed, continued and increased il
utter disregard to the principle OF
equal rights to all and special priv
ileses t. none. l believe we ought
/ to get rid Of our bonded debt, with
| it's interests e,actions, as speedily as
possible, instead Of swelling billions
higher by ernbarking i'll tho dangei-
Gus field Of railroad buying and
building.
If the government should enter
upon the policy Of owning and op-
Grating the means Of communication
and transportation, it would be use
less for the people to speculate long
or about lower ta1os and economical
government. The revenues would
have to be enormous, and every con-
ceiyable means Of taxation would le
restored to.
The government, if it were once
i'll the business, would bo pressed
on every side to build new roads and
new shops, locomotives, cars, &c.
All sorts Of jObbery would flourish,
the peoples revenues would be
squanderedland the peoples liberties
sacrificed. Politicians would be eu
gagged III managing the means OF
communication and transportation,
in the interest Of the party i'll power
and the people would suffer, without
reasonable hope OF relief.
l think the members OF your order
who recently assembled at Sedalia
acted wisely in dropping this de
mand for ownership by the govern
ment of the railroads, etc. and in
rsasserting your demand for efficient
control, so that by such simpler,
cheaper and safer means the opera
tives Of these agencies shall be car
ried on in the interest of the peo-
ple.
l will add, in my judgement, the
most important of these demands
are the fifth, second third. If the
reforms called for in these three de.
mands were secured, the greatest of
existing governmental abuses would
be corrected and the heaviest of the
peoples burdens would be lifted.
In the earlier days of the institu-
ton the national banks were far
more hurtful than now. When
one thousand dollar government
bond, bearing six or seven per cent
intcreat, could be bought for two
hundred and fifty dollars in gold.
and upon depositing it with the L.
5. Treasurer, 5000 in national bank
notes could be had by the national
banker, and when afterward by the
decentralization of silver and the
specie resumption act, the two be
came payable i'll gold and would sell
al premium, the national bank had |
a fat thing. But now the condi |
tons are different Instead of buy
ing $1,000 bond for $3.50 it re
quires $3.50 to buy it, the bond |
being at premium. and the bond |
now bears but four per cent Upon |
depositing the $1,000 bond 5000 in
national bank notes can be drawn |
by the bank and upon this 5000 one
per cent, or 50 must be paid to the |
80 that the bank fer
every 1891 it gets in national bank
notes has $3.50 tied up. Or to |
state it another way, whenever the
bank gets SS91 OF dational bank
notes it has 1859 tied up and lose,
the use of it. The result is, that as
in Clinton, and Windsor and other
places. people organize State banks
instead Of National banks. OF the |
four banks in Clinton, but one is a
National bank. The one organized
there a few months since is State
bank, not because it might not have
been National bank, but because
it's promoters believed they could
do better under the State law.
Less than a year ago the Butler Ma
II