Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1890-10-24

WESS1NGTO
the SUe.TREAsURY BILL.
Opinion of Hon. j. q. Carlisle
as to its Merits.
The following is a verbatim COW of
q letter from Hon. j. G. Carlisle TO
democratic friend giving the former
gentlemon's views on the sub-treasury
Oil. which will make interesting read
ing for South Dakota farmers at the
present time:
LETTER FROM HON. j. G. CARLISLE.
MY DEAR SIR: The demands made
0y the farmers in some parts of the
country have been formulated, and al
their request bills have been presented
IN the house and In the senate which
many OF them think will afford the
necessary measure of relief. / need
not undertake to state all of the details
OF these plans, for whatever the partic.
ular provisions OF the measure NAV be-.
the whole scheme in Its general form
and design, is dangerous in principle,
and If adopted, would prove in practice
ruinous to the very interests 1t is in
tended to benefit. The plan to which
you allude in your letter is to establish
what are to be denominated ssub.treas-
urles' and to erect public warehouses
IN every county IN the United States,
which produces and sells annually
more than 100000 worth OF wheat,
corn. oats, cotton and tobacco, and
permit the owners Of these products,
whether farmers or not, to deposit
them in this warehouse and receive
from thegovernment in treasury notes,
to be issued expressly for that purpose,
80 per cent. of the market value Of the
products. Of course there must be
officers and employees to take charge of
these warehouses and their contents,
receive and receipt for the contents
deposited, pay out money to depositors,
receive the money when the products
are redeemed, sell unradeemed proper
ty and generally to exercise the COM
bined functions of warehousemen,
bankers, auctioneers and executive
officials. All of these officers and en-
ployees must be compensated for their
services either by fees charged the de-
positors Of products or by payment out
of the public treasury, and all, OF
nearly all, will be partisans of the
administration in power, because I'M
der the constitution they cannot be
chosen by tho people, but must be
appointed by the president, or the head
of department, or the judges of the
United States.
1t proposes to appropriate the sum
of fifty million of dollars at once to
begin the erection of these warehouses,
and while we have no accurate data
upon the subject, it is perfectly safe to
say they would cost altogether many
times that amount, all of which must
be raised by taxation on the people, the
farmers under our system paying
much more than their equal share.
There are more than 400 counties in
the United States but not more than
oae-third of them, ii that many, pro
duce and sell annually more than
100000 worth Of oats, wheat, corn
cotton and tobacco, and therefore not
more than one-third Of them could
possibly avail themselves Of this plan
il 1t were adopted. 1t will be seen,
therefore, at the very outset, that it is
a plan for compelling the government
to issue and distribute money for the
benefit Of the people living in the rich
productive counties at the expense OF
the people living in the poorer and less
productive ones. Moreover, it is d
plan to enable INSCRIPTIONS speculat-
ors to take advantage Of the farmers
pecuniary necessities and extort exor.
bltant prices for food from people who
reside in the cities, towns and villages
,, and from people who reside in the
country but do not own these partlcu.
!. lar agricultural products. 1t evident
that no farmer will subject himself tc
the labor and expense of transporting
J his property to tho public warehouses
!. and all of the other charges which BIT
must pay for storage, for handling and
for taking care of them while there
, when he has barns and graneries Al
home. unless he is in deDt and abso
3 lutely needs the money which thu
i government is to advance, and If he il
: in that unfortunate condition from
I what source is he afterwards to acquire
the means to redeem the products b!
returning the money and interest ant
paving the warehouse charges?
Ina great majority of cases. he vii
9 mot be able to redeem them, but VII
hs forced to lose the remaining 20 pc
cant. of the value of his products. 0