The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1890-01-14

rlCulGuT0 aG udEV0SG 4u01 oHO NAA
ished as such agricultural products are
consumed. Such a fexibility OF vol
-ume would guarantee a stability OF
price based on cost of production
which would be compelled to reckon
the pay for agricultural labor at the
same rates as other employment.
Such fexibiIity would rob money OF
les most potent power-the power to
oppress-and place premium on pro-
ductive effort. But how may so de-
sirable a result be secured? Let US
see. By applying the same principles
now in force in the monetary system
of The United States with only slight
modification in the detail Of their exc
cution. The government and the peo-
pie of this country realize that the
amount of gold and silver, and the
certificates based on these methods do
not comprise a volume of money sufi-
Gent to supply the wants of the
country, and in order to incre ase the
volume, the government allows indi-
viduals to associate themselves into a
body corporate, and deposit with the
government bonds which represent
national Indebtedness, which the gov
eminent holds in trust and issues to
such corporation paper money equal to
ninety per cent. of the value of the
bonds, and charges said corporation
interest at the rate of n per cent.
per annum for the use of said paper
money. This allows the issue of pa
per money to increase the volume of
the circulating medium on a perfectly
safe basis, because the margin is a
guarantee that the banks will redeem
the bonds before they mature. But
now we find that the circulation Sc
cured by this method is still not ade-
quate; or to take a very conservative
position, if we admit that it is ade-
quate on the average, we know that
the fact of its being entirely made
quate for half the year makes its IN
fexibility an engine of oppression,
because q season in which it is made
quate must be followed by one of
superabundance in order to bring
about the average, and such a range
in volume means great fluctuations in
prices which cut against the producer,
both in buying and selling, because he
must sell at a season when produce is
low, and buy when commodities are
high. This system, o in vogue by
the United States Government of sup.
plementing its circulating medium by
a safe and redeemable paper money,
should be pushed a little further and
conducted in such a manner as to
secure a certain augmentation of sup
ply at the season of the year in which
the agricultural additions to the wealth
of the nation demand money, and a
diminution in such supply Of money
as said agricultural products are con
sumed. It is not an average adequate
amount that is needed, because under
it the greatest abuses may prevail, but
a certain adequate amount that adj
justs itself to the wants of the country
at all seasons. For this purpose let
us demand that the United States
Government modify its present fnan-
cial system.
l. So as to allow the free and un.
limited coinage of silver or the issue
of silver certificates against an I'm
limited deposit of bullion.
2. That the system of using certain
banks as United States repositories
be abolished, and in place of said sys-
tenn, establish in every county in each
of the States that offers for sale dur
ing the one year five hundred thou
sand dollars worth of farm products;
including wheat, corn, oats, barley,
rye, rice, tobacco, cotton, wool and
sugar, all together; a ~subtreasury
Office, which shall have in connection
with it such warehouses or elevators
as r necessary for carefully storing
and preserving such agricultural pro.
ducts as are offered it for storage, and
it should be the duty of such sub
treasury department to receive such
agricultural products as are offered
for storage and make a careful exami-
nation of such products and class
same as to quality and give a certif-
cate of the deposit show 2 the
amount and quality, and the United
States legaltender paper molt..y equal
to eight per cent. of the Local current
value of the products deposited has
been advanced on same on interest at
the rate of one per cent. per annum,
on the condition that the owner or
such other person as he may authorize
will redeem the agricultural product
within twelve months from date of
the certificate or the trustee will sell
same at public auction to the highest
bidder for the purpose of satisfying
the debt. Besides the one per cent.
interest the sub-treasurer should be
allowed to charge a trife for handling
and storage, and a reasonable amount
for insurance, but the premises neces-
sary for conducting this business