Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1891-06-04

| They are not money. They are simply the
| promises of the government 10 pay dollars
when presented at the treasury in the man
ner required by law. They are of course
| invested with the functions of money. They
have
TEE DEFEATING CAPACITY
of gold and silver Why do these notes
circulate al par with gold and silver2 Be
cause the holder knows he can get the coin
for them on demand. or pay his debts with
| them. He knows that in addition 10 the
selvency of the government, reinforced
| every day by the receipt of more than a
| million of dollars of revenue, that there are
| stored away in the vaults of treasury $780,
! 100000 in gold held as a sacred redemption
| fund with which TO redeem these notes as
| presented for exchange. Ii one hundred
| millions in coin will float three hundred and
| forty-six millions OF legal tenders at par
with gold, as they have done since the lst
| day of January, 1879, and as Secretary
Foster said the other day, without single
| demand for redemption, or rather for eX-
change in gold it is not perceived why
$500, 000, 900
IN COLD AND SILVER
might not support and float at par 81 000.-
600, 900 of legal tender notes with Ike re-
suits. OF course. estimating the capacity
of the government TO prevent depreciation
and maintain each character of the money
that may constitute the volume of circula-
ton AZ parity in value, We must keep in
view that the daily receipts of revenue, and
the authority of congress to hold its hand
upon the financial pulse of the nation
at all times and adjust the volume TO the
needs of business. Does any sane man, IN
biased by self-intereSt. and freed from the
prejudices cultivated by Wall street, sup
pose that with s4OO 100000 in coin stored
away in the vaults of the treasury to be
held as
REDEMPTION FUND.
or rather for exchange. with annual output
of more than 800. 100000 from the minis
annually free coinage) with current daily
receipts mainly in coin of more than 81 600,
600, and with debt paving capacity invested
in these notes that the government would
ever go to protest on one of them or be at
all embarrassed in maintaining them at par
with gold and silver The strange anomaly
may be seen any day at the treasury of the
United States of 800 000. 900 in gold
banked in the corner of the vault rusted
with EOn-use, their silence and solitude I'M
disturbed for twelve years. That ip+le of
gold has supported and foated al par
S346, 900, coo legal tenders since the 1sJ day
OF January, 1879, at par with gold and sill
Yer in al the marks of the world. In
ANOTHER CORNER OF THE VAULT
there lies sl6s 000, 900 in gold, whose Office is
to represent that many gold certificates
only out in circulation, while in another
corner S3i2, 000, 900 of silver dollars repre-
sent similar amount of silver certificates
Yet the people are clamoring for more
money, and suggesting all manner UI de-
vices, from sub-treaSury schemes down to
wildcat real estate banks, to get the money
out of the treasury. How can an additional
supply of money reach the channels of cir
culation2 Fortunately for the people the
government is not compelled to establish
pawn shops, or warehouses, or real estate
M % a
amount of money into circulation. The in
telligence of the trainers of the Ionstitu-
ton ought not to be impeached by the con-
Cession that in order to supply the
CHANNELS OF CIRCULATION
with sufficient volume of circulation that
the government must extend a bank char
ter to certain fortunate citizens who may
own lands and place in their hands its
notes TO be loaned al profit II the poor
and debtridien or that it was necessary to
loan the notes with or without interest to
those who might chance to own certain
agricultural products, There is a plain,
open way, wholly free from favoritism or
paternaIism, by which congress may supply
the channels of circulation with all the
money needed by the people.
why not reduce taxation and leave more
money in the pockets of the people, make
deficits in appropriations and cover them
by an issue of legal tender notes
FROM TIME TO TINE.
and when by this means the volume OF cir
culation shall be sufficiently reinforced, re-
adjust taxation and appropriations upon "a
proper basis. / take it that those of US who
are complaining that there is not money
enough supplied by the government with
which TO conduct the business of the coun-
try, would be satisfied If the government
would perform its duty in this regard. If
taxation was reduced and unjust restraints
relaxed, if the volume OF money was made
sufficient to meet the demands of business,
the value OF property and the products OF
labor iberalized and enhanced, we would
NOT NEED TO BORROW
money from the government or from those
who might own stock in real estate banks,
prosperity would soon abound The Demo-
cratic policy contemplates of course the
withdrawal of bank notes from circulation.
The party opposed this feature of the syS-
TEN when it was established, and has main |
tanned its opposition to it ever since. In |
1882, when Republican congress- (Forty- !
SEVENTH had under consideration the bill |
TO extend the system, the Democrats strug |
gled to defeat it; failing in that we sought |
TO take away the power OF the banks to |
contract the volume of circulation; the bill |
became a law over our opposition. The |
course pursued by the banks since 1878 has |
JUSTIFIED THE OPPOSITION
made TO tnaI feature OIL the system DV the |
Democrats in the house of representatives. |
! told you the Democrats in the house had |
secured the passage of a law that placed |
S32 600, 900 silver dollars in circulation each |
month since 1878, amounting up to date to |
S412, 900, 900. We We're endeavoring to en- |
large the volume of money. But the banks, |
which had in circulation 800, 100000 in !
bank notes during the same period. con- |
tracted the volume of their circulation |
s234, 600 900 by surrendering their circula- !
ton and withdrawing their bonds from TIE
We have only Sl66 600, 600 of |
bank-note currency in circulation to-day, |
whereas in 1873 they had 500, 600, 900 and |
in 1882 1871. geo, 600. l endeayored then by |
the offer of an amendment to limit the
POWER OF CONTRACTION
but it was defeated along with all other |
amendments. So you will see that as the |
Democrats poured in silver at one end the |
banks withdrew their notes at the other |
eL3, thus making it impossible for US to re-
inforce the volume of circulation in any |
great degree, happily, as [ think, for the |
country, tia Democratic party, the peoples |
party. Whaleyer that may prove to be, |
and the banks themselves are agreed that |
this feature of the national banking system,
ought to be withdrawn, and the power or
authority to issue notes, ought to be for
hidden by law. Banking upon 80 per cent
of bonds which command high premium
in the market with 5 per cent held in re-
serve and per ceat taxation has
CEASED TO BE PROFITABLE,
and there is scarcely bank in the C1ited
States employing more than minimum