Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1891-12-17

Sumclentt 10 require many Sucn addresses
as this to present them. The. part
especially assigned to me by the COM
mittee is the sub-treasury system. /
shall therefore leave the other features
and take up the sub-trcasury plan.
In considering the sub-teasury plan
it should be remembered that publica:
tions in regard to the same in the
political press of the country have
uniformly and persistently misrepres-
ented its purposes and objects, and
therefore, perhaps, nine-tenths Of those
who do not endorse the system do not
properly understand it. 1t is Of the
greatest importance that the true objects
Of the system be thoroughly understood.
It is now two years since this system
was advocated by the supreme coun-
Gil. During this time. Fit has grown as
no economic measure Of reform ever
grew with the masses sof the people.
There has been no money behind it to
push II III popular favor: there has been
few newspapers supporting Il, where
there has been many against is and the
number Of those even now lecturing
and teaching in favor Of It, is many
times less than those who opposeit. It
would seem that with such odds ag gainst
it, sub-treasury sentiment would be di-
minishing instead Of increasing. And
the fact that the reverse Is true, is an
evidence that the real merit of thesystem
is sufficient of itself to make up for the
difference and to overcome the opposition.
The sub-treasury plan. was proposed
as an economic to overcome, in part, at
least, the Determinations against agri-
culture that result as an unavoidable
consequence of the present financial
system of the government. The neces-
sity for the sub-treasury plan is shown
in the annual report of the commercial
transactions Of the county. AT a low
estimate the gross production of agrl-
cultural pursuits is fully equal or
slightly in excess, of the gross products
Of all manufacturing plants Of every
kind in the United States; and together
these two branches ofsindustry furnish
the commodities which are the subjects
of the commercial transactions of the
country. If, without going further into
detail, we estimate that Of the S13O, OOO,-
O0O, GOO gross commercial transactions of
the past year, one-fourth be the result
Of handling Of the products of agricul
ture, and three-fourths be the results, uf
the handling of all other commodities,
then and in that case about S06, OOO, 600;
OOOof transactions an3 dependent upsn
commodities, manufactured, mined OF
discovered throughout all seasons of the
year, making demand or volume ofshe
business equal to about 5000, OOO, 900
per month. This is'uniform and never
from sny cause whatever subject to &ny
considerable modification or change.
This volume of business is conducted
according to the most reliable statistics
of the treasury department largely with
credit paper; the amount of cash actually
used on an average being only about s per
cent. But the amount of actual cash in
circulation in the country is not over
one billion dollars after all legal reser-
yes are deducted. which would be l24
per cent, upon the volxme of business
exclusive of any necessity to handle the
products of agriculture Now, what
does this mean? 1t means simply this,
that after taking out every particle of
of the products of agriculture from the
commercial transaction of the country,
that if every dollar available for circula-
ton was actually used or turned over
in commercial transactions once month,
which is :. very rapid speed OF circula-
ton for such volume scattered through
out SO large territory and so many
people, that the available amount of
money compared to ihe volume Of bnsi-