Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1892-08-24


men pay for the use of borrowed money.
profit by the straits of debtors. Search
ty of money brings trouble on the farm
and distress in the shop, but it pours
dollars into the Golfers of them that fat
ten on the misfortunes OF their fellows.
The Stanford bill proposes a remedy
for this condition of things.
1t is not my purpose at this time to
discuss the philosophy of money, nor to
refer to the charge of ''fiatism" further
than to show that the money proposed
in this bill is as good as the money we
now use. quote two sections of the
bill, as follows:
SEC, 4, That the Treasurer of the United
states is hereby authorized and directed to
cause to be printed, signed and ready for issue
for the purpose hereinafter mentioned circu-
lating notes of the United States, of the de-
nominations of 81. So, $40. s20, 800 $780, $500 and
81 600, to the amount of l00,000, 600 and su eh
additional amounts from time TO time as shall
be necessary to meet the requirements of this
act.
SEC 5. That said notes when issued as here
matter directed, shall be legal tender in pay
ment of private debts equally with gold and
silver coin fOrlike amounts, and shall be re-
ceived at par IN all parts of the United States
in payment of taxes, excuses. public lands and
all other dues to the United States, and also
for all salaries and other debts and demands
owing by the United States, within the United
States. except interest on the public debt and
in redemption of the national currency.
If the notes provided IN these sections
are fiat money, then we have been using
fiat money and with great success near
ly thirty years.
By act of March, 1878, the retirement
IF thosa pOtoc uyoc prObjhjtod opd tba;r
circulation was made perpetual. They
have been held good by the supreme
court. and are accepted by every person
in the country without question. If
they are good, the notes provided for in
this bill can not be bad, for they are all
alike. Aside from that. it is submitted
that if bank check or the order of a
merchant or trader is good for a few dol
lars, or hundred dollars, or million,
surely the nations note ought to pass
current among people who know that
our aggregate wealth is equal to more
than an average of thousand dollars
to every man, woman and child within
our boundaries. And every citizen ex-
AS to the matter of the Government
lending money to citizens, while at firs
sight this may seem startling as well
as novel suggestion, yet, as matter of
fact, we have been doing that very thing
long time. tits true. indeed. that the
Government, State or National, has
from the beginning been continually
creating money in one form or other tor
the express purpose of its being lent to
the people. We all understand well
enough that there has not been in our
history, nor in the history of any of the
modern nations, a time when the people
we're without the use of money which
was made for the purpose of its being
lent to them.
AS before suggested, the United States
bank was established in order to get
mort money for the people to use, and
coming through that channel we under
stand that the money Will get to the
people only by their borrowing it. All
the provisions of the law were framed
with that particular object in view. A
bank of issue is created, so far as the
feature of issuing the money is concern
ed, for the single purpose of lending
money to the people. The Government
is behind the bank. Without the legis-
lative power of the people being brought
into action the bank would have NO
power to Issue any sort of money. Any
person or any number of persons may
do a banking business without the is
suing attachment, and have no special
authority of law for it; but when they
would issue their notes to the people to
be used as money, they must first have
the authority of the legislature.
So in our present national banking
law, the object, as stated in the enact.
ing clause, is to establish a national cur
rency; that is to say, species of paper
money to be used among the people. and
to be got to them by lending it and nam
! ing the security. There is no way fol
banks to get money out among the PEG
pie other than to lend it to them. So il
is not straining the construction of the
law to say that theGovernment has beer
in the habit ever since we have been a
nation, Of authorizing banks to issue
money to be lent to the people. The bill
now before the Senate proposes to d.
nothing more than that ,sofar as this par
ticular feature of the bill is concerned.
The only difference in practice which
would result from the operation of TIT
bill proposed by senator Stanford anC
the practice now in vogue is, that tn,
Government in that case would do di
rectly what in this case it does indirect
ly, that is to say, under the operation o.
this bill the Government would lenC
money to the people without the inter
ventlon of banks or any other agency
taking security from them with thei
obligation and enforcing it in favor O.
all the people, just the same as banker.
and loan agents now lend money to tn,
people and take security from them, tn,
Government seeing that the securities
are enforced in case of failure to pay
The Government has lent money direct
ly to certain corporations, railroad com
panies, and others. 1t does more. Itsup
plies the money which banks lend t,
their borrowers, and the constitutional
ity of this proceeding has not been ques
toned. The authority of the Govern
ment to lend money is no longer in dis
pute. but it is objected that the particu
lar method proposed by this bill would
do violence not only to existing customs
but to the best and safest principles O
financial management; that business
would be deraDged by it; that the con
science of the people would be shocked
and credit be destroyed; that imitation
would follow; that bankruptcy. disas
ter and ruin would be the end.
But think a moment. 1t is the prin
ciplc, not the particular plan. that an
discussing. There is no change propos
ed in this bill, as far as security is con