Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1892-08-17
Remarks OF Hon. VIM. A. PETER, in the
Senate, January 81, 1892.

| OH InAuOlCC d.
fairs, growing stronger and more pow
erful as its wealth iSinereased. Its rule
OF action is: ASK and ye shall receive;
knock and it shall be opened unto you. -
Its record is writer in the statutes of
our country. 1t managed to effect the
retirement Of more than thousand mil
lion dollars of paper meney at a time
when ne-third of our countrymen need
ed money more than they needed any
thing else; it made hard bargains for
the people, and in their name and with
out their consent promised to pay large
amounts of coin when we had no com;
it deprecated the value of the peoples
property, drove them into debt, and in
creased their obligations. III carrying
out the policy Of this minority the coun-
try was deprived of the use of more than
1926, OOO, 600 of silver money to which it
was entitled.
The silver-cOinage law Of 1873 author
lZed the purchase and coinage of 81, OOO,-
600 worth OF silver bullion every month,
| but the treasury stopped at ene-half
that amount. Instead Of purchasing
| and coming 81 600 600 worth the actu-
al average coined was only $4,000 600
worth. Under the same policy, begin
ming in 1888, the banks, while -increas-
ing their number at the rate of 159
year, down to 1880, Withdrew their notes
from circulation at the rate of about
| S22,OOO,OOO year, as appears from the
treasurer's report for 1891. prom 1879
to 1882, four years. THE annual increase
OF bank-note circulation was about So
100000. If that rate of increase had been
continued down to 1890 we should have
had about $3.50, OOO, 900 of bank notes in
circulation at that time more than we
did have.
On the 30th day of June, 1882, the
amount of bank notes out was 1857 $751;
266, as appears from recent statement;
on the Both day of June, 1890, the
amount was 1886, 722 1913, showing a re-
tirement in the eight years of $171 ,S32,-
28S. Putting together the 1926 ,OOO, 900
OF silver money of which We were de-
prived, and the $25O, 1000, 900 of bank
notes withheld and Withdrawn, we have
a total of $575, OOO, 600, money which
would now be in circulation-that much
more than we have.
1t is within reason to believe that if
this amount had been put out and Kept
out among the people, as the law au-
thorized, as the Lawmakers intended
and expected, and as the business needs
OF the country required, there would
now be but little indebtedness among
the people. Here we have $575, OOO, 900
which the laws provided for, but which
was withheld in part and Withdrawn IN
part, and the bill now before the SEN
ate proposes to issue less than one fifth
of that amount. Besides this the banks
were authorized to increase their cireu-
latlon to All unlimited extent. Surely
this, then, is not a reckless proposition.
IN view of-what we have lost, and in
view OF the further fact that the minds
or statesmen are now largely occupied
by Thoughts concerning the best way to
safely add to the volume of our money.
Mr.. President, why increase the cir
culating medium? Let the census re-
ports answer. The private indebted
ness OF the people is increasing at an
alarming rate. Tables for five states
Alabama. Illinois, Iowa, Kansas and
tennessee, are now in type, and am
under obligations to Mr.. Superintend-
ent Porter and Mr.. Holmes, an able as
sistant, for anvance proofs. They show
an incumbrance on the farms and homes
OF the people, In force January l, 1890,
equal to an average of S85 for every per-
son, man, woman and child, in the five
states. The average for Alabama and
Tennessee is $24; for Illinois, Iowa and
Kansas, 1t is $125. This was nearly all
placed during the last preceding ten
years. In ten counties in the heart of
one of the best Of the Western states, 81
per cent. of the farms which are occu-
pied by their owners are encountered.
The average value Of the farms is So
694, and the average mortgage debt is
81 ,4O2. 1t costs the owner of a mort
gagged farm, which he cultivates in these
ten counties, $114 annually to carry his
mortgages. Though reports are incom.
plete, enough is known to show that
farmers and poor townspeople in the
Eastern and Middle states are no better
off than those of the Western and South
ern states. And yet it appears that
Massachusetts. with S,315 square miles
of territory, with population of 2, 23O,.
0OO, and taxable property valuation OF
ST ,584, 756, 802 in 1880, increased her tax.
able wealth in the ten years following
1858, 377 1924, while nine great agrlcul.
tural states Indiana, Illinois, Iowa
Nebraska, North Carolina, Georgia. AL
ALBANIA, Mississippi and Louisiana -
with territory of ass, 1856 square miles
) population of $500, 900, and taxable
property amounting to 1885,, 9l9 ,163 il
1880, increased their taxable wealth only
$3.50. 600 600, or$1O, OOO, 600 in round mum
bers less than Massachusetts. Their ter
ritOrial area is fifty-eight times that OF
Massachusetts, their population in 1885,
was seven times as large as hers, anC
, their wealth was nearly twice as great
The three Observation-Disclosures. New
York and Massachusetts. with terri
torial area of 102, 200 square miles, with
population of 1l,048,S47, and with ar
, assessed property valuation of $500
l55, S24 in 1880, increased their aggrega,
! taxable wealth in the ten years follow.
ing $4,000, 145,772, or $29, 92O, SIS more
than one half as mucn as all the rest OF
the country put together.
This is an astounding state of facts
Here we have a small portion of the
country, three states, with an area but
little larger than that of Kansas and
not two-ffths as large as Texas, with
one sixth the population of the country
! and one third the taxable wealth. aeon.