Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1893-04-05

requirement. or JrIOuUe 10 1nulvIuuaLS
or corporations as a condition of its
issue, those who own the bullion will
control the money volume in the coun-
try whether it be mono-metallic or BIZ
metallic There is nothing to be gained
to the people by division of this con-
troll between gold-bugs and silver-bugs
1t may as well be left as it is unless we
can have government issue of legal
tender currency, in addition to the alb
solutely inadequate supply of metallic,
money, which shall be amply sufficient
for the demands of commerce
We must also have a system of postal
savings banks, where money may be
deposited with some degree of safety,
and where exchanges may be effected
without robbery. The peoples party
proposes to move forward and not,
backward, and the News may be as
sured that, so long as it has an exist
ence, it will never surrender its de-
mands upon the questions of land,
transportation, finance and the means
of communication for any single issue
whatever.-Topeka (Kan.) Advocate.
A PEOPLES BANKING SYSTEM
The business of banking is far more
important factor in the business of ex-
changing wealth than money 1t is
estimated that ninety-seven and a-half
per cent of the business of the United
States is to-day transacted by means of
bank credit in the shape of checks, .
drafts, etc. This minimizing the use of
money by means of settlements through
banks and clearing houses practically
increases our currency ninety-seven
and a-haf per cent, but this increase is
for the benefit of the banks, as it en-
ables them to loan and reloan manyi
times over the money that belongs to-
depositors, as well as their steady in
come from the interest received thereon.
From this simple statement of facts,
familiar to all, it is evident that our
most direct way out of our present
debt burdened condition as a people
would be to nationalize the business of
banking and give the people the benefit
of all that can be gained by minimizing
the use of money and the lending of de-
posits on productive securities as banks
now do. All these government banks
could ask would be enough to operate
the system. Under such a system de-
positors would be absolutely safe, and
the amount of money required would
always be kept at minimum and vet
almays be obtaina BILE at a rate of inter-
est or money tax SO low that no
private lender could afford to
compete Instead of using bank
credit as we do now in the
transaction of business, the people un-
der government banking would use
their own public credit, which is the
equivalent of cash. We will never have
the full measure of reform in our none
tary system, demanded by equal Justice
to all, until we have established a sys-
tenn of financial exchange under which
the people have equal opportunities to
use the public credit to facilitate produc-
ton and distribution. An ideal none
tary system must needs include the ma
tionalization of the business of bank
ing. A critical analysis of the Omaha
platform will reveal the fact that IL
embraces every principle which is es-
sential to complete system of govern
ment banking. by the people and for
the people Such a system provides
absolute safety for deposits, united
with the power to create money if need
be, to meet every demand But for,
purposes of loans, the deposits would
ordinarily be sufficient If they were
not, it would demonstrate that the time
had come to create more money. If de.
posits exceeded the demand for loans
the excess would be in the possession
OF the government and retired from cir
culation. Under such a system there
could neither be contraction nor wild
imitation. The supply would always be
equal to the demand and the cost to the
people would DO only the necessary ex-
pense OF operating the system Such
would be government banking. Alma
(Kan.) News