The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1893-09-27


again used to redeem the paper money
used in its purchase Further. that
congress proceed to supplement the
money volume by paper issue, based
on the wealth of the nation, receivab BILE
for all public and private claims and in
debtedness; this money to be issued and
circulated through system of postal
savings banks, organized, Differed and
operated by the government, to be To-
Gated at every local trading center in
the United States; said postal savings
banks to do legitimate, but general
banking and exchange business make
loans at an uniform rate of interest or
fixed charge. only great enough to
cover the expenses of the system; the
same rate of interest to be charged on
small as on large loans; all loans to be
made payable in from two to forty an
nual installments, according to the
size of the loan and the option of the
borrower.
"The necessary volume of paper
money over and above the bullion
above mentioned, would be less than
per centum of the value of the taxable
wealth OF the nation, hence the credit
OF the government could not be impaired
thereby and the governments paper
would pass current in all nations
Besides, this increased volume of
stable, safe money would increase
American production; the balances of
trade would be in our favor; large
amounts of interest now going to
foreign nations would remain in this
country, and gold and silver would
flow this way rather than away from
us.
ut has been suggested again that
congress pass such laws as shall pro-
vide for the free and unlimited coinage
of gold and silver on equal terms at the
ratio of is to 1, and supplement it with
paper money as above, to be cir
culated under the system herein out
lined.
''When this was done all the gold
and silver coin, except an insignificant
amount of subsidiary silver, would be
deposited in these postal savings
banks, and paper would be the sole
circulation on account of its conven-
fence. while coin would constitute the
reserves and could be utilized for set
Ting foreign balances, if any should
ever occur, which would rarely be the
case. But on the other hand. the bal
ance of trade being continually in our
favor, our gold and silver reserves
would constantly increase. This coin
reserve could also be available tor the
redemption Of any of the governments
paper issue if any insane crank should
ever happen to get any of it into his
possession; anybody else would hardly
ask that a full legal tender paper dol
lar be redeemed which is worth 100
cents in gold everywhere.
"With this necessary, safe, sound and
sufficient issue of paper money, under a
system of absolute government control,
this nation would have currency SUI
perior to any other, her people become
more opulent than those of any other,
and her currency would pass on par
ity with gold in all the principal COM
mercial centers of the world.
"The above suggestion regarding
melting up and storing silver and gold
as bullion is not the correct idea. We
rather think the above thoughts out
side of it, however, are valuable. But
if silver is to be demonetized, gold
should also be, and an ample volume of
paper substituted, to be based on the
wealth of the nation. Then all the
$4,000, 900, 600 worth of the money metal
of the world would go into use in the
arts, the question of coinage would be
settled forever, and the" world would
come to a paper currency for all time
to cOme.'