Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1894-12-26

The National Banking association OF
Baltimore n few weeks ago proposed
TO perpetuate bank rule by an amend
ment TO the banking act containing
nine sections The amendment pro-
vides for the repeal of the provisions of
the national banking act requiring the
deposit of bonds to secure circulating
notes and in lieu thereof to allow the
banks TO issue so per cent of their paid
up capital in ordinary times and %
per cent additional in cases of emer-
gencies, to be determined by the banks.
The government is required to manu-
facture and print circulating notes for
the banks to issue and guarantee their
redemption. A tax of one half per
cent is to be paid on the average cir
culation of each bank. For this service
guarantee fund is to be created by
the payment the first year of per cent
upon the circulation received and
thereafter one half of per cent Nntil
the amount reaches per cent of the
entire outstanding circulation, after
which the tax is to be suspended, to be
resumed when the comptroller shall
deem it necessary In other words,
the banks pay the government one
half of per cent for manufacturing
and printing the circulation, which is
probably as cheap as can be done by
private narties; and the banks arc to
pay the govcIl,ncnt per cent for Il
guarantee fund, after .hich the banks
retain the governments monay with
out interest.
These so called bank notes are really
government money. The government
prints them and guarantees their re-
demption; but the banks own them
and are at liberty to charge such in
terest on them as avarice may dictate.
The banking capital, according to
the report Of the comptroller of the
currency, amounts to nearly seven
hundred millions This would give
the banks three hundred and fifty mill
ions of government money to loan to
the people. 1t is further provided
that the government shall furnish the
banks - per cent in addition to the so
per cent of their capital stock as emer-
gency circulation. This % per cent
the banks are authorized to put out
and retire at their discretion. In other
words, they are to have the power to
4 % 1,n
will best suit the banking business
and the business of the spectators
connected with the banks. A more
complete surrender of the sovereign
authority of the government "to coin
money and regulate the value thereof"
was never conceived. Why should the
government have go between to loan
its money to the people and retain all
its profits? If government money is
TO be loaned, why should not the gov
ernmcnt have the interest.
But why loan it at all? Why not
issue it and put it in the treasury and
save that much taxation? When it is
paid out for current expenses it be-
longs to the people for them to use in
their business.
This gratuity to the banks, although
enormous, and the power conferred
upon them to expand and contract the
currency, are not the worst features OF
the scheme. The treasury, under the
ruling of the secretary, is now bank
~upt. All the obligations in the United
States, except gold certificates, are pay
able in either gold or silver coin at the
option of the government, but the ad-
b ministration has surrendered that op-
ton to the holders of government paper,
nd such holders take nothing but
gold. There are /, 100, 900, 900 of paper
and silver in circulation, which ac-
cording to the ruling of the treasury
department and contrary to the stat
utes, must be redeemed in gold with
only about go, 900 of gold with
which to redeem it. About 200, 900, ,O0O
If the paper consists of national bank
notes, which, although redeemable in
the first instance in greenbacks, are
Ultimately redeemable in gold because
the greenbacks are redeemed in gold
ut the treasury department..
1t is proposed by these amendments
to increase this national bank circula-
tion to one half of the capital of the
ranks-s5O, ,OOO.o .oOO-or, if the banks
esire, to three Aourths of that capital,
100000, and more whenever the
--easc their capital stock. II