The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-02-25
Where the Money Goes.


The populists and a great many demo
Gratis and republicans are demanding a
great increase in the volume Of the cur
rency, for the reason that there Is com
paratively little money in circulation in
most of the states, particularly among
the farmers The per capita circulation
is now about S24, and it is greater than at
any previous time in the history of the
country. Some of the infationists in con
grass think it should be $50 per capita,
though the most of those who favor an in
crease in the volume of the currency say
they would be satisfied with $50 per
capita.
But would the parts Of the country that
are now complaining of a scarcity of cur
rency have any more of it if the volume
of it were doubled3 That is a question
TO which the infationists do not appear
TO have given any attention.
There is a great deal more money in the
country now than there is any demand
for. The banks of New York have about
500, 900, 900 above their legal reserves for
which they can find no profitable use.
Money in that city is dirt cheap. The
banks of nearly all the other cities have
more money than they know what to do
with There is, therefore, no scarcity of
money That being the case, there is no
good reason why the volume of the cur
rency should be increased.
But the infationists say that although
there is plenty of money, it is all in New
York, Chicago and some other cities. But
how do they propose keeping the currency
out Of the cities and retain it in the rural
districts if their demand for an increase
in the volume of currency should be COM
piled WITH Would not the same infu-
ences that have banked up the money in
New York continue to control the cur
rency if the volume of it should be
doubled2
Why is it that the profit on the wheat
of the west and the cotton of the south
does not remain in those sections} Is it
not because the people of the west squan-
der their surplus earnings in wheat futures
and the people of the south lose their
profits in cotton futures2 In the last ten
years the people of the south have re
ceived more IT, an three thousand millions
of dollars from cotton. What has become
of that part of this vast sum that has not
been spent in the necessaries, luxuries
and home improvements 1t is evident
that the balance, after the expenses of
living have been paid, has not been in
vested at home. The truth is. that the most
of the balance has been lost in New York.
in specializing in cotton futures, and
much of the money accumulated in New
York is the profit on southern cotton.
Millions upon millions of dollars of south
ern money that ought to have been in.
vested in the south, and thus kept in circu-
lation here, has been sent to New York and
lost there. The same is true in respect to
the west. If the southern and western
people had invested their money at home,
instead of wasting it in speculation in
New York and Chicago, there would not
now be any scarcity of currency in the
south and west.
However much the volume of the cur
rency may be increased, the same unequal
distribution of the currency will exist if
the southern and western people persist
in sending their money to New York and
Chicago, where it is lost in speculation.
They lose because they speculate against
those who are in position to take advan-
tage of them.