The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1895-08-13

~S NV Julia R4G
banks would care much if the national
bank notes were all wiped out, but tc
abolish the national banking system il
quite another matter, and one which
Mr.. Sovereign cannot accomplish, ever
with a boycott"
"They can't refuse any of the First
Nationals notes, because there aTt
none in circulation" said President
Lyman J Gage, of the First Nationa
bank. ''This man is merely talking tc
hear himself. While national bank
notes r not legal tender between In
dividuals, they have always been &C
cepted as such, and always will be. q
boycott on national bank notes would
not annoy the banks very much. OII
notes are locked up in the vault ano
have always been there. Not a dollar
of them has been put in cIrculaCion'
National bankers care nothing for this
privilege of issuing notes, because II
doesn't pay, To secure notes United
States bonds must be bought at a very
high premium and deposited n the
Unite States Treasury to secure the
circulation. Only 80 per cent. OF the
face value of the bonds can be repre-
sented in the circulation, and then five
per cent. of the circulation must be de-
posted with the government"
The statements quoted from the
bankers are the best reasons why their
notes should be boycotted by every pa
citizen. These national bankers
not only admit that their notes are not
money, but acknowledge that while low
wages, starvation, enforced idleness
and business depression r prevalent
throughout the nation they wilfully
and wantonly withdraw their notes
from circulation to increase the bur,
dens and miseries Of the people Never
before was a blacker page of crime and
conspiracy against the public brought
to view than is revealed in the comics
sion of the bankers quoted above.
The argument of national bankers in
bankers conventions, in the lobby, and
on the floor of Congress for the past
thirty years has been a demand for the
perpetuation of the national banks, on
the ground that the banks would main
tain the stability of business and the
circulating medium flexible according
to the demands of trade by supplying
the people with their circulating notes
in the hour of need. The act of Con
grees, approved January II, 1875,
known as the resumption Act, gave
national banks authority to contract or
expand the volume of their circulating
notes at will, and it was done on the
Representatives of the banks that the
volume of their notes comprised a fax
IDLE currency, going GU into the chan
nels of circulation when other money
became scarce, and coming back when
not required by the demands of trade.
The same act further says:
"And whenever, and so often, as cir
culating notes shall be issued to any
such banking association, embarrassing
it's capital or circulating notes, or so
newly organized as aforesaid, it shall
be the duty of the Secretary of the
Treasury to redeem the legal tender
United States notes in excess only of
three hundred millions of dollars, to
the amount Of eighty per centum of the
of national bank notes 80 issued
to any such banking association
as aforesaid, and to continue such re
demption as such circulating notes are
issued, until there shall be outstanding
the sum of three hundred million dol
lars of such legal tender United States
notes, and no more"
Thus it will be plainly seen that the
retirements of the greenbacks was arge-
ly due to a tacit understanding that
national bank notes would take their
place whenever the business interests
of the country required it. But since
the boycott On their notes has been
proposed, these bankers admit that
the dog in the manger during the dark
days of a money famine, when the
woes of the people bem9d description
by tongue or pen.
What ~palliation do they offer for
such merciless acts Of bad faith9 Sim
ply that the business of loaning the
notes of national banks is improbable.
the First National band of Chicago
has the privilege of issuing So. OOO, 900
of notes." says J. J. P. Odell of the
Union National. 'Our notes are lock
ed up in the vault, and have always
been there. Not a dollar of them has
aver been put in circulation. National
bRnkPra care nthin fnn 4hin nn;.l.-.