The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1896-06-06
New Money System Proposed.

Kansas, president OF Inc Aansas
City, Watkins and Gulf Railway,
is out in a pamphlet discussing
the monetary problem, which he
has evidently given much thought
and careful study. He discusses
the situation from various stand
points, and has a definite PROPOSE
tion to offer as a solution to our
financial troubles. The main fea-
lures of his proposed system are
as follows: First = that gold be
demonetised, or rather that it be
placed on the same footing with
silver as q money metal, and SUBJ
jected to the same rules at the
minis. Second = that all demand
notes of the government (green-
backs) be redeemed and not re-
issued, thus getting rid of the end
less chain that is used to deplete
our gold reserve. Third-that for
the redemption of these demand
notes, as we'll as to represent all
gold and silver coin, that certifi-
Gates be issued that will bring the
coin forth on demand. Fourth
that the numbe of government
repositories be increased to at least
twenty, where gold OF silver bull
lion (native or imported) may be
deposited in exchange for bullion
certificates, said certificates to be
receivable for all public and pri-
vate debts, thus adding materially
to the circulating medium. Fifth
that the government issue, and
place on sale at par, registered and
coupon bonds, in denominations of
$40, $500, $1,000 and $4,000, to
run for one hundred years, princi-
pal and interest payable in gold or
silver coin or bullion, the rate of
interest to be little less than 2
per cent per annum. In exact
figures he puts the interest at one
and eight-and -a-quarter tenths per
cent, the reason for this odd figure
being to simplify the interest and
cause the bonds to earn respective
ly 1c in five days, 1c in one day, SC
per day. and SOC per day. Half
of these bonds, he claims, would
readily be absorbed by the Nation
al banks as safe and satisfactory
basis for their currency.
Mr.. Watkins advocates an ex-
tension of the National banking
system, in fact, that State and pri-
vats banks be changed to this sys-
tenn, and that provision be made
in the law SO that banks with as
small capital as s25, 900 may be es-
tablished in villages and hamlets,
and all the people thus afforded
banking convenience and facilities
for exchange. The bonds referred
to above, it is held by Mr.. Wat
kins, will prove attractive to the
people as popular loan, replen-
ish the gold reserve, and afford
solution to the present financial
question, as the national debt be-
ing thus held by the mass of the
citizens would hold them united
and give the government strength
and recuperative powers that can
not be obtained in any other way.
All in all the plan suggested is
ingenius and well worth study on
the part of all interested in the
public welfare. It has at least the
merit of being a well defined prop
osition, and is entitled to more
consideration than the usual loose
jointed gabbling of the great bulk
of our latter-day financiers, who
can all tell us how to tear down
and disrupt our financial fabric,
while but few if any of them offer
any plan to build it up.
This proposition of MIR. Wat
kins' is held to be a medium be-
tween the extremes of the gold
and silver advocates, but we regard
y