Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1896-10-09

Some OF the Richmond friends of Judge
| Aiken, of Danville, having called MS at
tention to the fact that there appeared
| in the Times OF October LIST criticism OF
his speech delivered i'm Danyille last Feb
ruary on the Independent Free Coinage
OF Silver and Gold at 16 to L." the Judge
sent them the following reply, with per-
mission to make such use of IL as they
deemed proper. The Dispatch chearfully
opens its columns to Judge Aiken's reply,
which is as follows:
Danville, Va, October 3. 1896.
/ may say the whole of the Times's ar
gument is based upon the following idea,
which / quote from the editorial:
I'm the present stage Of the worlds de-
velopment a very small amount of actual
money is needed for business. and that
amount Is growing smaller every day.
At the outset men bartered one article
for another But steam
and electricity came along 10 put them in
close touch at all distances. and thus they
found that they could do business far
more satisfactorily by drawing checks
against the labor value of articles mea-
sured by the gold dollar, or gold pound,
and they drifted into that habit. and now
they do almos. all Of their business by
the use OF these checks, using the most
inconsiderable sum OF actual coin or bank
notes"
In other words, the Times claims that
credit, such as checks and other bank
facilities, have supplanted money. II that
be true they ought to lessen the demand
for money and make 1t cheaper. Instead
of that money is constantly getting
dearer.
But as a fact. upon such information
as / have from authority and experience.
j deny emphatically the statements Of the
Times that tho amount of money used
in business is growing smaller every day"
and that men now do almost all of their
business by the use OF these checks, using
the most inconsiderable sum OF actual
coin or bank-notes."
MI. Robert GIfren, the gold-standardist,
in 1857, testified upon this point before the
Royal Gold and Silver Commission, and
was asked the following question:
I'm country like England the banking
facilities and other methods OF economic
ing coin have not increased very much
within the last twenty years. have theyT
Answer: Il do not think that. effective
ly, any changes which have taken place
in that way would have much bearing on
this question"
II Is probable there Is no better test or
the amount Of the business which is done
by checks in one period over another
than is found in the reports OF the clear
ing-house of such a city as New York.
which, learn. had about as many banks
twenty years ago as now. l have before
me tabulated statement of the clearings
of the New York clearing house from 1863
to January ]. 1885. This list shows that.
Notwithstanding the enormous increase in
the commerce and wealth of New York
city, not as much or IL is conducted by
checks as In 1872 and 1873. IL shows that
II requires more money now TO settle the
daily balances among the banks Of New
York city than 1t did twenty or twenty
five years ago. 1t shows that in 1872 and
1873 II took ~ and IL per cent. in money,
while I'm 1882 and 1893 il took 81 and 40
per cent. In money, and in 1894 1t took 60
per cent In money TO settle the balances.
II must appear plain TO any one that II
1t takes so much in money to settle bal
ances among institutions. created for. the
purpose of saving cash transactions, how
great must be the percentage of cash in
the ordinary retail transactions In city
and country
In reply TO the Times's statement that
men do almost all OF their business by the
use of checks. using the most inconsid-
cradle sum OF actual coin or bank-notes,
/ will say the admission OF Mr.. Eckels.
Comptroller OF the Currency (who does
not favor silver I'm any particularly. should
be accepted as evidence. From financial
paper before me II appears that on page
ISL OF the report of the Secretary of the
Treasury for 1894. the returns made by
national banks all over the United States
show that Ill per cent Of the deposits Of
retail commercial houses are In money.
How much greater, then, must be the
per cent. Of moneyed transactions among
the people. Besides the statistical evil
dence above. the fact may be cited that
twenty years ago such thing as a strict
~ cash house was rare; now they exist
in great numbers, making a demand for
ready money 10 take the place OF the
old credit system. Very truly yours.
A. NJ. AIKEN.