The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1896-09-18

is the real situation in Rockford? The
number of bankers in that city is, alto
gether, thirteen, and the total amount Of
capital which these thirteen bankers have
is $375, 900. The total amount of de-
posits in their banks is $3,4O0,OO0. So
that these thirteen bankers, with total.
paying capacity of but 1915, 900, are
entrusted with $3,400,0 600 of other peo5s
IN any manner they choose. Upon it1s
face, it would seem that any number ofz
men who have a total paying capacity Of
but $4,000 must be of great integrity,
uprightness and relia bility to be entrust-
ed by the very people with whom they
live. and do business with whom they
their paying capacity, or $3,4OO, 900.
Who are the people who have entrusted
this thirteen with so large a sum of
money, SO much in excess of their pay
that city of total population of 10000.
In this case. therefore, who are the
debtors! They are undoubtedly the
bankers. These thirteen men owe these
5000 depositors So AGO. 600.
Now, if all that has been said about
the rapacity of the creditor class be true,
thlnk OF the situation in which these de-
positors have these poor bankers If
an that has been said about the poverty,
the wretehedness and the enslaved con-
dition' of the debtor class be true, think
OF the miserable plight of these poor
bankers.
What is true in Rocl ford must be
| true OF the whole country. The real
and the. real creditors ce. the country
are the depositors, and 1T is to the credit
| OF the bankers of the United States.
as it is to the credit of the bankers of
Aockford, that although they could NET
50 per cent. on the dollar if the coinage
of free silver at 16 to were made legal.
| by paying their depositors who have de-
posted golN at 81 to / with them in
silver at but Is to 1, none of the bank
ers OF the City of Rockford, and but
very few of the bankers in the United
states, who would have so much to
gam by the adoption of this free silver
iunacy, have advocated this policy.
winch would enable them at one stroke
TO clear so much money.
| :, Inns brief statement makes it plain
that all the vilifcation which has been
bestowed by Populist orators and news
papers upon the creditor class of the
| United States has been emitted because
OF totally false misapprehension as to
sample of the profound ignorance under
lying the whole free silver agitation that
| they have undertaken to describe az
vampires, blood suckers, Shylocks, ETC.,
the great producing classes of this coun--
try who are its real creditors and who
own all the money deposited in the
banks and upon which bankers do busi-
ness and upon the borrowing of which
most OF the manufacturing and produc-
ton OF this country is carried on. So
that the Populists of this country who
have been claiming to be the friends Of
the people, have been denouncing them
upon the supposition that the denuncia-
ton has been describing the bankers;
whereas, the real truth is, the bankers
are the debtors and the depositors are
the creditors.
According to that the Populists won't
accomplish free silver?
Well. there are in the United States
9,OOO,uOO depositors in the savings institu-
tlons OF the country, and they own de-
posits amounting to about S., 5,0O0, 600, 600.
If all the people in the United States
who can vote, should vote, the total vote
cast in a national election would be
about IA ,0OO, 600; but the largest average
national vote cast is about 11,OOO, 600;
hence, the total number of depositors in
savings institutions in this country large
| ly outnumbers any majority of votes
which has ever been cast in a national
election.
In the single state of New York there
are 100000 depositors in the savings
| banks of that state. They have on de-
posit 5000 900. In the state of New
York there are but about 1,20O, 900 vet
ers; the number of depositors in the saw
| ings banks of that state exceeds the
humber of voters in that state by, o0O,-
600. These figures show the utter im-
possibility Of any such movement as the
free silver movement succeeding in this
country, because its success would in
volve the conversion of more people than
have ever voted on one side upon any
question in this country, to the abs0-
lutte belief that it would pay them to set
tie with the savings institutions in which
their money lies, at so cents on the dol
lar for every 100 cents on the dollar they
have on deposit.