The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1897-11-19
Currency Reform as Proposed by
Senator Fowler.

We have circular letter from Chas.
A. Fowler, Representative from New
Jersey and also a member of the Com
mitlee on Banking and Currency, in
which he gives press comments on the
currency reform measure, which he
proposes to take the place of the one
now existing After quoting from the
opinions of the press at length, he
says in conclusion:
To these suggestions l desire to add
that l regard the right of note issue as
"a valuable franchise and that full
consideration should be rea lied by the
people of the United States for that
privilege
1t should not be forgotten, however,
that capital goes into the banking bus
mess upon precisely the same basis
that it goes into any other kind of bus
mess, viz: Because the owners of the
capital believe IL will pay. And if, at
any time, after making due allowance
for all the charges and risks banking
IL W pay bNNltl ludu
any other kind Of business, capital will
seek this channel until the income real
lied is on level with that of other
branches of commerce.
1t is only necessary to observe, there
fore, that every burdei1i the form Of a
tax laid upon our currency will have
to be borne primarily 10y the commerce
of the country; but finally it must be
paid by that grand army of twenty
five million producers scattered all
over the land in every trade and every
walk of life, for money and all its sub
stitutes in the form of checks and
drafts are mere tools of trade and COM
merce, indeed the only tools with
which these twenty-five million toilers
can keep in motion the vast and COM
plicated machinery of our modern civ
ilation.
Our present system of currency is
such that the slightest doubt thrown
upon our ability or disposition to MAIN
tain it upon gold basis shakes every
business to its very foundations,
spreads devastation of values every
where, paralyzes enterprises and
brings upon our people losses of untold
iAiiAlAObSs Ii duOltlOll W lhlS hISlul-
bance to business and incomprehensi-
BILE loss to the people, the Actuary of
the Treasury has Informed US that
since 1879 it has cost the government
$685., 9o4, 222 to maintain our paper upon
gold basis, or an average of $2l ,000,-
600 per annum. This shock to COM
merce, loss t. the people and cost to
the government can be obviated by
throwing the maintenance of our
standard upon the banks, where the
burden belongs.
The government should retire its de-
niand obligations and let the banks as
sumo the conduct of commerce, taking
with it the right of note issue upon
certain Conditions. AT first consider
alton of the privilege they should carry
the government debt at rate of in err
est not 10 exceed 2 per cent, thereby
saving to The people more than fifteen
millions in interest annually. AS a
second consideration they should main
tain gold payments by currently re-
deeming their notes in gold, which
should be guaranteed by the pay
treasury of the United States
III INV lOIiH vi ldA up III
circulation. In addition to such guar
antee fund the Government should
have first lien upon the assets OF the
banks (Which now exceeds seven bill
lions of dollars) for the purpose of ulIl-
mate redemption III case of IA failure.
AS third consideration, they should
be required to pay into the UnlIed
State Treasury sufficient TAX up m
deposits to insure all deposittr- Ia ma
tional banks against loss in case of fail
ure. Such tax would not have eX-
ceeded an average OF oue-tMe,lth ol
one per cent. per annum DUNG the
past thirty-three years, which is ann
intestinal sum compared t. the great
advantage to be derived therefrom, not
only to the people, but to the banks
themselves.
Certainly the saving. annually of
thirty-siX millions III interest and the
cost of maintaining gold payments
with an absolute guarantee to tile nole
holders aud depositors in our national
banks against loss would not only be
an adequate, but a rich consideration
for the right of note issue.
The bill and the address referred TO
i'll the foregoing quotations from the
publlc press have, for convenience,
been published in pamphlet form and
constitute a pamphlet of l35 pages;
but 1T will be mailed free to any one
who is sufficiently interested in the
study of the financial and currency
problem to write to Washington ask
ing for ii.