Little Falls herald. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1889-1950, 1898-01-21
Y.GovERNMENT 81 EXPERTS.
Why the BANKERS should Not Frame
n 5sxszE.g N Fine ncial Hesitation.

@ Financial Legislation.
y The claim set up by the bankers that
they alone are capable Of framing finan-
cial legislation, because Of their knowl-
edge, will not stand a moments serious
It's absurdity is made
apparent by the mere statement of it.
The banking busine ss is limited to re-
ceiving deposits, loaning money and
transferring money between different
places. Those who are engaged in it
understand the rules of discounting
paper, computing interest and facilitat-
ing exchanges. Some banks are sound
and some are rotten. Like all other
men, some bankers are honest and some
are thieves. Some live in the commu-
mites in which they have been success
full in business for years, commanding
the respect of all. Others are fugitives
from justice, under indictment for en-
bezzlement, altering the bank books,
receiving money after the bank was
known by them to be insolvent, etc.
Money is the bankers article of trade.
He does not produce or create it any
more than the bookseller writes books.
the grocer makes soap, or the dry goods
merchant weaves his cloths. Money is
created by law. Each nation enacts its
own law. Money is created from gold.
silver and paper. The people who deal
in money have always been banded to-
.gether to reduce. the quantity. and
thereby increase the value of each piece
of the same. This is what makes them
experts; and then they tell US that EEK
perts alone should control the laws re-
lating to money"
The loaning of money is legitimate
business when honestly conducted. But
if banker changes the note given
him by a borrower, so as to enlarge the
amount, either of the principal or he in
terest, he is guilty of forgery under the
law. If he conspires to change the laws
which fix the volume of money, and, by
reducing the volume, increases the pur-
chasing power of dollar, he is just as
guilty, morally, as is forger. and his
action ought to be made crime. The
borrower owes him money which must
be paid by the conversion of a portion
of his property into cash. The lender
has no right to do anything which will
add to the burden of the debt. To de-
stroy either of the precious metals as
money, and leave the other to supply,
the demand for both, doubles the debt;
1t would be like shooting down one of
pair of horses with which farmer is
blowing.
The bankers are all in arms Just now
Their chieftains have been struggling
for 30 years to stop the use of silver
as money. They have succeeded III
many countries. They have stopped the
coinage of silver as full legal tender
throughout the world. They are nov
intent upon destroying the silver money
that has been coined by taking away its
legal tender quality. They have declared
war against silver, and have boldly ex-
tended their operations to war of con-
quest in the field of paper money. The
creation of paper money is as purely a
| government function as the coinage of
| gold and silver. The banks demand that
this sovereign power of the people shall
be surrendered to them, and that the
government shall burn up its paper
notes and silver certificates. They ask
congress to delegate to them the power
to control the creation and circulation
OF paper money. They want the govern.
ement to print 1t for them and guarantee
its convertibility into coin. They are
willing to contribute enough to pay for
the paper rags with which to make the
paper on which to print thousand mil.
lions of dollars of bank notes.
Are they not experts? What could
be fairer than their proposition? They
do not ask the privilege Of redeeming
their paper! The government can do
that! All they want is to have the gov
eminent make them present Of thou
sand millions of dollars, less the cost Of
the paper rags from which It is made.
They are certainly experts. Who will
pretend to equal knowledge with them
What do the people who are not bankers
know about finances? A flnancier is q
man who induces the government to
give him few hundred thousand dol
lars for nothing, by indorsing his small
notes as & banker. He loans these notes
at a goodly rate Of interest besides the
bonus which he charges the borrower,
deducting it from the amount he loans.
BE does not accept in payment Of the
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