The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1899-08-25
The Nations Money-Who Shall
Control 1t :?

This plank will admit of quite wide
range in its construction. The goldbugs
and banks will subscribe to it if they are
allowed to construe it. Gold they contend
is the only thing money should be made
of and coined at the government mints.
The banks do not claim that their issues
are money, but currency redeemable i'll
gold. The issues of banks are principally
credit, an intangible kind of money which
the borrower must make good by return
ing something tangible to the banks that
will be received in payment Of the credit
debt which has been incurred.
But how is the supply (of money! to
be regulated by the people" who are
given no control whatever in the matter i?
If banks exist they must do the regulat-
ing of the supply. All the money in cir
culation goes into the banks daily and is
either loaned or refused TO their customers
at the discretion of the banks. By con-
certed movement the banks can regulate
the supply at their pleasure, and this is
one of their common methods of bringing
a pressure on their customers, which EN-
brace the entire producing and trading
class of the community. They frequently
resort to such methods to enable them to
achieve political results, and laws which
they deem advantageous to themselves.
1t is plain the people can have no part
or lot in regulating the supply Of money.
Under present conditions they can never
have voice in the matter 1t is the
banks that regulate the supply, expand
and contract the currency at WILL aud in
the very nature of things as they now
exist, and will continue to exist as far as
any declaration contained in the New
York /0n1NaPS platform goes. Banks are
the receiving, distributing or disbursing
agencies for money. All business depend
ing on the movement of money is done
through banks and in the very nature of
business as conducted by modern civiliza-
ton, must continue to be transacted
through the machinery of banks
Long experience has brought this
method to almost an exact science. At
the same time it has been the means Of
placing in the hands and under the con-
troll of a class composed of a comparatively
few of the community, very dangerous
power, and a power that is being abused
to an alarming extent by that small class,
in interfering in political movements,
which movements are always towards the
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT of the money power and
abridgment of the rights of the people.
The corporate power of the people is
| their government. They can act i'll a
public capacity through no other medium
and unless they use that medium to reg
ulate the supply of money, they are
wholly powerless. The banks as now ex.
isting are the creatures of many small
corporations A few persons apply for a
charter, special privilege, to do bank,
ing business, and by means Of this special
grant by the government the supply Of
money is wholly regulated. The people
are entirely excluded from all power in
the matter. Their corporation, the gov.
erment, is completely shut off from reg.
ulating the supply of money; although
granting such power to few individuals
1t cannot exercise the power it grants.
| The government is shut out from any
direct action i'll issuing or regulating the
supply OF money, except to the coinage
of such gold as may be taken to the minis
for that purpose.
While the banking privilege continues
to be special grant to few persons who
are able to accumulate fund which they
represent as capital, and at the same time
is denied to the great mass of the people
to use through their corporation, the gov
eminent, all the nations money to be
issued by the nations government, and
its supply to be regulated by the people
and not by the banks" will remain nil.
Before the nations money can be issued
by the nations government and its sup
ply regulated by the people the nation
must assume its reservedipower Of taking
the banking business into its own hands
as completely as the post Office is under
the nations direction and control. None
OF the currency platform declarations can
be carried out by any other method. The
nation or the government, which is the
peoples corporation, must assert its right
as the financial agent of the people, as
above all other power in this department
OF our political organization, and estab-
llsh repositories for the safe keeping and
disbursement ofthe peoples money. All
the machinery for the business of distrib.
uting with economy and despatch the
money i'll use to keep the wheels of trade
and production revolving has been in
vented and applied by the demands of
modern banking. The government need
only to set up its own machinery instead
of investing private corporations with that
prerogative, and perform the banking
business for the people as it executes the
business of collecting and distributing
their mail matter.
Under a system of government banks
the people would be freed from the money
sharks which devour their substance. as
completely as they are from corporation
ravages through the post office. Ifthe
post office business was in the hands of
private cornoratiouc nc tI,a bo,I;