The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1900-01-12
AN UNEXPECTED ALLY.

The bill to promote the organization
of a National Bank TRUST, under the
guise of a bill to put this country on a
gold standard basis, is now pending in the
Senate If this administration desired
10 declare all obligations of the Govern
ment payable in gold, it had the majority
and could have passed that bill in a
simple form. But, while that declaration
would have been gratifying to the mil
lionaires. it would not have given the
special privileges to national banks which
Gage, Morgan and the rest of the nation-
nj bankers Were demanding, and so the
administration bill as it PASSED the House
provided for turning over TO the national
banks the exclusive power of emitting
currency. Bad as the bill is, that feature
as a surrender of sovereignty to a ma
uiOnal bank trust, and will result in put
ting the power to expand or contract
the currency in the hands of men who
will employ it solely fer purposes of gain.
McKinley's administration. in gratitude
for past contributions to the campaign
and as sam anchor to windward' for
future big gifts, is willing to give the
sovereign right to issue money to what
will be nothing more nor less than a
national bank trust.
So open is the wrong to the country and
so dangerous is the gift to the national
banks, that even the New York Sun
protests against its passage. The Sun
bases its protest on the ground that its
passage would give to the cause of
Organism strength it could not other
wise hope for" and because it is ito raise,
deliberately and unnecessarily, an iSsu"
which the party of Bryanism will be
only too happy to take up" That is the
partisan view. The Democrats oppose
and contrary to the principles of our
government for Congress to abdicate its
power to issue and regulate the issue of
money and turn it over to private midi
viduals who would be actuated by no puT-
pose except to use the privilege granted
for individual gain.
The Suns leading editorial lis so strong
that we give it in full below:
THE debt refunding scheme, which the
Senate Finance Committee has attached
to the House Currency bill, is ayowedly
intended for the benefit of the national
banks. 1t proposes to create $So0,OO0,-
600 of ? per cent. thirty-year Govern
ment bonds, i'm order that the banks may
take out circulating notes against them
to their par value, paying ON the notes
a tax of only 70 per cent. per annum, ana
clearing ON them profit of ~ per cent.
per annum.
by the provisions of the National Bank
act, the Government not only guarantees
indirectly through its bonds the redemD-
ton of national bank currency, but UNI
dertakes, directly, should amy national
bank fail, to redeem it's notes at once,
selling the bonds afterward to reimburse
itself. If the bonds should fail to pro-
.duce enough to repay what has thus
been paid out, the Government gets back
the deficiency only after the banks as
sets, ON which it has a prior lien for it,
are liquidated.
Furthermore, when amy national bank,
for any reason, surrenders its circula-
ton, ut pays the Government an equal
amount of lawful money, and the Gov
eminent thereupon assumes payment of
the circulation. The notes thus suTren-
dered become, therefore, the direct debt
Of the Government They amounted, in
the aggregate, at the beginning OF this
month, to more than $50, 100000.
'"The Government also carries ON the
work of engraving and printing the ma
tional bank notes. and of redeeming them
out of a per cent. fund of lawful money
furnished by the banks for the purpose.
Tt also maintains at an annual expense
of over 100000. the department of the
Comptroller of the Currency at Wash
ington. with nearly one hundred clerks,
besides number of special examiners
paid by the banks. to supervise the af-
fairs of 300 national banks ana to pro
feet the public against loss by their mis-
management.
'"The sole justification for all this ex-
pense and labor is the furnishing to the
people of a safe and sound paper curren-
cy 1t is not pretended that State SUI
pervision would not, i'm other respects, as
amply suffice to ensure the Solvency OF
banking corporations. as that OF the Fed
eral Government. 1t is only because the
national banks issue circulating notes to
serve as money that the Federal Govern
ment takes charge of them.
''Of the two currency bills bfiore Con
gress. both provide for the maintenance
of a paper currency issued directly by the
Government. and for its redemption an
gold on demand by a sufficient gold re-
demption fund. One or the other of these
two bills is pretty sure TO become law.
Then, the Government notes will be as