The independent. [volume] (Lincoln, Neb.) 1902-1907, 1904-10-06
THE MONEY POWER

1t will be well in the very beginning
of this speech to correct the error SO
prevalent among the people that popu-
lists are opposed to all banks and
banking systems. Like eye..y other
tenet of the peoples party it's position
on banding, as we'll as upon the Honey
question has been persistentl5 mis-; ep-
resented by the public press. Pornilsts
are universally opposed to banks Of
Issue, but recognize the legitimate
functions of bank and prize them as
highly as any one.
The Populist Banker
For a concrete example, let lis take
this beautiful little town. Thtlc are
some twenty different kinds oil busi-
nesses carried on here. Every day.
am informed, there are about $4,000 in
money paid in to these business houses,
some days many times more. Ali these
business men want some safe place to
keep that money until it is sent off to
buy more goods. They take it to the
banker who agrees to safely keep it
without charge and pay it back on de-
mand The banker performs useful
act. He has constructed place where
the. money is measurably safe Hom
robbers, and he charges nothing to the
depositors for this service.
The experience of centuries has
taught the banker. that there " II al
wavs be a certain per cent OF that
money in mis- vaults and-tnat WIlie. ne
has agreed to pay every dol.a. Of 1t
back on demand, he can sa ely loan
omtsa certain part of it and in that
way he gets pay for his services. All
authorities upon banking agree tllai it
is not safe for the banker to loan
more than ID per cent of these deposits,
and when the national banking .aw
was first enacted the banker was OBJ
liged to keep a 25 per cent reserve
So far the banker is an honorable
and efficient servant OF sOciet, ailo is
doing as much toward the upbiiidlng
of your community and town as any
business man in 1T. But he does even
a greater service. There was a oung
man in this town SO I was told, today,
who was a miller He had been work.
ing at that trade for some years, was
prudent and frugal and had saved
about $4,000. With that amount of
money he could dam the stream near
by, and put up mill that would be a
great accommodation to the fal timers
and the residents in the town. Such
a mill would tend to bring trade TO the
town and help build it up-help your
schools and your churcheS-but $4,000
was not enough to put in all the ma
chinery needed and furnish money to
run it. Here the banker, who was a
man of prudence and business ability,
looked the whole matter over. He was
convinced that the young man was
honest, knew his business AM tnat a
loan to him was safe. So h let the
young mar have 81, 500 and the mill
Is uaif sss.sl
for three years The loan has De.r re-
paid, the young man has butt nice
residence in your town, his chi. at
tend your excellent school, and he
helps support your churches, a.i OF
which would not have been Jcae. if
you had had no banker, and each mer-
chant had kept his money in hi, own
safe until he sent 1t off to pure ,lase
more goods In an investigation hat
did not occupy me more than tnrec or
four hours found several othe, ell .er-
prises, even in this small toNr that
could never have come into exls cnce,
had you not had bank hers With
that kind of banking the fop'hsts
have no quarrel.
Banks Of Issue
But when ii comes to banks of issue,
that is an entirely different question.
If your banker here. whom | highly
respect. although for want of informa-
tion he honestly believes tha. | am a
wild-eyed anarchist and socialist, all
done up IN one package hal laken
his $4,000 with which he Established
his little bank, bought government
bond With Id, sent tho bond q Wash
ington and received back his $1,000 aud
continued 20 collect interest ON his
bond just the same as II he had not
sent II to washington at all, ha would
have been granted n special privilege
90 get double interest on his money.
Then II he had gone into the business
OF tnnatln~ the currency by creating
"crcdIt money" as II IL called, pro-