Monroe City Democrat., 1908-10-08


lishment of q postal savings bank system;
the Democratic party prefers the guar
anteed bank because It is better for the
depositor and better for the banker-it
gives the denositor the security which he
needs and yet leaves the banking busi-
ness in the hands Of the banks. But the
Democratic platform declares for "a pos
tai savings bank II the guaranteed bank
can not be secured" and in November
more than ninety per cent Of the voters
will by their ballots demand either the
guaranteed bank or the postal savings
bank. Can the financiers prevent the
carrying out of this demand?
The Republican platform does not go
into detail, but 1t is fair to assume that
the postal savings bank plank Is intend
ed as an Endorsement Of the postal saw
ings bank system proposed by the Presi-
dent and poStmaster-general. Under this
plan the Federal government would in
being placed upon the amount that
each person or each family could de-
posit According to this plan, the busi-
ness man would not be protected, for
savings account; but no one can doubt
that the successful operation of gov
ernment savings bank would ultimately
lead to an extension OF the plan until the
government bank would include the or
dinary checking account and be open
to deposits without limit. 1t would mean
long contest between the depositors
and the bankers, but a contest which
must in the end be decided on the side
of the depositors. The bank must de-
eide, therefore, whether he will favor q
postal savings bank which, In the alb
sence of the guaranteed bank, will grow
until II abSorbs the banking business,
or preserve the present system of bank
ng 6g gERs aW to Rs WHICH ea
must otherwise find in government
bank.
The Democratic plan. therefore, con-
templates a less radical charge than the
nOtl0CaliO0
speech Mr.. Taft charged the Democrats
with being socialistic in some of their
remedies. The charge was not well
founded, but I might reply by charging
him with advocating an unnecessary ex-
tension Of the governments sphere or
activity in the establishment Of the pos
tai savings bank when the guaranteed
bank would answer the same purpose
without any considerable increase in the
number of government employees. would
rather see the banks attend to the bank
| ing business than to have 1t transferred
| to the government, and because / prefer
! to have the banking business done by
| the banks rather than by the govern
| ment, I urge the guaranty of deposits
as the easiest solution for our difficulties.
There are only 20, 600 banks, while there
are Is, 900. 900 depositors, and I do not
hesitate to declare that in a conflict be-
| tween the two, the deposieors have
| prior claim to considerations. II we es-
| innate the average number OF stock
holders of each bank at seventy-ive-
q
number of stockholders would only be a
| million and half, or one-tenth as many
as there are depositors. The stockhold-
er is not compelled to buy stock, while
banks, both for his own sake and for
| the sake of the community, for only by
using the banks can he keep his money
a part of the circulating medium. The
guaranty law, therefore, brings the
| greatest good to the greatest number, as
well as those who have the greater
| equity upon their side.
There is another reason why the claim
of the depositor is superior to the claim
| of the stockholder. The stockholder has
a voice in the selection Of the bank
one must lose, therefore, as the result OF
! bad management, 1t ought to be the
stockholder rather than the depositor.
And, l venture to ask II the bankers
they expect the depositors to trust the
banks?
We are fortunate, however, in that we
are not compelled to choose between
Justice to the depositor and Justice to
| the stockholder, for, as has been shown
before, the plan which we propose not
only does justice to both but but brings
| the plan which we propose protects the
| banker-and it is his only protection
against the establishment Of govern
ment bank, with indefinite encroach-
ments upon the bankers business. With
| the guaranteed bank established, govern
ment savings banks would only be needed
| in the towns and villages where there
were no guaranteed banks.
| There is another advantage which the
| guaranty of depositorS brings to the
| banks-it protects the reserves deposited
! in other banks. During the panic last
| fall the reserves caused the most of the
| trouble. The small banks wanted to
! withdraw their reserves from the city
| banks. and the big banks in the cities
! were not prepared to meet the strain.
! With deposits guaranteed, there would
| be no runs on local banks and no sud-
| den withdrawal of reserves.
| 1 have selected the capital of the state
| of Kansas as the most appropriate place
| for the delivery of speech upon this
subject, because your neighbor upon the
| south has been pioneer in this reform.
| Her plan, as you know, has been such a
signal success that deposits have been
drawn across the line from your state
this invasion of your banking territory
caused your governor to include in his
call for a special session a recommended
tion of the passage Of a law similar to
ture met, however, the influence of the
large banks was sufficient to prevent
! the needed legislation, and your state
still suffers. The people Of Kansas have
had an object lesson; they know the
necessity for a law guaranteeing depos-
its. They have seen its beneficent re-
ffty-four national banks taking advan-
tage of the state system and reaping a
rich reward. l have made inquiry and
find that many Kansas bankers favor
the adoption of guaranty system-three-
fourths of those who have replied have
declared for the guaranteed bank. They
have heard the echo of the blow that
has been struck at the national banks
Of Oklahoma by the attorney-generaPs
ruling, which denies to such banks the
right to share in the benefits of the
state guaranty system-that echo being
the surrender of charters by national
banks which prefer to become state
banks rather than surrender the benefits
of the guaranty system Four national
banks have surrendered their charters
and are now conducted as state banks,
while sixteen more have applied for
state charters Your people have also
seen how the influence of a few big
banks, concentrated upon a legislature,
can defeat the wishes Of the smaller
banks and the desire Of the depositors
all over the state.
1 submit that in this effort to make all
the champion Of the farmer, the labor
| ing man, the business man, the profess
| sional man, the champion Of the banker
as well. No class is outside Of the bene-
fits of this law, for it bestows its bless
ings upon ALL
Why has the Republican party been so
quick to respond to the demands Of Wall
street and so slow to yield to the de-
mands of the masses7 There are two
reasons: first, the Republican party has
allowed itself to become the servant
of the favOr-Seeking corporations; and,