The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1908-08-31
COMMUNICATION.
Editor Palladium:

After reading your article in Tues
days issue on wild Cat Banking
and then remembering that the repub-
lican party and quite naturally its
mouthpieces were advocaters of the
square deal, |, as a private citizen,
submit this in all fairness for your
publication.
You come forth as a second John
Law, embark your slight craft on the
sea of finance, and in not quite one
column. state a problem and the abso-
lutte solution thereof, that conserva-
tive hard-headed bankers are unable
to answer after a life time of eXper-
fence.
The Oklahoma bank law has evil
IDENTIFY come to you about seventh
handed, surely no closer For instance,
you start out by making the assertion
that if the guarantee law applied nat
ionally, banks would pay s or 7 per
cent on time deposits, not for any le-
Ultimate purpose, but to lure the de-
positor by the attractive rate offered
to bring in his money. Next. if they
couldn't invest his money at a pro-
fit they would, drawn from your con-
clusion, appropriate the whole show
and skip. But of course this will have
no weight whatever with anyone
knowing the law and only show your
own ignorance as the law states plain
ly that per cent is the maximum
amount to be paid. And this per
cent paid in the state of Oklahoma
where they loan money from S to II
per cent is CORRESPONDENCE a safer
rate than the customary of Indiana.
Again you say that If the Oklahoma
| law was adopted by the entire bank
| ing system, group of spectators
could get together, organize a bank,
| offer this "attractive" rate which you
| (no doubt conscientiously) spoke of,
then make loans of any proportion
whatsoever to themselves and invest
| the money in big risks. | notice you
make it just as wild cat as possible
| by having them invest it in a gold
| mine. No better answer can be made
here than the statement of the law
itself, Sec. Is. 1t shall be unlawful
for any active managing officer of any
bank organized or existing under the
laws of this state (Oklahoma) to Dor
row, directly or indirectly money from
| the bank with which he is come cted
| Such an act will be deemed a larency
of the amount borrowed. You know
or at least | will give you credit with
knowing that every penny of national,
state, county and township money is
already guaranteed. No matter how
| sound the bank, how many storms il
has weathered Or panics withstood
the funds must be additionally pro
tected. These banks that hold this
money have to buy surety bonds OF
the minimum amount that is ever on
deposit and in case of failure the sure.
ty company pays the deposit al
once. But you Of the square deal
party, how about the widow and work
ingman, the accumulation of whose
funds represent life time of hard
labor and sacrifice How about thei1
guarantee? Would you have thei1
mite swallowed up in a gulp, thei1
homes sold for sustenance from over
their heads and hopeless and heart
broken and their remaining days in
undeserved poverty and misery YOU
say that the honest banker will be
under this guarantee law, taxed tc
pay such debts. He ought to be. He
should stand up and rejoice that he
has to be. The time is not far dis
lance when the people will demand
this guarantee just as they navn
grown to demand prohibition and yor
will be doing then just what you are
now, crying that you were the only
and original advicators of such a ster
and no doubt it will be announced
broadcast that Noah was a republican
and gave written guarantee for the
few gold pieces he carried in the ark
Yours respectfully,
RAY SWALLOW.