Gilpin observer., 1908-05-28
timely ADDRESS
Judge Rucker Before the Jef-
ferson County Convention
Discusses Important
Questions.

At the Democratic County Conven-
ton of Jefferson County, held on Sat
rrday, May 23rd, Judge A. w. Rucker
Of Arapahoe County, was to have de-
count of sickness he sent a letter to
the Convention which discussed ways
and means to purify our elections. He
also said that the reforesting of our
denuded areas was a vital question
that must be dealt with by the state.
In regard to the guarantee of bank
deposits his letter read:
Money can be compared to a power
full drug; rightly used it builds up, it
sustains life, it gives us much happi-
ness. In overdoses it withers, blights
and kills.
When the flow of blood in the body
is checked you get sick. If it is stop
red you die. So it is with our COM
1uercial life. Money is the life-blood
OF commerce. Check the flow of 1t
and business becomes stagnant. If it
is stopped entirely We are liable to re-
oede to the savage state.
Twelve years ago the Republicans
tcld us that we had plenty of money
with which to do business; that all
we needed was confidence. Then we
had $1,000 per capita; today we have
$500, yet they come to us now and
tell us we still have not enough
money. The very people who looked
Gown on the silver dollar twelve years
ego now look up at the Cashiers GER
to foist asset currency upon this coun-
Try, which is practically the same
thing as clearing house certificates.
Melt down the silver dollar and you
have so cents worth of bullion; what
have you got if you melt down the
cashiers certificates? Asset currency
will not keep the present money, that
We have, in circulation. We must de-
wise some way to keep that which we
have flowing. If we do that there will
he very little need of cashiers checks
or asset currency.
Our monetary system has the vital
weakness Of not being able to keep
money in circulation, when it it most
needed. At recurring periods we often
hear the expression there is no
money in the country" yet we know
there is just as much money in the
country, at that moment, as there
ever was. 1t is simply hid away. The
arteries of commerce have become
clogged. 1t is the duty of the Demo
CT attic party to solve this problem. Our
opponents often accuse us of being a
party of negation, not party of prog
ress or builders. l want to say to you
that we must by our actions give the
lie to that statement.
The greatest boon that can be con-
ferred upon the people, of this coun-
try, is the building up of a system
that will prevent the panic from pc
riodically overtaking us. The way to
do this is to enact laws guaranteeing
the deposit of every dollar that is put
in our banks. Money is but form of
property. When you have what you
commonly term property, whether 1t
be in houses, ships, or sometimes in
the form of crops, the wise man in
sUres his property. At least none OF
you are so verdant that you will put
your house in some other mans hands,
transferring it to him without security
or any legal promise to return 1t to
you. Money is about the only form
Of property that we entrust to another
without exacting some kind of stip-
ulation in legal form that it shall be
returned. Why should you put $1,000
into the bank without any guarantee
| that 1t will be given to you, when you
want it, any more than you should
take that $1,000 and buy house and
say to the banker: 81 have trans
ferred this house to you. Take the
house and use it. Some day | will
want it, but there Is no need of enter
ing into a legal agreement to require
you to return it to me-" If you made
practice of doing thing Of this kind
how long would 1t be before your
fliends would seek to have you incar-
cerated in an asylum?
do not propose at this time to lay
down the details of how this should be
carried out, but | do want to place be-
fore you this truth, that II the state
passes such laws as will guarantee
the deposits in our banks. the panic,
as we have known 1t, will never over
take us. Carry home with you this