The Sisseton weekly standard. (Sisseton, Roberts County, S.D.) 1892-1929, 1920-11-19

Dy FIVsNIcTlCk Y. ttOWe
Executive Secretary of the Commir-
tee on Banking and Credit OF the
All American FarmerL Labor Co.
operative Commission.
The workers and farmers of
America are beginning to organize
banks of their own They are be-
ginning to realize how completely
the banking resuorces of the coun-
Try are under the control of interests
opposed to them. and how much
would aid them i'm the advancement
of their activities. They are ready
10 make their banks cooperative,
10 dedicate them TO productive pur-
poses, to divorce them from specula-
tion and exploitation. and, like the
new million-dollar bank of the
Brotherhood of Locomotive Engin-
GERS at Cleveland, to operate them
with an eye to the service that can
he rendered. There are at least a
score of new banks of this kind in
process of organization i'm this coun-
Try, while inquiries are being re-
eeived from every quarter as to the
steps to be taken to secure ii char
Ter.
There is obviously enough capital
in the possession of the workers and
the farmers to organize thousands
of banks if they chose to use their
capital i'm this way. The wages of
labor amount to 100000. 900. 600
year. The annual value of farm
products is $24, 1000, 900, 900 The
total resources of all kinds of all the
5000 banks i'm the country is only
s53, 900, 900. 900. The workers and
farmers have ample capital with
which to organize banks if they de-
eide to do so.
Reasons for New Kinds of Banks
No one can measure the advan,
ages or overstate the value of the
services that would come to the
workers and farmers if they control
led their own banks and credit agen-
ces. 1t would change their status
1t would free the farmer from de-
pendence on banks that are control
led by the spectators and middle
men. 1t would enable him to mar
ket his crops when he is able to get
Loc ThA Nf
The farmer is largely due to the fact
that he is forced to sell when the
speculator and middlemen want him
to sell The profiteering that is go
ing on i'm every line of industry is
traceabe in large part to the banks
that advance the credit. The banks
make loans on commodities of all
kinds, and then permit them to be
warehoused and held for monopoly
prices. Often the spectators own
the very banks that make advances
to them. This is especially true of
the packers. the commission men
and the millers of the Northwest
The worker has no banks. He
has no credit. He is prey to the
the amount of the loan over and
over again in usurious interest. He
is unable to borrow money to tide
him over sickness. to enable him to
set up i'll housekeeping, to start, in
business, or to develop his talent
aud ability Often he cannot even
borrow on mortgage to buy or to
build home. The producing clas-
ses that need credit most, that are
most entitled to credit, have no cred
il at ALL Yet most of the money
deposited by the 20,000,O0O depos-
itors in the national banks, not to
speak of as many more in the state
banks, is the money of the workers
and the farmers.
Credit controls the life of the ma
ton Credit controls farming IL
controls the smallest shop and the
greatest railroad system. Yet with
oil of the resources of the world at
our command, with banking resour-
ces of $50 900, 900. 900, there is lit
tie credit or no credit at all for those
who produce the wealth of America.
There is no doubt but that our
wealth would be increased by bill
lions Of dollars annually il the cred
It. Of America were dedicated to pro-
ductive purposes. were available for
the development Of the talent OF
men and the untouched resources of
tho country. More production" is