ilk
The Wealth Makers and Lincoln Independent Consolidated.
VOL. VIII.
LINCOLN, NEBR., THURSDAY, June n, 1896.
NO. 1.
FIFTY DOLLARS APIECE
That Was the Amount in Circulation
When We Had Good Times
ornciAL figures peove it.
Continual False and Inaccurate
Statements of the Treasury
Department.
) Yearly Statement of Circulation From
xboo 10 xo v 111 Boon ue
Published.
The editor of the Independent, hav
ing received a large number of letters
asking him to publish an accurate state
ment of the money in circulation from
1865 to 1896, both years included, and
having found it impossible to make such
' a tabulation from the the documents on
file in the libraries of Lincoln, wrote to
General A. J. Warner, calling his atten
tion to the very great importance of
fiuch a document. We are glad that he
has agreed to do this arduous work, and
we will soon have the figures.
For the information of those who have
written, and others who are alike inter
sted, we append the General's letter,
and also his statement of the per capita
circulation 1865 and 1866.
General Warner's letter is as follows:
' Washington. D. C, June 2, '96.
m T T ri' . T . X' Tk
x. 11. i LDULi&a, uinvuun, nun. war
jsir: 1 wrote you yesterday, Deiore receipt
of your letter of May 20th. As I stated
conflicting as to the volume of money in
different years, sometimes including both
coin and coin certificates, and sometimes
not. Official reports never take into ac
count money held in reserve, and it is
only money in circulation that affects
? rices, not money locked up in reserves,
f j 1 1 1 r xi. i
.moreover, me statements 01 tue treasury
made at the close of the war and those
made recently do not agree, and it re
quires a great deal of work to go over
them all and show ail -the discrepancies
and get at the true effective volume of
money in different years. .
The quantitative theory of money can
not be proved or disproved by conflict
ing treasury reports as to the volume of
money actually in circulation. At pres
ent there is not over $1,100,000,000 in
actual circulation, while some of the
treasury reports, which include both coin
and certificates, make the volume twice
that. -.- - -
1 am preparing a monograpn on tiie
quantitative theory of money, which
will be out in two or three weeks. Mean
time I enclose to you a number of mono
graphs bearing upon this law, and call
attention especially to money and bank
credits, agricultural prices, etc. If you
will send to the treasury or to Senator
Allen for the statistical abstracts from
No. 6 down, you can get most of the in
formation so far as it can be obtained at
all from the treasury. Ask your man,
Henry W. Yates, if the quantity of mon
ey makes no difference, why he objects to
. an increase.
Very truly yours,
A. J. Warner.
The following statement, giving the
true volume of money in circulation at
the close of the war, was inclosed:
"No reason existed at the close of the
war for misstating the actual volume of
money then existing, and there is no
reason to believe that incorrect state
ments were at that time officially made;
but for manifest reasons statements
J have more recently been made changing
N the 01 iinal treasury statements as to
r- the volume of money, by leaving out
certain classes of currency, some of
which performed at the time all the func
tions of money, and others of which
took the place of reserves in banks, and
thus as much contributed to form the
effective volume of currency as if they
had been kept in actual circulation.
"The volume of currency reached its
maximum in 1865, and, according to
the report of the secretary of the treas
ury of that year, consisted of the follow
ing items: (See statistical abstract No.
9.)
Gold, $ 189,000,000 00
BUDsmary sliver v,&(H),lx0 vo
State hank circulation 142,9111, 8:18 00
Demand notes 472.00a 00
1 and 2 yar notes of 1863 42,3118,710 00
. Compound interest notes... 193,750,68(100
' FrnnMnnat pnrrAnpv 2ft floR 7rt
National bank notes 146,,l7,8tiO 00
Greenbacks 431,066,428 00
Total SI. 180,107,147 76
"The volume of national bank notes
given is for June 30, 1865. By October
they had increased to $171,000,000,and
by July, 1806, were $281,000,000, which
shows how rapidly banks increase the
currency when it is their interest to do
so.
"The above does not include the $829,-
992,500 of 7-30 notes issued under the
acts of July 17, 1861, June 30, 1864,
and March 3, 1865, which were legal
tender, and of which over $182,000,000
were of denominations below $100 the
lowest being $10. Mr. McCullough, in
his report for 1865, said of the 7-30
notes: 'Many of the small denomination
of which were in circulation as money,
I n - t I .. L a 1 -
bdu an ui which ieuu in buiiid uiuuHure to
swell the inflation, etc'
"If these 7.30 notes are added to the
above table it gives a total volume of
$2,101,896,470. Besides this there were
temporary loan certificates, certificates
of indebtedness, 5 per cent treasury
notes, etc., all of which, to a greater or
less extent, took the place of money in
daily transactions.
"The above figures are taken from offi
cial reports made when there was no
reason to mislead the public as to the
true condition of the treasury, which is
not tne case with the statement put in
1891, claiming only $770,120,755 as the
total money in the Dnited States, out of
which $714,702,995 was in circulation,
and for a population of 35,000,000.
"The war had scarcely ended June 30,
1865, and the states in rebellion had
scarcely begun to share in this currency.
This volume, therefore, was at this time
used almost exclusively in the north, and
by a population of not more than 24,
000,000, instead of by 35,000,000,
which, leaving out the 7-30 notes gave a
per capita circulation of nearly $50; or,
if the7-30notesbeincluded,itgaveacircu-lation
of about $80 per capita. Therefore,
the oft-repeated statement that at the
close of the war the circulation amounted
to $50 per capita, is well within
the bounds of truth. Indeed, the recol
lection of the plentifulness of money and
the high range of prices during and at
the close of the war, is too vivid in the
minds of elderly people to permit con
tradiction of the facts here given.
"The first contraction consisted in the
retirement of the state bank notes under
the 10 per cent tax, and the extension
of the existing currency over the south
ern states, distributing it among a pop
ulation of 35,000,000 instead of 24,000,
000. Then came the retirement of interest-bearing
notes, and, lastly, the retire
ment of the greenbacks down to $346,
000,000. By 1869 the volume had been
reduced to less than $700,000,000 for
40,000,000 people, and was no larger in
1879 for 48,000,000 people.
"The fall of prices as a consequence,
and the panic of 1873, are yet vivid in
the minds of the people, and need not be
rehearsed here. The fall of prices still
goes on under the single gold standard,
as gold becomes scarcer and dearer. The
present liquidation is but a re-adjustment
of prices to an increasing money
standard, and must be repeated as long
as gold continues to increase in value.
There is no remedy but more gold, or
make silver again do the work of gold."
THE RULE OF THE DOLLAR.
If the Majority Refuse to Furnish the
Dollar, Then What?
This uncoining of our silver to cause a
scarcity of coin, and this compelling the
mortgaging of the country in borrowing
money to carry on its government, is an
imitation of and in keeping with the
national debt system of the European
governments nothing else.
And if the money kings cannot succeed
in getting the country bonded to them
in that way, by demonetizing half of the
money of the country, they will try to
get up a war, so as to produce an in
creased and standing national debt
thus giving the country into their hands.
So, my friend, hadn't we better be get
ting out in the road at once, and stop
this talk about "the people" being the
stockholders of this government, and
let these volunteer rulers have their own
way let them have the next president
and congress and whatever they want?
"Won't we have enough left after letting
them have what they want?"
"Because we are all yet to follow
Thomas Jefferson and Andrew Jackson
and Abraham Lincoln into another
world, is it any sign that we are to treas
ure the wisdom they have left to us in
this world"
My friend to whom I made these re
marks, although somewhat aristocratic
in his ways, censured the remarks, say
ing they were somewhat ironical if not
ironical, they were pusilanimous would
not admit that the country was going to
the devil, or that he was going there
either that he maintained that whatev
er principle was good in one world was
good in both worlds, and that the Al
mighty had both worlds yet under His
control.
He acknowledged that just now the
minority had one apparent advantage
over the majority in the country in hav
ing more dollars than the majority, but
that it was only an uncertain,, and slip
pery advantage, "for I may ' be with a
favored minority now, and my children
may either be with a neglected or a pros
perous majority in the future." And he
goes on to say that this dollar govern
ment of the minority is of necesity
treacherous and unreliable, for the ma
jority piay hereafter refuse to furnish
the minority with the dollars as hereto
fore for them to use in controling elec
tions and legislatures and court ma
chinery, and that is what I believe will
be that the country will be relieved from
the dominion of the dollar, as it has al
ready been relieved from human slavery,
let us hope, without a war." Principles
and events new to us are awaiting dis
covery. The "X rays" will yet reach into our
political and social relations aud affairs.
J. B. Packard.
Wahoo, Neb., June 4, '96.
Hurrah forKem!
Wonders will never cease. Every re
publican pencil pounder from Billy An
niu at Washington to Joe Paradis at
Alliance has sworn for years that Keni
was nobody, that he was nothing with
the insides taken out that he never had
done anything and never could do any
thing. And now what KEM? Stop
ped the machine at Washington and
won't let the Omaha exposition bill
through! Ye gods! Actually killed a
few steals and they won't give Nebraska
an appropriation! Jerusalem! Boys,
get out the anvil! Whoop for Kem!
Redheaded Kem from the Sixth Ne
braska district -old frazzled cipher
populist nobody our congressman!!
Stopped a few steals and broke the ma
chine! Hip, hip, hurrah for Kem! Signal-Recorder.
That's It Exactly.
Populism and prosperity, republican
ism and ruin, democracy and damnation.
Schuyler Quill.
NEBRASKA SCHOOL FUND
Have the Children of the State Been
Bobbed Again?
WHERE IS THAT $600,000.00?
The Republican Ring Will not Tell
and Refuse to Invest it.
Many Prominent Men Believe That the
. Money is Gone. r
Gov. Holcomb has made along and
presistent fight, continued for months
without cessation, to force the republi
can ring at the state house to invest the
school fund a full account and a copy
of the official record of which, is printed
in full below but those gentlemen refuse
to invest the fund as required by law,
amounting to over $600,000,000, or to
tell where it is. The books say that it is
in the hands the state treasurer, but
every one kows that it not there. Where
is it? The children of the state are en
titled to the interest on it. It
is a permanent trust fund, the interest
upon which was intended to support the
common schools of this state.
Either the state treasurer has it inves
ted and is stealing the interest which be
longs to the children of this states or it
is locked up in a vault lying idle, or the
money has been loaned and is lost.
It is a public fund. It belongs, not to
these republican state house officials,
but to the people of Nebraska. Theown
ers of that fund want to know, and have
a right to know, where that money is.
If the money is gone and Nebraska has
no public school fnnd they want to know
that and have aright to know it.
These republican officials will give no
information about it. All that can be
done is to report the current rumors
concerning the matter.
Oue report is to the effect that the
$600,000, was divided up and loaned to
to favorite banks in different parts of
the state, that the banks loaned it out,
and cannot collect it, and if a call was
made for the money it would break a
large number of banks and start a panic
in the state.
Another report is to the effect that the
treasurer has it loaned and well secured
and is drawing about $20,000 a year in
interest which he puts in his own pocket
or divides up among the gang.
Still anot her report is to the effect that
the money was loaned and is irredeema
bly lost, and that desperate efforts are
now being made to secure a successor to
the present treasurer who will take cer.
tificates of deposit instead of good hard
cash when he is inducted into office.
Whether any of their reports are true
or not, the undeniable fact remains
that this republican state house ring is
swindling the school children of Nebraska
outof $18,000 or $20,000 a year interest
money, which they are shoving down in
their own pockets by refusing to invest
the permanent school fund.
But the efforts of Governor Holcomb to
get the state's idle school fund invested
are bearing some fruit, lie has succeeded
by constant fighting in getting the board
of educational lauds and funds to pur
chase during the past few monthscounty
bonds of Ureeley, amounting to $30,000
and an agreement has been extracted
from the board to take the Boone county
issue of $25,000. To the average citizen
this appears likeavery small investment
when over SOOO.UOO of the permanent
school fund lies idle in the treasury but
had it not been for the persistent efforts
of Governor Holcomb the school fund of
the state would not be realizing interest
on even this small sum of $55,000.
Republicans are used to rating the in
come of the treasurer's office at $40,000
per annum but the present treasurer
probably receives only abouthalfof that
amount and therefore he and his party
associates hold the more tightly to the
fund for the education of the children of
the state. It doesn't appear like a busi
ness proposition for the state to pay
$20,000 per annum to a man to take
care of its funds when the other posses
sors of the money of the realm receive an
income from its use.
For an entire year Governor Holcomb
endeavored to get the board of educa
tional lands and funds, consisting of
himself, Treasurer Bartley, Attorney
General Churchill, Land Commissioner
Russell and Secretary of State Piper, to
place the state's funds where they would
realize an income, but without success.
Although the board is supposed to meet
every month it was impossible to get
them together that often. When they
met the governor would receive specious
promises for the early investment of idle
funds and so the matter ran along until
January 15, when the governor opened
the fight in earnest by the introduction of
the following resolution:
Whereas, It is provided by law that
the board of educational lands and funds
shall at their regular meetings make the
necessary orders for the investment of
the permanent school fund in United
States or state securities and registered
county bonds; and
Whereas, As shown by the report of
the treasurer, there is now on hand un
invested a large sum of said permanent
school fund, towit: $611,111.67: and,
Whereas, It has been determined by
the supreme court that state warrants
issued in pursuance of an appropriation
and secured by a levy of taxes for their
payment, are state securities within the
meaning of the law; and,
Whereas, -The state warrants hereto
fore issued from time to time against the
general fund in the state treasury and in
pursuance of an appropriation made by
the last legislature for the payment of
which a levy of taxes has been made and
GOVERNOR HOLCOMB.
which are not being paid when presented
to the state treasury for want of funds
in said general fund, and which draw in
terest at the rate of five per cent, per
annum and are therefore a safe and prof
itable investment for the state perman
ent school fund. Therefore be it
Resolved, That the sum of $250,000.
00 of the permanent school fund of the
state of Nebraska or so much thereof as
may be necessary be and is hereby set
apart from which to purchase outstand
ing warrants drawn upon the general
fund, which wan-rants are registered and
were drawn between the first day of Au
gust and the thirty-first day of December
1896, inclusive, and which are drawn in
pnrRiinncA of an appropriation made by
the last legislature, it being determined
by this board that said warrants so
drawn are secured by the levy of a tax
for their payment and are, therefore,
state securities and the state treasurer is
hereby authorized and instructed to at
once notify the parties in whose name
said warrants are registered of his readi
ness and willingness to pay the face val
ue of said warrant and the accrued in
terest thereon as they may be presented
until said sum set aside is exhausted and
when so paid the warrants shall be held
by the treasurer as an investment of the
permenent school fund and shall be
stamped and signed as provided by law.
Resolved, further, that the further
sum of $300,000.00 of the permanent
school fund of the state or so much there
of as necessary be, and is hereby, set
apart from which to purchase said cur
rent unregistered warrants already
drawn against the general fund under
appropriations made by the last legisla
ture, it being determined by. the board
that such appropriations and the war
rants drawn thereon are secured by the
levy of a tax for their payment and are,
therefore, state securities, and the state
treasurer is hereby authorized and direc
ted to purchase said warrant as they
may be presented at the state treasury
paying therefor their face value and the
accrued interest thereon, if any, and to
stamp, sign and hold the same as an in
vestment of the permanent school fund
as provided by law; and, be it
Resolved, Further, that such treas
urer, a member of this board be and
hereby is empowered to act in its behalf
in determining questions as to thegenuine
ness and ownership of any and all war
rants presented under the foregoing res.
olutions and when he is in doubt he will
refer the matter to the chairmen to be
submitted to the board for its decision.
A deadly silence followed the reading
of the resolution. Then the republican
(Continued on 2d pag.)
GETTING BADLY SCARED.
THE STATE JOURNAL. AS GOOD AS
GIVES UP THE FIGHT.
The old Thing Sends Forth a Heart
Rending Wail of Woe.
The followingeditorial appeared in the
State Journal of June 6th. If any pop
had a lingering doubt that we might
fail in carrying this state at the next
election, he will have none after be reads
this. The State Journal says:
The inevitable consolidation of the
free coiuage democrats with the pops for
the coming campaign in Nebraska
makes it incumbent on the republicans
in their state convention to throw
aside all personal preferances and preju
dices and select the strongest possible
candidates for the emergency. The elec
tion of a legislature by the coalition in
addition to the replacing of Holcomb in
the gubernatorial chair would so far
counterbalance in this state the triumph
of the republican party in the national
canvass that we would expect in vain the
return of good times.
The coalition is a virtual surrender to
to the majority of it, which will be pure
and unadulterated pop. We are there
fore on the eve of the most exoiting and
important campaign that was ever I
fought in this state. The necessity of
putting in the field candidates for state
offices, aud especially a man at the head
of the ticket who can carry the banner
and make the strongest attainable fight
on the stump, whose personal character
and abilities will be pre-eminent, who is
in himself an argument and a vote com
peller, is beyond all question to thought
ful republicans.
Let the republican delegations already
elected and those to be hereafter named
bear in mind thegravity of the situation
and come prepared to sacrifice personal
and local favorites to the good of the
state at large. We have got to put up
the greatest fight of the generation and
there must be no dead timber to weaken
our barricades. We must have men of
power in the fore front of the bettle.
This is not a year in which "anybody
can be elected," and if we lose sight of
that fact we run the risk of losing every
thing. MONEY BUYS MORE THAN EVER.
Disinterested Benevolence of the Capi
talists. :
The manufacturer depends upon the
merchant. What use to . make goods if
a merchant cannot buy at a profit to
the maker? What use for the merchant
to buy if he cannot sell at a profit to
himself? The contagion of the paralysis
passes from the merchant to the manu
facturer. He reduces wages; he cuts
close and pays lesser prices for his raw
material. But as the contraction of the
currency continues prices of all products
go lower and lower; the prices paid for
this year will leave no margin of profit
for the next year. The manufacturer
gets desperate; his factory closes; his
machinery rusts; his plant decays; his
enterprise fails.
Mean while wages decline. The de
mand for labor decreases as enter
prise decreases, and wages decrease
as demand for labor . decreases.
The laborers can not be paid
at the old rates when property declines;
idle laborers can get no work, or must
take any job they can get at any price
that will hold soul and body together.
The mechanic's wife stares starvation
in the face; his children cannot keep up
decent appearance in the public schools,
or find work for their fingers. There are
strikes and lockouts; then come the
tramp of soldiery and menacing steel.
The capitalist, if be is oblivious of this,
sits back in his easy chair and says: "We
must have a big army and a strong gov
ernment;" the days of Jeffersonian dem
ocracy have gone by, and Macaulay's
letter to Randall was a true foreshadow
ing of our future; the old idea that a pres
ident should never fill the chair but twice
belongs to a time of inexperience and ad
olescence. Suicides increase, burglaries
increase, failures increase. Money now
buys more than it ever would before; the
usurer thrives; the demagogue stands
out before the poor man, and with sub
tle flattery for his vanity tells him that
he wants the poor man to have as good
a dollar as the rich man, and the best
money in the world. The poor man
meantime who has few dollars of any
kind and little or no work of any kind,
looks up with a dubious scowl on his
face and marvels much at this expres
sion of disinterested benevolence. But
money is getting dearer and dearer; it
buys more and more; and the self-complacent
capitalist, who is getting richer
and richer on other men's ruin, declares
that times are prosperous, and that the
discontent is all due to the agitation of
the silver question!
A Serious Lack of Ideaa.
Want of confidence is now loudly pro
claimed to be the cause of the disturb
ance by the superficial observers who
witness the panoramas before them, and
who can see plainly that want of confi
dence is an attendant circumstance.
They have mistaken an effect for a cause,
"Restore confidence" is at once the pan
acea prescribed as a sure cure for the
evil. The unthinking aud the crafty are
alike fond of this vngue phrase for it
conceals the lack of ideasrof the one class
and tho subtle designs of the other class.
Want of confidence has existed with all
the monetary panics that ever visited
the earth. "To restore confidence" has
been the desire of every jerson who ever
prescribed for the infirmities of society.
But want of confidence is always an ef
fect before it becomes a canse; and the
want of confidence that comes after every
contraction of the currency is always
the effect of the declining values pro-
duced by that contraction and it can
never be cured while the cause is oper
ative. To restore confidence without re
moving tlh? cause is impossible, and be
who clamors tor confidence while con
traction is undermining the property on
which it is based might as well cry out
against buildings falling down when the
foundations are crumbling beneath them
TO NEBRASKA POPULISTS.
Statement of the Chairman of the State
Committee.
People's Party Headquarters, Lin
colnNeb., June 8, 1896. My attention
has been called to an address sent out
by the Douglas County Populist club, in
which it is set forth that an attempt is
being made to override the action of the
state central committee in the plan of
electing delegates to the national con
vention; that inetead of nine delegates
being chosen by the congressional district
as provided by the call, there will be an
effort to have the fifty-seven delegates k
elected by the state convention at large.
Iam sure that this charge is entirely
without foundation. I have never heard
any talk of such an attempt, except from
a certain quarter of Douglas county.
The action taken by the state central
committee must govern the state con
vention, nine delegates must be selected
from each congressional dfstrict by the
delegates present in the stateconvention
from that district, as provided in the
call. No other course has been suggest
ed to me by any populist and I am sure
it will not be suggested in the state con
vention. The only question that has been talked
of in regard to this matter is this: ' Will
it be necessary lor the state convention
to ratify the choice of the congressional
districts? Whenever approached on this
subject, I have invariably given the
opinion that the question must be de
cided by the . state ' convention itself.
There was a motion introduced in the
state committee that the action of the
congressional districts should4be subject
to the approval of the state convention,
but it was withdrawn and no action was
taken by the state committee on that
phase of the question. This is my recol
lection of the matter, the minutes kept
by the secretary corroborate it, and all
members of the committee with whom I
have talked have the-"stnrie recollection
of it.
As I stated above the place where
this seems to have originated is in a cer
tain faction in Douglas county. What
is the trouble up there? Does someone
expect to be elected from that district
who fears that he cannot receive the in
dorsement of the state convention? It
would almost seem so. I have just been
informed that Mr. Paul Vandervoort
paid the printing for this circular and
the postage for getting it out and
donated bis bill to the club.
It is not hard to see the African in this
woodpile.
The charge that there is an attempt
among populists in the state to send a
delegation to St. Louis which will try to
cut down the platform or nominate other
than a straight candidate for president,
is, I am certain, as unfounded as the
charge concerning the election of dele
gates. I talk every week with populists
from all parts of the state, and in giving
my own opinion, i am giving tne opinion
of nearly every one with whom I have
conversed.
I adjure the populists of this state to
go forward shoulder to shoulder to or
ganize for the great campaign of his fall.
J. A. Edoerton,
Chairman State Central Committee.
The Bine and the Gray.
Brewster, Neb., June 6, '96.
Editor Independent: All fears of a
drouth were dispelled by the soaking
rain which visited this section last night.
Literally, we are in the swim again. The
crop prospect is unusually good.
Jndge ihompson closed the spring
term of district court in this county last
week, clearing up the docket in two days.
Very few cases went over.
Irrigation along the North Loup has
passed the experimental stage and is
now an established success. Several
thousand acres of Blaine county soil will
be watered by ditches by July 1.
Decoration day was appropriately ob
served. A most enjoyable literary pro
gram was carried out under the auspices
of the G. A. R. Peculiar interest at
tached to the occasion by reason of the
preaching of the memorial sermon by the
R'V. Dr. A. B. Cox, who was in the con
federate army duriug the lateunpleasant;
ness. serving on the staff of General A.
S. Johnston at the bloody battle of
Shiloh. The address was favorably com
mented upon by members of the G. A. R.
lie's a Hired Liar.
It is hard to believe that the editor of
the Tribune does not know that the val
ue of all money, of whatever material
composed, depends absolutely upon its
"quantity." That as its quantity is in
creased, other conditions remaining the
same, the value or purchasing power of
the money will diminish. That as the
quantity of the money is diminished,
other things remaining unchanged, its
value or purchasing power will increase.
It is a principle that is denied by no re
spectable authority living or dead, aud
it applies to money made of one mater
ial exactly the same as it does to that
made of another. National Bimetallist.
A Disorganlaer.
The Missouri World appears to be en
deavoring to the best of its ability to
disorganize the populist party and cast
unjust and unfair reflections on the men
who have for years been inthefronfi
fighting its battles. American Crescent.
