Mesogen
12-08-2008, 08:02 AM
The other day there was a thread about misquotes from Lincoln.
So today I got an article from snopes.com saying that a certain quote regularly attributed to Jefferson cannot actually be attributed to him.
http://www.snopes.com/quotes/jefferson/banks.asp
"If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their money, first by inflation and then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around them, will deprive the people of their property until their children will wake up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered." Thomas Jefferson, Letter 1802 to Secretary of the Treasury, Albert Gallatin
The first time I saw the quote, I was doubtful as well because of the use of the word "corporations." I'm not sure that this was a common word back then, but I don't really know.
Anyway, the end of this snopes entry is kind of off the mark, too. They say that other quotes were "antithetical" to the notion that there should be no central bank, but that's not the case.
But while this is going on, another measure should be pressed, to recover ultimately our fight to the circulation. The States should be applied to, to transfer the right of issuing circulating paper to Congress exclusively, in perpetuum, if possible, but during the war at least, with a saving of charter rights. I believe that every State west and South of Connecticut river, except Delaware, would immediately do it; and the others would follow in time. Congress would, of course, begin by obliging unchartered banks to wind up their affairs within a short time, and the others as their charters expired, forbidding the subsequent circulation of their paper.
The letter (linked to) is actually against fiat paper currency issued by unchartered banks and for control of currency by Congress, as prescribed in the Constitution. It's actually the exact same sentiment expressed by the above disputed quote.
But, anyway, does anyone know if the disputed quote above is actually from Jefferson or not?
So today I got an article from snopes.com saying that a certain quote regularly attributed to Jefferson cannot actually be attributed to him.
http://www.snopes.com/quotes/jefferson/banks.asp
"If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their money, first by inflation and then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around them, will deprive the people of their property until their children will wake up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered." Thomas Jefferson, Letter 1802 to Secretary of the Treasury, Albert Gallatin
The first time I saw the quote, I was doubtful as well because of the use of the word "corporations." I'm not sure that this was a common word back then, but I don't really know.
Anyway, the end of this snopes entry is kind of off the mark, too. They say that other quotes were "antithetical" to the notion that there should be no central bank, but that's not the case.
But while this is going on, another measure should be pressed, to recover ultimately our fight to the circulation. The States should be applied to, to transfer the right of issuing circulating paper to Congress exclusively, in perpetuum, if possible, but during the war at least, with a saving of charter rights. I believe that every State west and South of Connecticut river, except Delaware, would immediately do it; and the others would follow in time. Congress would, of course, begin by obliging unchartered banks to wind up their affairs within a short time, and the others as their charters expired, forbidding the subsequent circulation of their paper.
The letter (linked to) is actually against fiat paper currency issued by unchartered banks and for control of currency by Congress, as prescribed in the Constitution. It's actually the exact same sentiment expressed by the above disputed quote.
But, anyway, does anyone know if the disputed quote above is actually from Jefferson or not?