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Money, Bank Credit, and Economic Cycles - The Ludwig von Mises ...

Money, Bank Credit, and Economic Cycles - The Ludwig von Mises ...

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Historical Violations of the Legal PrinciplesGoverning the Monetary Irregular-Deposit Contract 87He believes the banker will probably guard the money hedeposits <strong>and</strong> not do business with it, when this cannot beexpected of any of these profiteers. On the contrary, thebanker will soon invest the deposit for profit <strong>and</strong> try to earnmoney with it. How could bankers who pay 7 <strong>and</strong> 10 percentinterest to those who provide them with money to dobusiness with possibly refrain from using deposits? Even ifit had been clearly demonstrated that you do not sin (whichis not the case, quite the opposite), the moneylender verycertainly sins when he does business with your money <strong>and</strong>he definitely uses your money to steal the property of yourneighbors. 82Saravia de la Calle’s doctrine is very coherent, inasmuchas the self-interested use (via the granting of loans) of moneyplaced on dem<strong>and</strong> deposit with bankers is illegitimate <strong>and</strong>implies a grave sin. This doctrine coincides with the one originallyestablished by the classical authors of Roman law, adoctrine which derives naturally from the very essence, purpose,<strong>and</strong> legal nature of the monetary irregular-deposit contract,which we studied in chapter 1.Saravia de la Calle also vividly describes the disproportionateprofits bankers obtain through their illegitimate practiceof appropriating deposits instead of being satisfied withthe more modest earnings they would receive for the simplecustody or safekeeping of deposits. His explanation is quitedescriptive:If you receive a wage, it should be moderate <strong>and</strong> adequatefor your support, not the excessive loot with which youbuild superb houses, buy lavish estates, pay servants <strong>and</strong>provide extravagant luxuries for your families, <strong>and</strong> you givegreat feasts <strong>and</strong> dress so splendidly, especially when youwere poor before you began your dealings, <strong>and</strong> you lefthumble trades. 83In addition, Saravia de la Calle explains that bankers arequite prone to bankruptcy, <strong>and</strong> he even carries out a cursory82 Ibid.83 Ibid., p. 186.

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