, 1840-10-31
SUBSTANCE Ant OUTLINE OF
SENATOR BENTON'S SPEECH.

IN THE DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION AT JEFFEa
SON CITY. on THURSDAY. OCT. 8, 1910.
COrcluieR.
The last seven wears are the best. nntwith-
standing the greatest suspensions and panics.
which the country ever saw. Compare
them to the previous seven. commencing in
1919 and coming into Mr.. Adlms' Admins
~tration. and when the bank of the United
States was in full operation; Compare these
periods together. and see the difference
Compare the year 1920. when | was first
elected 10 Congress. and when the Bank Of
the U. States was four years Old. with the
year 1910. when | stand here addressing Won
after 90 wears service. and when the blnk
has been four years dead. and count mp the
difference. Compare the prices of produce.
property. labor; compare the condition Of
the people. the state nf their towns and cities.
and the state of the country. Compare ali
these things. and proclaim the result. ] see
many here who can remember things twenty
wears ago: who can remember tobacco, bring
ing It's owner in debt when shipped to New
Orleans: pork brinGing Sl.25 per hundred:
beef hrin JinT S1.50; wheat and corn hardly
worth carrying to market. hemp no price.
cows and calves six dollars; Il fine voung
horse for a merchant to ride 10 Philadelphia.
$50: labor So 4 month. and h1ri begging and
low bowifg To get employment ut that: land
in the country and lots in towns considered
the poorest property n man could own; not
a particle Of gold tn be seen. very little silver
the banks shut m. the actual currency 4 med
IeT and !arraro If every variety of drprecia-
ted paper: the national bank in a state of
~oIIo..o ,nl ,,I,- H.. ,l,-o e., H. g.. J,,-
by ~infusions of public dppoSi.cs. Such was
the state OF things in 1920. under a four
years reign ola national bank. and long after.
To those who cannot remember. let them
enquire. There are enough To answer-e-
nnugh % tell what the cnndiri"n of the cum
try was! Nv friend ;,"rr (p in'inr ~ FEEDER
ic Dent ESQ. )one of v"nr Vice Pr"Si Tents.
still a good democrat. thnuLh once 4 MR.
chant. can tell vnu what was the cnnirInn
of St. LnniS. rs well as al the country. IN
the wear 1920. and for years thereafter when
we had every thing the opposite party now
clamor for-when their ~favoriie men were in
power. and a national hank in existence.
The times are good except in one particu-
Ian, and that is the fruit of vicious banking.
headed bv the bank of the United States: |
speak of the currency, and the disordered state
into which it has boen thrown by two
suspensions in three years. The first sus-
pension was in 1887; IT was. so far as New
York and some others were concerned. tie
effect of the dcspnSitr act of 1886. which
ordered thirty six millions of public money
to be refunded and distributed bv Them in one
year; s" far rs PHILADELPHIA was cnnrer ed.
and some others. il was the effect of p"lIti
cal designs and their own pecunIarv condi-
ton: SO far as the mass of he banks WAS
concerned. they followed the lead of those
in the great commercial titles. The control
ling power of the suspension WIS in Phlla-
delphia, and n political change in the gov.
eminent was the great object of its policy.
1t made the suspensions; it contriyed, plotted
and produced it. 1t took place in Nav,
1897, three months before. namely. in Feb
ruary of the same year. / invited Mr.. Van
Buren,, then President elect of the United
States and President of the Senate; | invited
him into the Finance Committeeman of the
Senate, and there told him that the banks
were going to suspend. | knew that the
New York banks would be driven to it bv
the drposite act; that the United States
bank would do II from policy; and that the
country banks would all follow suite, some
for political effect, ZONE on account of their
own situation. ! told the President-elect,
three months before it bursted, of the lower
ing storm which was TO salute his nascent
administration. told him of it; and he re-
members well what | said, and since the e.
vent, he often repeats what | told him.
All this was in February. The month of
May came and with it the universal suspen-
sion. This SUSPENSION was intended by its
political contrivers to last till the presiden-
tial election of 1910; and they did their best
to make it last, but it was impossible. The