The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-01-08
MONDAY. JANUARY s, 1900.
The Hank Credit single standard.

The Hank Credit Single Standard.
The currency fight in the Senate will now
be continuous until conclusion has been
reached in that body. What may happen,
afterward. need not presently concern us.
To all intents snd purposes. il is probable
that the battle of the great consolidated
trust, in whose behalf and payment for past
services the Administration is pressing the
Senate Finance Committees Currency
measure. will be fought out and won or lost
where it is now In progress What the re-
suit may be IL is yet too early TO predict.
But 1t is certain that, If the enormity and
the inevitably disastrous consequences OF
the conspiracy can be intelligibly and ede
quately explained to the country in time.
1t will fail of success, in part at any rate
and the Administration will be forced TO
accept an amendment. the advantages Of
which the people can readily understand
and which, il adopted, viii rob the present
ponents hope TO secure through its means.
The position of the money trust, in de-
manding the surrender by the Government
of its money issuing function. ana the es-
tablishment of a norninally single gold but
in reality a bankers credit standard, is
not as strong as it might be- 1t certainly
is not as strong as i. was before the
Standard Oil Bank and New York Custom
House scandals shed a sudden and baleful
light upon the currency question. The
Administration realizes this, and we shall
probably see thSt Il viii try to neutralize
the effect of the exposures by making a
scapegoat of Lyman J. Gage. But that will
do little good. The most important service
The Secretary has ever rendered the public
has been in presenting, in his recent acts.
unwilling but convincing evidence that
however improper, Illegal, or vicious they
may be regarded, they have not been his
own-except as far as his public agency
may make them se-but in reality the acts
OF his principal, the Administration, which
in turn seems to be the creature of the
great money combine whose organized ex-
istence, long suspected. has been made
manifest within the past two weeks
1t is TO be observed with satisfaction that
the bank credit currency scheme of this
financial trust Of trusts is SO fragrant in its
injustice and Sc oppressive and criminal
in its design and tendency that ii is rep
rehended and opposed even by leading ex-
ponents Of Republican and gold sentiment
For example. two features OF the Senate
Finance Committees Currency bill are
strongly antsgonized by no less party and
monometallist authority than the New
York Sun" which vigorously objects TO
the gold storage plan and to the refunding
scheme OF the measure. The sun" says:
''The provision for the receipt Of gold on
storage by the Treasury for private citizens. Is
altogether indeicnsblc, and the creation Of a
thirty year public debt in order TO give the ns-
tional banks annual sfsidy Of one and one-lIalf
per cent for exercising the Government function
OF issuing paper money, cannot be too strongly
condemned"
In defending the gold storage PROPOSE
ton Senator Aldrich declares that the is
sue OF certificates against the gold coin
deposited will give certain active none
tary use TO the large and rapidly increas-
ing amount OF gold in the country" The
Rhode Island Senator may think that he
and his colleagues in the movement can
convince the country that such would oe
the result, but he and they are too well
trained in monetary science, and too well
informed as to the real objects OF the bill.
to believe anything of the kind The gold
storage provision is necessary to complete
the control OF the national banks over all
the money OF the United States. They
would accumulate and deposit gold, and
hoard the certificates, in order 10 make the
only money of redemption scarce and dear.
They would food the country with their
credit paper when II suited their purposes
and withdraw Ii whenever they got ready
10 create panic and effect general
foreclosure upon all property. There would
be but a single legal standard, and the peo-
pie who need any gold with which 10 lay
debts or taxes would have TO hire II from
the national-hank gold dealers. who would
soon have il all were the Senate Currency
measure to become law in its present
shape The New York Sun" is equally
severe on the refunding provision, to which
Il thus refers:
.'T1e creation Of nine hundred million dol
lsn ii two per cent thirty-year Govern
ment bonds. which the bill conicmpla,es,
for the purposs Of enabling the national
banks TO issue their circulating notes at q
smaller cosi than at present. ia also vicious in
principle. The Government is TO pay two per cent
per anIiun 10 the hanks on the bends they deposit
IS security for the payment OF their notes and
tsie back only one-islf per cent in tho shape of
taxes The Botes issued On the security OF the
bonds The nation Is thus to become responsible