New Iberia enterprise. (New Iberia, La.) 1885-1902, 1900-02-10
THF POWER OF THE NATIONAL
BANKS.

Extract from Speech of Sedator Teller
in T. s. Senate
We have seen something of tn,
power of the national banks. Why
Mr.. President. within short tim
we have seen one Of the great banks
through its vice-president, appeal
ing to the Secretary of the Treasur,
to deposit large sums of the Gov
ernment moneys in its Golfers upoI
the theory that it or its directors
had rendered valuable service dur
ing the last campaign to the politi
cal party in power. Yon have not
forgotten, sir, | think, the letter sent
by Mr.. Hepburn to the Secretary OF
the Treasury. have it here, and SC
that no one may say | misrepresent
it, am going to read it. 1t ought to
have blistered the hands of the
Secretary of the Treasury when he
received it because he retained it
without rebuke to the man who
wrote it-he a man who himself
had held a high position in this
country as financial officer in con
nection with the Treasury. Finan-
cial favors to be extended to ma
tional banks because they have ex-
tended favors to political organ
ization! | will read the letter,
which is as follows:
The National City Bank of New York,
New York, June 5, 1897.
My Dear Mr. Gage: The National
City Bank of this city, of which |
recently became vice president
through the consolidation of the
business of the Third National with
it is one of the banks designated as
a United States depository, and |
write to request that in any changes
which may be made under the Ad-
ministration we may not be dis
turbed in this respect. We should
like to remain a United States
depository, as at present. Of
course, the bank is very strong,
and if you will take the pains to
look at our list of directors You
will see that we also have very
great political claims in view of
what was done during the canvass
last year.
Yours, very truly,
A. B. HEPBURN.
Hon. LYMAN J. GAGE,
U. s. Treasury, Washington, d. c.
Mr.. President, l do not read that
letter with any feeling of pleasure.
| am not one of those who would
ever willingly and with satisfaction
speak ilfsof thoroa in a,tthority
like to believe that the American
people and the American officials
are honest | like to believe that
they pursue proper methods. But
here is a letter which ought to have
gone back to the man who wrote it
with a blistering reply from the
Secretary of the Treasury; but it
did not. 1t is put upon the files of
the Department. Why' Because
subsequent events indicate very
strongly that the Secretary of the
Treasury intended to comply with
that request, and to comply with
it as a reward for services rendered
in a political campaign.
Mr.. President, l have not the
language in which to express, and
l shall not trust myself to try to
express, what / think and feel about
such transaction as that; but
when l see bank presidents and
Secretaries of the Treasury acting,
not in the interests Of the American
people, but in the way of reward
for what some man has done politi-
cally, do not want these banks to
get any greater power in this coun-
try than they have now; ] do not
want to see the time when they
shall say, as they may, "We will
make money dear in this country"
or "We will make it cheap" Mr..
President, we often hear of the
high sense of honor which is said
to exist among banking men, but
| have no doubt the man who wrote
that letter is as much respected and
honored as any other man in the
banking circles of New York, for
what he did the rest Of them are
doing-they are getting their re-
ward for their support of the poll
teal organization now in power.
No, sir, the American people do
not want their financial affairs
mixed up with politics. They do
not want these banks to be able,
when an election is coming on, to