The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1901-07-22
PaIliatives for Panics.

ANICS, like mumps and
- measles seem to Re an un-
Il avodable evil. liable to hap
pen when least expected
Though commonly associated with bad
tircs, they have been known to hap
pen in the best of good times. as, for
instance, last May, when a kink in
speculation on wall street convulsed
that financial center and, but for the
timely efforts of a group of wealthy
bankers, who, instead of calling In
loans, announced their readiness to
make additional loans of $40 O000 900
or more, might have Knocked down
many banking, brokerage and CONNER
cial firms. TO be sure, Blue Thurs
day" hurt only few: prosperity was
too widespread to be seriously affected
by it. But il the tide of prosperity
had been ebb instead of flood, who
knows how widely the mischief might
have spread?
The question is. therefore, pertinent:
Has everything been done by the law
makers that can safely he done with
a view to erecting safeguards around
legitimate business enterprise for its
protection against sudden and gener-
ally insensate speculative flurries?
Some things of large value have been
done. Imitation has been defeated at
the polls and by the march of events.
The gold standard has been clinched.
And some elasticity has been impaired
to he
authorization of small banks and the
Increase of the circulation privilege
But is there not great need of further
legislation calculated to add to our
currency systems responsiveness to
these times Of ftful need?
The president of the Pennsylvania
Bankers association, James II. Will
lock- in his recent address at the Erie
convention. argued effectively in the
affirmative; and quoted the sugges-
ton by a brother banker of the gen.
eral lines of an act which would, it is
believed. prove helpful in this connec-
ton. He proposed that the comptrol-
Ter of the currency keep at all times a
sufficient supply of bank notes of a
special kind for emergency. purposes
only, these notes to he complete, eX-
cent that blanks be left open for the
corporate names of the bank to which
they are issued, which name is to be
inserted at the government printing
Office on short notice. The reason for
this is apparent when you remember
that what a banker needs most during
a panic is currency. If he waited to
have it printed, the trouble would all
be over by the time he received it.
This gentleman proposes that any ma
tonal bank be permitted to deposit
any of the issues of the United States
bonds as security and receive a like
amount of the emergency notes, pro-
vided the amount of the same shall
not exceed the capital of the said bank
in addition to the regular issue of cir
culating notes to which he is entitled
under the present law. To guard
against a bank taking out this cur
rency at other times than in an emer-
Gcncy. it Is proposed to levy tax for
the first three months it is outstand-
ing at the rate of per cent. per an
mum and l per cent. additional per
month for each month thereafter. This
would insure its prompt withdrawal.
In cities where there are clearing
houses this form of emergency cirCu-
lation would probably not he needed
or at least very infrequently. But
it would have life-saving properties
for small independent banks out of the
range of clearing house benefits. 4
bill embodying this idea is to present.
ed to the next congress. 1t will merit
thoughtful consideration.
The Wilkes Barre Daily News is