Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1906-12-30
why THE TREASURY
. BELIEVED THE MARKET
SecPslaPy Shaw Writes Interesting
Letter 10 Nashville Man Of
|nqulrlng Turn Of Mind.
NOT DONE FOR IHt SPECTATORS
The Pleas of the Bulls and Bears
Have No Weight at the Treasury
Department. and the Real Business
Situation is the Sole Considers.
tion. ~
(By Assoclated press.l }

WASHINGTON, ID. c., Dec. 2g-fn
Il letter to Il correspondent residing
IN Nashville, Tenn. Secretary Shaw
repudiates the suggestion that the
United States Treasury ever has come
TO the relief of stock gamblers The
correspondent In question:, whose
name Is withheld, states that such
relief has been given gamblers and
money sharks, "the real cause OF high
money In New York" and asks how
long Will the practice continmo. to
which the Secretary made the follow.
Ing reply: "Your letter of December
%, is received, and l note your senti.
ments with respect to stock gambling.
Your letter is so courteous and voices
so accurately the view of many well
intentioned people. that / am con.
strained to answer 1t somewhat at
length.
"Scn seem 10 proceed upon the
theory TINT the existing money strin.
gency is caused solely by stock gamb.
ling. In this you are in error. Some
people gamble In stocks, some in cot.
ton. others in wheat. corn, pork or
lard. and some in land. When times
are good people will speculate in any
thing and everything that possesses a
market value. The proportion of spec
ulation as compared with necessary
and legitimate business is very small.
however, and Is probably no larger
In New York city than in Nashville,
Tenn. where you reside, or In DENT.
son. Iowa, where live.
The best estimate can get places
the amount of speculative transactions
In New York city at from 9 1-2 to
S per cent. aggregate. The treasury
has never come to the relief of stock
gamblers and probably never
will, though the relief which the
treasury grants frequently aids those
who gamble on the bull side of the
stock market and the bull side of, the
wheat market, the cotton market, the
corn market, and many other markets
and is equally harmful to those who
gamble on the bear side of these re.
spective markets.
Both bulls and bears importuno
the treasury. but the nature of advice
usually indicates the side of the
market on which they are operating.
Naturally these communications have
no Influence whatever. The real bus
mess situation Is the sole considera-
/ ton. During the dull season of 1906
the Secretary of the Treasury with
drew sixty millions of the peoples
money and locked it up. This would
have been a crime If he were not
willing to release 1t now when It is
needed BY the use of the money of
the treasury | have facilitated the i'm.
portation of a hundred millions of
gold within the last nine months, and
have released, or arranged for the re-
lease of fifty millions more.
This was done. as l say, for the
purpose of aiding legitimate business,
though 1t has helped the bulls side
of the market as much as 1t has harm
cd the bear side. care AS little for
either of these considerations. as do
you, but I am intensely interested in
the business interests of the coun.
try.
ut is for the relief Of business that
the treasury has restored to the chan
nels of trade the money which 1t
Withdrew when the people had no use
for 1t except for purposes OF specula-
ton. 1t was then wanted for specula-
ton and withdrew it. 1t is now need
cd for business and restore 1t. The
last S10,000,000 deposit went almost
exclusively to the cotton producing
state. aud the exceptions went to cot.
ton buying cities"