The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-12-30
DID NOT AID SPECULATORS Shaw Replies to Nash
 vile Man. HE EXPLAINS HIS ACTIONS Declares Money Was Needed for
 Legitimate Purposes. Withdrew It To Prevent Stock Gamb- flag and Released It When Na-
 tion Really Needed Coin
 For Business.

Washington, Dec. 29--In letter to a
 correspondent residing in Nashville, Tenn, Secretary Shaw repudiates the l suggestion that the United States
 Treasury ever has come to the relief | of stock gamblers
 The correspondent in question, whose name is withheld. insists that such re- lief has been given gamblers and money | sharks, the real cause of high money in New York" and inquiries how long will the practice continue. The corr respondence was, made public at the i Treasury Department today. The let ter to the Secretary reads:
 Pardon this letter. hope 1t will receive due consideration if not an answer. I have often noticed the re- lief given the stock gamblers in New | Yorq by the government. I do not see what right the government has to do this How much longer will the Treasury come to the relief Of gamblers l and money sharks, the real cause of 1 high money in New York?
 You know 1t is like this: The big gamblers sell stocks. call loans. make tight money stocks so down, suckers ! lose, big game make their millions. I am simply common every day man and may be wrong in my conclusions. but I think mot. I gee by the papers they are after you again. Some peo- pie are hard to please
 sTo which the Secretary made the foI> | lowing reply:
 "Your letter of December 23rd Is re- ceived and note your sentiments with respects to stock gamblers. four let- ter is so courteous, and voices SO Tac- curately the view of many well-lnten- tioned people, that am constrained to answer 1t somewhat at length
 You seem to proceed upon the theory I as- 4a rsr rf n eptaY r is caused solely by stock gambling. In this you are in error. Some people gamble in stocks. some in cotton, others in wheat, corn, pork or lard, and some in land. When times are good, people will speculate in anything and every thing that possesses a market value
 The proportion of speculation as
 compared with necessary and leEitt- mate business is very small. however, than in Nashville, Tenn, where you re-
 side, or in Denison, Iowa, where live.
 The best estimates I can get place the amount of speculative transactions in New York City at from 3 1-2 to 5 per cent of the aggregate.
 Never Relieved Gamblers.
 '@rhe 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 every other market. but 1t is equally harmful to those who gamble on the bear side of the respec- tive markets. Both bulls and bears importune the Secretary of the Treas ury, but the nature of the advice usu- ally indicates the side of the market of which they are operating. Naturally these communications have no influence whatever. The real business situation is the sole consideration.
 eff you will stop to consider you will realize that more money is peeded when the crops are being marketed, when factories are filling their ware houses with cotton and wool, hemp, sisal, lumber and every other material than during the summer, when the crops are going and when business men are enjoying their vacations.
 "There are over 15,000 banks in the United States doing commercial busi- ness. These are independent one of the other, and each ist trying to make dividends. Few of them in midsummer make ample provision for the fall
 They time the loans they make to meet their obligations and take their chances. During the dull season of 1908 the Secretary of the Treasury withdrew $60.0O0.O00 of the peoples money and locked 1t up. This would have been a crime if he were not will ing to release it now. when it is need ed. By appropriate use of the money in the vaults of the treasury, l have facilitated the importation of $l00.OOO,- GOO of gold within the last nine months and have released over S50,0O0,OO0 more.
 "rhis was done, as I say, for the purpose of aiding the legitimate busi- ness, that it has helped the bull side of the market as much as 1t hurt the bear side I care as little for either of these considerations as do you but am intensely interested in the business interests of the country.
 '.Monev is scarce. Some of the very hest business houses in the United States with international credit are now paying ' per cent interest for money with which to do their busi- ness. If money could be secured any where beneath the sky for less they would loan and borrow 1t. It Is for the relief of the business that the treasury has restored to the channels of trade the money which 1t withdrew when the people had no use for it ex- eept for purposes of speculation. was then wanted for speculation and withdrew it. It is now needed for bus iness and I restore it. The last $1O,- O0O,0O0 deposit went almost exclusive lv to the cotton producing States. and the exceptions went to cotton puylhg cities"