Middletown transcript., 1906-09-15
WASHINGTON LETTER

CECRETARY Shaw this week admins
is - tered jolt of the stock market. H
e Issued notice TO all the depository bank
OF the country that they would not be al
: lowed to loan Government funds on call
> This is rather serious pronouncemen
! coming from such source and such 1
time. As matter of fact there has beeE
campaign started for q great bul
0 market in New York. Secretary Shaw
recently made market, and q profitable
{ market too, for bis Panama Canal bonds,
(! by calling in aud redistributing large
F, amount of money in the depository
bank. Now that the bull campaign is
on, Wall St., is feeling the need Of ready
/ funds and call money for speculative pur.
poses has reached an exhorbitant figure,
tempting many of the depository banks
to make use of the money in their posses
sion and reap the large interest that it
now commands. Secretary Shaw's call
i down On ttIe banks was as follows Il
am advised that many banks scattered
through the country are loaning their
surplus funds through brokers and others
in New York on call at high rates of in
terest. Money loaned on call is well
nigh universally used for speculative pur-
poses. recognize the right of any in
! diyiduai to speculate in stocks and the
/ legal right Of any bank to loan money at
appropriate rates Of interest at home or
abroad on ample security even with the
knowledge that it is being used for spec
ulatiye purposes. | am not willing,
however, that Government money shall
be entioed away from the locality where
it has been deposited to be used in this
way. Public deposits are made n aid
of legitimate business as distinguished
from the speculation whatever its nature.
If you have more money than Jour
community can appropriately absorb,
please return it to the treasury for il can
be promptly placed where it will do
much good" This announcement had q
severe effect on the maket and call money
promptly fell to per cent. This will be
used by many interests as further argu-
ment in favor of something like scien-
tifc system of currency for this Govern
ment. Itisnot likely that We will ever ac-
quire the English systen with its central
Government Bank, but il is generally ad.
mitted that the present system of helping
the money market depends entirely upon
the personal judgement and goodwill OF
the Secretary OF Treasurer and is not q |
system that can be relied ON in crisis.
The century old question Of Newfound-
land fishing rights has come up again
18th the usual promise that it is going to
lie settled once for all. There has been
ulore trouble tllan usual in the past sea-
son over the capture of American fishing
vessels whose status had to be finally set
tied by correspondence between the State
Department and the British Foreign0 0Aice.
Now the Fish Commission his appointed
A. B. Alexander Us special commissioner
and has placed the tug Potomac at his dis.
posal for trip TO Newfoundland where
he will investigate the problem on
the spot. Mt. iAlexander will not
start until the return of Secretary Root
from his South American trip, for the
Secretary will have to be put in touch
with good many phases of the situation
in order to ultimately carry on his nego-
tiations with Great Britain. There might
be more expectation Of q successful out
come to the negotiations il it were not for
far tlis fact that Secretary Root
is probably the most cordially hated
American official when it comes to any
dealing involving Canada and its out
lying provinces. The Canadian people
have never forgotten or forgiven his part
in settling the Alaskan boundary dispute
in London, and they will be exceedingly |
shy OF giving their assent to any new
treaty in which he has hand. Natur-
ally the British Governments does not want d
to anger Canada any more than necessary,
and as they will not be satisfied with new
treaty, that falls short ofgiving everything
toNswfouudIand and nothing to the Unit
ed States, the outlook for an amicable set
tlement is not much brighter than it was
3 hundred years ago.
+.*
The passage Of the new rate law has
made considerable work for the Inter-
state Commerce Commission. 1t will !.
make more work before all the constitu-
tional details of the new law are settled by !
the courts. There will be a continual
series Of hearings lasting well into the :
spring before the various transportation
lines, pipe lines and express companies :
all have even had their first innings. :
0ne Of the most curious cases that has
vet developed was complaint this week
Iron one Eugene Walker, Of Media, Pa, !.
who stated that he had been blacklisted :.
by the B. &. o. 3. r. because of patron !.
zing trolley line. It has been expected !.
that there would be some complaint in !.
Ibis direction ever since the interurban !.
trolley line became such serious competi- !, !
iors for the short haul passenger traffic : !,
IN the railroads. Tie complainant al !
eges that he and others patronized : :
,rolley line paralleling the B. & o., and : :
is punishment the railroad induced the
United States Express Company to with
iraw certain package privileges they had !,
previously enjoyed. The Interstate Come ! !,
nerce Commission will set hearing for ) !,
he ease. but they say that there is little : !.
Iedress for the complainants, except in :,
he issuance Of an order for the express
to treat all their patrons alike.
win Sell Addick's Farms
United States Marshal William r. Finn VI
Tuesday advertised for sale the two yalu- N
.ble farms Of John Edward Addicks, in as