Evening star., 1907-11-05
SITUATION Of THE
TREASURY RESERVE
CorteIyou's Conference With
Mr.. Nelson Last Night.
MONEY TO MOVE CROPS
Secretary Can Only Help to Extent
of 100000.
DEPOSITS WITH THE BANKS
Must Take Out More Circulation.
Balance Very Low Now-Pres-
ident to Rewrite Part Of 4
Message. $
Secretary Can Only Help to Extent
of 100000.
DEPOSITS WITH THE BANKS

| Election day being a holiday in New
| York gave Secretary Cortelyou an op-
portunity to go to his Long Island
home, Hampstead. to cast his Tote to-
day. He left with President Roosevelt
at 1870 o'clock last night. They will
/ return together today after casting
| their votes.
The holiday in New York business
circles and the absence of Secretary
Cortelyou gave the Treasury officials
chance to ease up little under the
| strain they have been under FOR ten
days. Every department of the Treas
| ury connected with government depos.
Its or circulation of national banks has
| been under tremendous pressure. and
will continue that way until the banks
| that are increasing their circulation or
receiving deposits arrange their Sc
| curity satisfactorily.
Mr.. CorteIyou had a long conference
at the White House last night with Sena-
| tor Nelson of Minnesota and delega-
ton of ST. Paul and Minneapolis bank
ers, who came here to appeal to Presi-
| dent Roosevelt for aid in moving the
| grain crops of the northwest. The Presi-
| dent had previously received kilograms
| from prominent men of the northwest
| urging that $10OOo,000 of government
| money be deposited with St Paul and
Minneapolis banks to help start the
movement of grain. Nothing authorita-
| tive as to the results Of the conference
was given out except that Secre ary Cor
| telyou would extend help and do what
| he could. Todlys information that
! the help VIII consist Of about S2o0O,O0O
! of deposits with st. Paul and Minneapolis
| banks and insistence that the northwest
| banks take out more circulation.
Depends on a Surplus. -
At the close of business in the depart
ment yesterday afternoon the working
balance of the Treasury had been re-
dueed to S12 go, ,000 and with S200000O
more going out, the aggregate will be
! still more reduced. Mr.. Cortelyou Is un-
derstood to he depending upon the pres
ent month showing a surplus before Its
close, thereby adding to the work ng oal-
ance The first part of the month In
variably shows expenditures in excess OF
receipts, which drains the cash in the
working balance account. AS the month
grows older the receipts usually overtake
| the expenditures and leave surplus.
| Without this expectation Mr.. Cortelyou
would hardly put out money in any guam
| tity
| While the working balance has been
| depleted, the Secretary has, as heretofore
| stated In The Star. been reducing the
| balances of disbursing officers who have
| always been credited with money far In
excess of their actual needs, sometimes
| having enough 10 run lleH HNe VI OLA
months These balances have already
| been reduced about S3.OO0.O00 in the last
| week, and probably S1O,Oo0,oC0 or SS2,OOo,'
COO more can be secured in that manner,
this to be available in event of emergency.
President to Rewrite Message.
The financial world has taken with kind
ness to the information, said to have been
quietly impaired by Secretary Root, that
the President will completely rewrite his
| recommendations to Congress on imam
cial and kindred subjects The President
completed his message at Oyster Bay be-
| fore he left there in September, and did
| not expect to make any changes in H. he
! is confronted with situation that de-
mands painstaking thought on his part.
| The parts of the message to be rewritten
| are possibly und ccided by the President
| himself. 1t is presumed that in view OF
| the universally admitted scare ty of cur
rency in all parts of the country the Pres
ident will devote especial attention to rec
omme endations for currency reform. He
has never dwelt with particu ar emphasis
on this in any of his annual messages. but
he now sees that something must be done
before another stringency comes around.
National bank circulation Is now limited
to government bonds. Whether ii desires
| or not. the country must always maintain
a national debt. so that national banks
may have a basis for circulation. unless
or some other means of permitting the
banks to greatly expand their circulation
in times of need, retiring II in dull sea-
sons.
Inc President must also consider what
effect his utterances on corporation Ques-
tionS will have when laid before Inc
country early in December. So far as
could be learned his utterances these
questions were not trimmed down in the
least he penned them late in Septem-
ber and as expressed in his speeches on
his southern tour. repetition of his
views in December, expressed with the
usual strength shown by him, is regarded
by hundreds of men in business circles
exceedingly dangerous. At the same time
the President feels that he must avoid
taking the back track. as he sometimes
phrases 1t.
Visit of Steel Magnates.
The tip as to rewriting, the message fol-
lowed soon after the visit yesterday
morning of Messrs. Gary and Frick of the
United States Steel Corporation. when
they talked nearly two hours with the
President on conditions in New York.
The real object of their visit has not yet
leaked out but one purpose was unques-
tionably to inform the President to
the delicacy of the situation in New York.
Reports from Wv York carry the idea
that the steel trust has taken over the
Tennessee Coal and Iron Company, and
whether the President was likely TO order
proceedings against 1t for violation of the
Sherman antitrust laws. The Tennessee
concern has been an independent one and
the largest competitor of the great steel
trust. To pass into the hands of the trust
now would be to remove that much COM
petition. 1t is considered improba BILE that
such a subject would have been broa ched
to the Pres dent, he could not fairly
have made any promises in advance of an
investigation as to the facts and consul
tation with his Attorney General.
Warehouse Certificates
Marion Butler. former populist senator
from North Carolina. suggests that the
government should establish bonded ware
houses for the grain and cotton crops of
the country. ard issue warehouse receipts
upon products deposited therein the re-
ceipts to be accepted as currency. He
thinks this would automatically regulate
the requirements Of money in d crop-mov-