The Opelousas courier., 1908-02-29
Weekly Correspondence
From Washington, ID. G..

Washington, D. c., Feb. %
The Democratic members of the
House committe on banking and
Currency have agreed to support
no financial bill except that Of
fered by Rep. John Sharp Will
liams the Democratic leader in
the House. This will serve to
complicate still further the finan-
cial situation in the House, al
though the Republican leaders
still profess thier ability to crowd
through the Aldrich bill. when it
comes over from the Senate.
There are some indications, how
ever, that the Aldrich bill will be
much better measure when it
comes from the Senate than it
was when it came from Mr.. Al
drich's committee. Senator
Johnston of Alabama made
a speech this week in
which he advocated the adoption
of an amendment requiring the
country banks to keep two-thirds
of their legal reserves in their own
vaults, one-half in gold or legal
money, the other half to be the
same, or else in the securities
stipulated in the section | of the
Aldrich bill as the basis for
emergency currency. Mr.. Al
drich, who is anxious to secure
all the Democratic support pos
sible for his bill, has signified his
willingness to accept Senator
Johnston's amendment and thus
a new Senator seems likely to
break all previous records by
getting an amendment he offers
to an important legislative mea-
sure adopted during his first year
in the Senate.
4 Another amendment to the Al
drich bill will receive the support
of numerous Democratic Senators
who are as favorable to it as some
of the Republicans are opposed.
It will provide that only the bonds
of such railroads as have had their
physical value ascertaine6 sand
certified by the Interstate Com
merce Commission shall be ac-
) cepted by the Secretary OF the
Treasury as the basis for emerg-
ency currency. This is a good
! business proposition, for if the
Treasury Department is to accept
f first mortgage bonds as security
for national bank circulation it
ought certainly first to ascertain
the value of the property on which
the mortgages are based. Alto
. gether, the Aldrich bill may not
be such bad measure after all,
after the Senate and House have
both gotten through with it, al
= though It is equally possible that
its author will then have difficulty
in recognizing it.
Rep. Lilley of Connecticut has
preferred charges in the House
( against the Naval Affairs COM
mittee ard has introduced a res
olution providing that a committee
! be saspointed to investigate the
Z character of the influence brought
4 ito bear on this committee in favor
Of submarine boats. When the
, committee reported it's bill to the
! House this week it provided for
the building of eight submarines
land two battleships. The Presi-
: dent and the Secretary of the
) Navy had urged that provision
r. r. be made for four battleships and
= four submarines. Moreover, the
! committee so .worded the provi-
h sion that OILY one company could
q compete for the contractso The
n only proper way to provide fol
+ such vessels is to leave sufficient
q discretion to the Secretary OF tht
IS Navy SO that he can exFend the
money for. the best boats Offered
III all open competition. mir. LII
ley's resolution Was referred tt
~ the committee On Rules, OF which
~ " Speaker Cannon IS the chairman
q and that committee now announ
e ces that it sees no occasion to con
~ duet an investigation. Whateve
= : may be the facts, and the appear
~ ances are bad, this attitude on tn
- = part Of the Rules committee can
u not but bring diseredit on the Re
publicans and it is surprising tha
the Speaker and other Hous
les leaders are not sufficiently goo
ess politicians to appreciate the fact
oz unless of course they appreciat
1T, that an investigation would brln
to light facts even more dlscredl1
able than the suspicion.
re- - -------- :. = ~