Bisbee daily review., 1908-03-15
The Worst Banking
 System in the World

their own vaults are in gold. Their business world goes on muc as usual. Ours would be in constant danger oil collapse.
 Men have railed against gold as if it had received some adventitious ad- vantage over other articles. Not so; gold has made itself the standard of value for the same reason that the North Star is made the North Star North Star is made the North Star 1t is the nearest star to the true north around which the solar system re wolves. It wanders less from, and remains nearer to, the center than any other object. It changes it's po- sition less. To object to gold as the standard of value, therefore, is as if we were to refuse to call the star nearest of all stars to the true north, the North Star. Man found that gold possessed many advantages as a met al and was the one that fluctuated least in value; therefore it's merits have made 1t the standard of value. That is all. If another metal appears that keeps truer to uniform value, 1t will displace gold and make itself the standard, as the star Lyra, under pres ent conditions, will finally displace the present North Star.
 Some men high in authority these days seem to be haunted and alright ed by the dread specter of war, and clamor for four battleships this year to keep the present navy effective. Those thus afflicted should ponder upon tue consequence that would be fall our whole financial fabric if, un- der the strain of war, it's basis crum- bled even in small degree compared with that which occurred during the Civil War. France, when overcome, the enemy besieging her capital, nov ed on in all peaceful business depart ments in perfect serenity. Gold com manded one per cent premium for few days, owing to the disorder reign ing in Paris. which rendered it diff cult for people to attend to business needs. With this exception all went on as before from start to finish. As a war measure, the President should not delay asking Congress before 1t adjourns to lay the foundation-the only possible foundation-for a safe and perfect banking system, by sepa- rating the banks from the Govern ment and requiring them to keep re-
 serves in gold coin as European banks do. A beginning might be made by enacting that after certain date banks should keep increasing amounts of their reserves against de posits and circulating notes in coin; as this increased, the bonds now held
 for security being released. This ais practically the Indianapolis plan' i which has won wide acceptance Gold coin can easily be obtained There is twelve hundred millions of dollars of it in the country today, with pow CT to increase this, since our exports
 exceed our imports. Details should be left to the future, whether the European plan of one central bank or the Canadian plan of establishing a point of redemption in each district ! be adopted, or an organization of ali ] National banks be made to co-or- ! dinate the system and have authority | in emergency to authorize an exten-
 sion of note issue as central Euro | pean banks have under Government | authority, all our banks to be re l sponsible pro rata for such additional
 issues. All these and other secondar!
 questions are not now in order. To
 days duty is simply to make begin ming toward basing our banking sys tenn upon gold, instead of Govern
 ment bonds liable to fluetuation un
 der exceptional conditions.
 To reach proper barking We neet no revolution. We should make haste
 slowly. All our progress should bt
 tentative, avoiding anything nst
 shock to our present system, sC fraught with danger, and rapidly as
 suming proportions that threaten re
 current disast
 ] We only need to turn our faces an(
 keep them in the right direction b!
 beginning to inject more gold direct Iy into our present system little b!
 little, until in the fullness of time, W
 can establish a banking system com
 plete in itself, such as that which tb,
 leading nations and even Canada nov so happily possess.
 When we at last become fully pre- pared for the substitution of asse
 for bond secured currency, this cal } easily be accomplished without caus : ing even ripply of disturbance, thu
 relieving the Government from al l
 ments are relieved under their sy: tens which work so admirably.
 Our present plan is primarily al
 instrument designed to strengthe : public credit, and scarcely deserve ] to rank as a banking system at al : Public credit no longer needs thi support. Let us therefore, Taduall,
 not hastily, but slowly, very slpwl' , frightening neither the most iguoran nor the most timfd, transform 1t mt } the instrument which the country : } imperatively needs, if it is to be s.
 cure. as other countries are, agains financial cataclysms, either in peac : or .n war.
 Men in public life who keep befor !, then this important task will liv t loilg il the grateful memories of tbcl l fliturg countrymen, tor our pTessI 5 plan Is one of the greatest of m; : takes, pardouable only because mad
 unler the pressing conditions sun g roC5einG the Republic after the Civ } War.
 ! We read that IF the Senate rscen n ly, Senator Lodge, one of it's leadin s members, declared that "bank circ
 latioB based upon gold reserves and 2 complete extinction of all governmeI 2 credit are at this moment counse 1l of perfection This is true indee Senator Lodge has ali the leadin s authorities upon banking affair ' known to the writer in agreemeI r with him. The statesmen of todd when dealing with the subject, vi have no excuse to offer if they ia Q to turn the country in the direction ( : this perfection There is but on ! right path.