The Mena weekly star., 1908-02-20
DISCUSSED ALDR|CH BILL
Senator Clay, of Georgia, Gives His Views Regarding the Proposed
 Currency Measure.
DECLARED 1T WAS WRONG AND VICIOUS
The southerner Said That No Relief Would Result to South or West by Passage of the Bill But Would Sim ply Enlarge the Powers of National Banks.

Washington, Feb. 15.-Senator Clay of Georgia spoke on the Aldrich cur rency bill Friday. He reviewed the banking system of the country and carefully analysed the plan under con sideration for the issuing of emergency currency.
 Senator Clay analysed the Aldrich bill and declared 1t was wrong and vicious, and would give no relief to the south and west. He contended that the measure simply enlarged the pow CTS of the national banks. and that congress was relinquishing the sover- eign right to issue and circulate money which 1t ought never to do. The plan of the minority in the senate for tho government to issue $500,000,000 of treasury notes, and to use them in pay ing the expenses of the government that they might find their way into all the channels of trade, was advocated by him.
 MT. Clay said there are now in cir culation 350,000,000 treasury notes, not costing the government anything and performing all the functions of money, and that this amount could be easily increased $500,000,o00 without In any way disturbing our finances, and could not possibly result in de- preciated currency
 State bonds, city bonds and munich pal bonds of the south and west he contended, were now being held by eastern capitalists, and that the south and west could not secure any addi- tional circulation by making these bonds as a basis of circulation, as they had already been sold in the east He bonds mentioned in the Aldrich bill ap- piled solely to the railroads in the east and that the railroads in the southwest had never paid dividends as provided in the Aldrich bill. The bill. he said was drawn in favor of the rich and powerful. enabling them to control the money issue and 1t was not in the interest of the American people. He declared he stood by the doctrine once advocated by John c. Calhoun, Thomas Benton and Andrew Jackson, that our money ought to be in gold and silver and paper money issued by the govern ment. He ridiculed the idea that ad- ditional treasury notes would depre- ciate because we did not have the gold to redeem them.
 "If the Aldrich bill becomes a law said MT. Clay, ''the government guar anteed the redemption in gold of the additional notes issued by the nation al banks. Would not this be as great a strain on the gold reserve as treas ury notes?"
 Senator Clay said that it would be sad day for this country when con gross should absolutely surrender the sovereign right to regulate the circu- lating medium and leave it to indi- viduals and corporations. Then, he said, the country would gradually be owned by the banking association.
 Congress was criticised by him for allowing surplus of $300.000, 900 to ac- cumulate in the treasury. If this money was not needed to pay the ex- pense of the government, he said, 1t ought to have been left in the hands of the people. He disapproved the pol fey of the government in allowing de- posits to remain in the banks without interest. He did not blame the secre- tary of the treasury for placing this money in the national banks, as 1t was better there than in the treasury but he contended that 1t would have been better had the money never been col lected by taxation. A well regulated government, city or state. he said, nev- CT collected from It's citizens taxes that it did not need to pay the ex- penses of the government.
 MT Clay commended in the highest terms the manly fight made by An drew Jackson against the banks is- suing money, and read from speech Calhoun delivered on the floor of the senate, and read letter written by Hon. Thomas E. Watson giving his viawc on rnoney