Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1908-01-04
Former Secretary Of tue Treas
ury Argues in Favor of
Elastic System
SPEAKS TO DIES MONIES BANKERS
Currency That Will Contract and Elk
pand Automatically tho Need Of tho
Present - Defends Roosevelt as Not
the Cause Of Recent Particularly
Contributing Causes.
Special to Times-R Republican.

Special to Times Republican.
Des Moines. Jan. 4-Hon. Leslie NJ.
Shaw. who knows a few things about
finance, addressed the bankers club
of Des Moines last night on tho cur
rency question, having come out from
New York for that purpose.
Others than bankers were privileged
to hear the former secretary OF the
treasury's speech.
The opera house was crowded, many
standing In the galleries even at the
close OF the speech. which consumed
more than an hour and a half, ana
hundreds were turned away.
Secretary Shaw did not touch poll
tics In his address, but devoted himself
to the discussion of finances. He out
lined the many causes which led to the
financial strlngency-there was no one
cause In his judgment-and outlined
his plan for an elastic currency per-
hitting an expansion of perhaps S40o,-
900 900 In time of emergency-this ex-
pansion to be by currency guaranteed
by the government and differing In no
way from the ordinary Issue except
that II would bear or 6 per cent tax, II
condition guaranteeing its withdrawal
when not needed.
President Roosevelt was vigorously
commended by the former cabinet
member. When he declared that the
nation would never outgrow the ben
efts arising from the enforcement or
the law by the present administration,
the great audience vigorously cheered
the sentiment Secretary Shaw said
that the nation had been given the
right man always In crises--the right
man in the revolution, irI the COS, In
the eos when Cleveland, abandoned by
both parties, paid no attention to pub
lie sentiment in '97 when the REM
nants Of things were gthered In the
most glorious prosperity the country
ever has known, and in this period
when the people have come to know
that there is no king but the law ana
the law must be obeyed. Every senti-
ment in this utterance was enthusi-
astically applauded by the big au-
dience.
The speaker'c address was filled
with illusions and pat stories which
kept his hearers in excellent good hui
NOR though money troubles were un-
der consideration. When he came to
discuss in detail the schemes proposed
for making the currency more elastic.
he said he supposed that nothing would
be done by congress because each man
has his own plan and has no patience
with any other.
Someone once told Evarts that Sum-
ner didn't believe in the Bible. OF
course not" said Evarts, "he didn't
write it,"
Whereupon the secretary demoi-
ished the other suggestions for elastic,
asset and emergency currency, ana
with the remark that having disposed
Of the plans he had not written he
would outline his own. He developed
his own idea Of the way to remedy the
one defect in the American monetary
system.
He said in part:
Some have attributed the panic to
the spirit of speculation which the
prosperity of the last ten years has
encouraged. OF course we would not
have had the panic but for preced-
ing period Of prosperity. No doubt,
therefore, that the spirit of specula-
ton has been contributing cause, but
it has not been the cause. In proof that
the business Of the country has been
conducted conservatively cite the fact
that failures have been very few IN
deed. Merchants must have been IN
most excellent condition, factories
must have been prudently conducted,
banks must have been sound or wide
spread ruin would have marked the
panic of 1907, which is generally con-
coded to have been the severest the
world has ever witnessed Whether
industrial stagnation will become as
widespread and chronic as that which
followed the panic of 1898 remains to
be seen. / do not think it will.
The panic Of 1898 was over in a few
months, tho industrial revival was
long delayed At the first smell of
smoke the people lost heart, and some
of them lost head, but they subse-
quently sat on the sidewalk for four
years and complacently watched the
confagration In my judgment the
panic of 1907 is practically over. L
wish might predict no disastrous eff