Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1908-03-10
VETERAN IOWA BANKER SAYS
GOVERNMENT SHOULD LEAVE
BANKING ALONE EXCEPT TO
COIN MONEY AND SET RATIO
.DISAGREES WITH
SECRETARY SHAW
TAKES ISSUE WITH REPORTED
STATEMENT OF IoWAN THAT
J. PIERPoNT MORGAN WOULD
MAKE A GOOD PRESIDENT.

w. d. BOnnl1elQ, ST., OttumWa'S
pioneer banker and one of the
most prominent financiers in the
state, has given the Courier an
interview in which he criticises
the makeshift plans advocated for
reforming the currency. Mr..
Bonnifiled holds that the issue of
all of what he terms this crazy
quilt patched up currency" should
be stopped and the government
should go out of the bankind bust
ness altogether, except to coin
gold and silver, regulate and con-
troll their use and establish the
ratio between these metals.
Mr.. Bonnifield takes issue with
the statements credited to former
secretary Of the treasury, L.
M. Shaw, which credit him with
saying that he favored j. Pierpont
Morgan for the presidency. Mr..
Bonnifield declines to believe that
Morgan is a hero or patriot. He
states, rather, that Morgan exact
ed two dollars for one in col
lateral for every dollar that was
given to the Wall street banks
during the stringency.
Mr.. Bonnifield agrees with
President Roosevelt that the
wealthy offender Is not blameless.
He says the most menacing threat
that we have to deal with is the
over abundance of millionaires
who think they are bigger than
the government. Mr.. Bonnifield's
interview in full follows
We have been importing alienist
largely of late to enable us to deter
mine whether we are not all becomin
crazy on certain subjects. think
the discussion now going on in an
out of congress, as to the best pla
for currency reform and as to whic
party Is responsible for the late PAM
and which is the best man in on
party that can beat the best man Il
the other party for president is cor
tinued through this hunting for bs
sis Of currency reform, we wi
Iced all the alienists we can get t
determine our sanity. The Canada
plan of elastic currency seems to b
the favorite now. This it is elaine
would expand when necessary t
move crops and contract when tn
crops are gone, thus be automatic an
meet all conditions of trade. TIL
of this plan seem to forge
the fact that whenever there is
market in the world for anything W
have to sell there can always b
money had on bills of lading that Wi
take the product to the market s
that this elasticity for currency
only myth and play of words. w
seem to be more interested in hum
ing for a panacea for the next PAM
than anything else, but don't believ
We will ever find the true remed
while looking along the paths we ar
now travelling In financial matters.
1t has been truly said that we ar
a peculiar people: hero worshipers W
want a hero to lead In finance as wei
as in every thing else.
The cleveiand-Mo organ Deal.
When Grover Cleveland was pres
dent he made ]. P Morgan his finar
cial hero When the whole country ha
about run dry of money. Mr.. Cleve
land undertook to replenish 1t by il
suing $200,000,000 4 per cent thirt
year bonds as basis for circulatin
notes. He appointed J. P. Morgan hi
financial agent to place these bond
with the banks and others of thi
country, at this time it looked a
thngh we We're t have war with SPAR
consequently our people were slow t
bid and there was S35,000.000 left o
our hands. Mr.. Morgan made blanke
bid to take all we did not take, yer
soon the war cloud vanished and thes
bonds rose in premium to 135 pc
cent. was in Washington when MI
Morgan's blanket bid was opened an
that the secretary put ther
up again, that it was not fair that MI
Morgan;s blanket bid should cove
these bonds in that way, but no MI
Morgan must be seem After waitin
until my patience was about exhaust
ed Mr.. Morgan came, but he could nc
spare the pittance that | wanted OF,