The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-02-08
CURRENCY BILL
Of THE MINORITY
Democrats of the House Com
@mittee on Banking Will Of
fer a Substitute.
SOME NOTABLE FEATURES
TREASURY NOTES TO PROVIDE
"ELASTICITY."
SOME NOTABLE FEATURES

Washington, Feb. What will be
known as "the minority currency bill'
was introduced today by Representa-
tive John Sharp Williams of Mississip-
pi, the Democratic leader of the house,
who drew the measure as a result of a
harmonious conference Of Democratic
members of the house committee on
banking
The bill win come before the house
i'm the shape of a minority report from
the banking and currency committee
I'm its present form.
Among the provisions of the bill are
the following:
IL repeats all laws permitting nation
al banks To keep three-f1fths of their
reserves in national banks of reserve
cities and similar laws permitting such
deposit of One-half of the reserve
amounts.
1t provides that not less than one
half of the reserves now required TO
be kept in lawful money in central re
serve cities shall be hereafter held in
gold or gold certificates.
Salaries for Examiners.
1t does away with the payment of
national bank examiners by the fee
system. and substitutes salaries not
less than So 900 nor in excess of $1,000
yearly, with actual expenses.
1t provides that the total liabilities
of any national bank, inclusive of the
liabilities of its members, shall not
exceed one-tenth of the banks paid-in
and unimpalred capital stock, and one
tenth of its impaired surplus funds;
and that in no event shall the liabili-
ties exceed 80 per cent of the capital
stock.
No national bank shah loan in the
aggregate more than seven times the
amount of its paid-up capital plus its
unimpaired surplus.
Municipal Bond Provision.
Any national bank may keep 80 per
cent of its reserve in United States
bonds or bonds of states, or in the
bonds of certain municipalities, but not
m&re than one-fourth of the total re-
e ne may be kept i'm state or munich
pal bonds; and the bonds shall be ac-
ceptable only of such municipalities as
have maintained their bonds at or
above par for six years preceding, and
have been in corporate existence ten
years, and have never defaulted in
their funded debt, and whose net in
debtedness does not exceed IS per cent
of their taxable property.
The comptroller Of the currency, i'm
mediately after the passage of the bill,
shall furnish copy of the new law to
each bank in the country and inquire
If 1t Will accept the provisions.
Consent shall be binding and the liza
bilities attaching to consent may be
enforced by the comptroller. Agree
ment TO accept the provisions shall en-
title state banks and trust companies
TO the benefits of the new law.
Elastic Currency.
] The elastic currency feature of the
~bill is contained i'm a section which
provides that these interconvertible
bonds may be deposited lin the nearest
sub-treasury," and the depOsiting bank
shall receive in lieu thereof United
States emergency treasury notes SUBJ
ject. to taxation redeemable at any
time and legal tender.
For the creation of a fund of SIS 000,
600 for the payment of depositors of
failed banks operating under the pro-
visions of this law, there is authorized
the imposition of a tax of one-sixteenth
of ! per cent on the deposits of banks
so operating, and whOse consent to be
so taxed has been obtained.
The final section of the bill provides
that no bank officer shall make loan
for the purpose of stock gambling.