Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1908-07-16

~ LhGEt hOAtE WAt Ao1hEA I'm " A0
tired at the pleasure Of the banks. De-
lberately, therefore, we nave put it In
the power Of the banks TO Expand and
contract the volume of currency almost
at will to the extent of 500, 900, 90. Every
man should know that a sudden in
crease of the circulating volume to that
extent would tend greatly to appreciate
and, in many instances, to initiate values.
1t is an economic fact known of all in
telligent men that as the volume of
money grows the value OF property and
wages appreciate. The sudden influx Of !
this vast sum into the circulation of the
country would give a tremendous i'm
petus to business activity and TO the in
crease of values. On the other hand, IL
that sum should be systematically and
suddenly withdrawn from circulation, as
it could be under the provisions of this
law, the instant effect would be to cut
the very life out of business and force
values hurriedly along a downward scale,
| do not assume that bankers who might
avail themselves of the law would be
guilty of such misdeeds, but | do assert
that 1t is a dangerous thing to give to
any class of men this great power and
opportunity.
What a commentary on American
craftsmanship that members of Congress
shOuld stand, as many did, on the floor
of the House and Senate and solemnly
asseverate that in their opinion the panic
was due more to the contemptuous re-
fusal of national banks to observe the
law n to the manipulattonS of bankers
than to all things else, should permit
themselves to be dragooned into voting
to confer far greater powers upon those
same banks to work their Will than they
ever possessed before. To my thinking
it exhibits a course of conduct abSo-
lutely inexplicable. There are many Re-
p~ublicans in Missouri who believe as
these Senators and Representatives be-
lieved. l wonder if they, toe, Will be
dragooned into voting to endorse this
legislative abomination in November?
II iC q diUnrtinD 0npHtaPlR IN observe
such statesmen as Aldrich and such
tinanciers as j. Pierpont Morgan and
John D.. Rockefeller clamoring for an
asset currency. Once upon a tim these
were the champions of sou money"
They were among the leaders who bayed
the loudest on the track of the silver
propaganda. They were among those
who cried in all the tones of the chase,
against a Cheap dollar" a "fffty-cent
dollar and a deprecated currency. Now
they stand for an asset currency-that
is, for a currency based upon and Sc
cured solely by the credit and assets of
national banks. Do you want to estab-
fish a bank oligarchy in America and
turn over to it the fiscal affairs of a
hundred million people? Do not deceive
yourselves, my countrymen, TOR that is
the goal toward which we are hasten
ing. Here is what the Philadelphia North
American, one of the leading independ-
emit Republican papers of Pennsylvania,
has to say about this law;
This law will mean the turning over
of the treasury of the United States
to the gamblers of the New York
) Stock Exchange for a period of siS
years. 1t will mean the making OF
{ good ines and bad times of 'bul
markets and bear markets. accord
> ing to the pleasure of Rogers anC
r Rockefeller of the National City
l Bank, and ]. P. Morgan of the Ma
ttonal Bank of Commerce. 1t will
/ mean not only the slow and certain
: movement of contraction and infla
9 ton by the natural laws of com
merce, but sharp changes forced a.
t will by the master gamblers. 1t VIII
mean the gift to the chief enemie:
1 of the nation of the power to issu'
or retire a half a billion dollars, eX
citing speculation or compelling dis
aster, according to whichever bes
suits their betting book. We do no
know what measure of punishment
a long-suffering people will inflic
/, upon their betrayers."
d This is from a high Republican source
q l could quote many like statements fror
f other publications of equal character an
potentially. l appeal to my Repuolica
a fellow-citizens to ponder this su6Jec
seriously and to look down the path c
the future, if possible, to the end G
a this tendency.
That our monetary system is impel
feet there is 10 doubt: That it need
to be ~re-cast, reformed and revised
equally certain. 1t is the handiwork {
Ar Republican statecraft, and formerly the
sr were wont to boast that it was as nea
perfection as any monetary system ths
rs human ingenuity could devise, but no
II the most blatant boosters among the
concede that it is radically defective ar
A. inadequate. Within the last two ma3ffii
ffuug tBhfy16n of New Jersey, amoni
= the most distinguished men OF ms state
c.I president of the Prudential Life lnsur
ID auee Company, a multi-miliionalre an
Gil n + Nk,r+o ., birh authority in ReDuDllCal
al ~-trcies on matters financial, in a publ
"a sPech~ before the Republican conven
- = Of his state, over Whlch ne pre-
r 9pucu' made this declaration:
- country's financial system ha
basssa its day of usefulness; it !
e. l~nsuInclat and unsuited to presen
n, neens' anAhas become a menace, an
in tanhot cohNNae without remedial &C
mat IS a common sentiment anon
le long been the sentimsnt Smonp nemr
rs Gratis. On this point at iSssst RepubI
ne cans are coming to an Agreement wit
ne the longtime contention Of ~dannocran,
We All of us are fast agreeing that ne az
ir listing monetary system is inadsS,,st
s. and unsuited to the country. But SssN
of ator Dryden went on to say: ~
er THAT whatever action may
rs taken should be taken by the par
ne whose record entities it to public CO
On fidence.'
e. BY which he meant the Republic;
ne party. That sentiment will, of cours
r be echoed by Republican orators al
al organs throughout the country. / shf
is echo it also, but with a different mea
ing. What party has a record entitlil
i it to public confidence? Who constructs
es this system we have? Who begot
ce nurtured 1t, and brought 1t up to i
IN present state of lusty imperfection?
lg Is a choice creation of the Republics
marty and If now its creators COME
e. their work a failure, is that a recol
IN to inspire confidence? Should a recol
IL of failure, demonstrating incompetenc
ct command confidence? Are we to perm
al the same people to again try their ham
r and organize a monetary system Whit
re will deliver over to the banking corpor
as lions the sovereign power of regulatlr
ne the fiscal affairs of the nation? I'll
W Democratic party cannot do worse this
- these discounted Republicans have dol
o. and propose to do. Of one thing W
a may be sure, that If the responsible
m of reforming our financial system
err committed to the Democracy, it will
tie done in accordance with the theory TIL
he it is the constitutional duty OF the go
as eminent to supply money based on l
e. own credit and to control the fiscal a
ly fairs of the people.
r. A CORRUPT BARGAIN.
Before dismissing this subject I cam
"a. forbear expressing curiosity as to VIII
o. return the Republican party manage
tx expect from national bankers for e
it's new favors conferred upon them by t.
at Aldrich-Vreeland law, What compens
1t, ton will be made in the way of car
en- paign contributions? In 1896 the nation
lie banks contributed several million dolla
x to the Republican campaign fund. TIL
he were caught red-handed in the very "a
ID. of contributing, indeed made but lit
I'd effort to conceal 1t. Leading bankers
to great centers wrote urgent letters
lis banks all over the country, both sta
it and national, for contributions, a.
re many of these letters were given to t
r- press. l have now in my possession
ne letter written by a committee of n
&C. tional bankers, stating that their ov
- .sAGl45 ~ 4hn ha Gle