The news=record. [volume] (Enterprise, Wallowa County, Oregon) 1907-1910, 1909-09-22
President Taft Declares Party is
Bound by Plank.
POINTS TO SUCCESS In CANADA
President Says Government Has Nou
Reached Stage Where It Must
Be Mores 7 han Police Force.

Milwaukee, Wis.,, Sept. 1s.-Presi-
dent Taft devoted his principal address
in Milwaukee at the State Fair
grounds, yesterday, to the subject of
postal savings banks, which he strong
ly endorsed before large and entbusi.
astic gathering that overfiowed the
grandstand. The president said that
the postal savings bank plank in the
Republican platform bound everybody
who called himself Republican.
"If they do not like a plank in
PLATFORM" said Mr.. Taft. "or if thew
don't like the platform itself. thew
cease to be Republicans or they are
Republicans with an exception, and
that indicates free and enlightened
and discriminating people. But l am
here to uphold the doctrine of postal
savings banks because | believe thew
will fill longfelt want in this coun-
try. In the first place it is said the
postal savings bank is very paternal
institution; that it has a leaning to-
ward Socialism-state Socialism-and
that it purposes to take the banking
business out of the hands of private
persons and put it into those of the
government. No, am not Socialist.
and am net paternalist., and | am
not in favor of having the government
do anything that private citizens can
DO as well or better; but there are con-
ditions. We have passed beyond the
time of what they called the 'Laissez
Faire' school, which believed that the
government ought to do nothing but
run the police force, and we do not rec
ognize the necessity for the interfer-
ence of the government because it has
great power and great resources be-
hind it, and because sometimes it can
stand the lack of an immediate return
on capital to help out. We did it in
our Pacific railroads. We have done
1T In great many different ways, and
in this particular postal savings bank
business the government is especially
fitted to do what any system of private
bankers can do.
THE great usefulness of the postal
savings banks lies in the great encour-
agement to thrift on the part of those
who are just wavering in the balance
whether they shall save the money or
use it because they don't know where
they can put it safely.
Canada has the postal savings bank,
and what is the result along the border
in the Northwest You find Americans
going up to the border and making de-
posits in those savings banks. Why?
Because they have theIguarantee of the
Canadian government"
President Taft said the government
had issued upward of 100000, 900 2
per cent bonds of the United States
and f1oated them at par, at 2 per cent
or little more.
I'VE did it by getting the banks into
corner so they had to have, under the
law, some government security, and SO
they were obliged to buy those 2 per
cent bonds, he said. In closing, Pres
ident Taft said:
"We are looking forward. l hope
with confidence, to readjustment of
our whole financial system. Certainly
it needs it, and it has been suggested
that the savings bank might we'll await
that. am bound to say that I don't
see the necessity for involving them.
1t seems to me that one system can
stand by itself, and if we adopt the
savings banks they will easily be work
ed into general system of banking,
because the savings banks will furnish
US five or six hundred millions of dol
lars, and that is very tidy pile to have
around for the government to use le-
ultimately in order to carry on any
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