Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-02-13
CENTRAL BANK PERIL |REACH NO DECISION S
Oil Trust Would Control 1t,
Says Leslie N. Shaw.
POWER GIVEN
Big Corporation Would Pay Nation
al Debt to Manage Financial In
stitution, Says Ex-Secretary.

PHILADELPHIA, February 12.-"I dc
not think there can be any doubt in the
mind of any one who studies the ques-
that if central bank is established in
this country it will be owned, or at least
controlled. by the Standard Oil Com
pany." said Leslie NJ. Shaw, former Sec
rotary of the Treasury, today.
He spoke at a meeting Of the Pennsyl-
vania Bankers Association. in this city
His topic was The Central Bank
There are two diseases prevalent In
this country, either of which is liable
to prove fatal" he continued. Zone Is
Wall street MANIA and the other Wall
street phobia.
Il do not think that l have been badly
inoculated with either, but / am frank
to say that 1t seems to me quite un-Amef-
lean to place with any group of men
the power to contract or expand our cur
rency at will, and to grant or withhold
credit to any bank, to any merchant and
to any corporation at pleasure.
What Might Happen.
1T was charged, and as vigorously de-
MED, that the affiliated banks of New
York, during the panic of 1907, simply
withdrew credit from the group of men
who controlled the Tennessee Coal and
Iron. called their loans, and finally ad-
justed the matter by taking over the
property at a fraction of It's admitted
value, upward of $5ONOOO,O00, and paid
for it United States Steel securities, with
out the exchange of dollar in money.
Assuming the charge to be libelous.
it still illustrates what could be done
were a group of men possessing the
requisite disposition to be in control OF
the Central Bank.
Il thoroughly believe the Standard Oh
Company and the United States Steel
Corporation could afford to pay the ma
tional debt for such a charter. say this
independent of whether such bank
would be Independently profitable or
otherwise.
1.-The control Of it would be valuable
beyond the power of man to conceive to
any group of men who had independent
financial interests large enough to justify
it and the ability necessary for its opera
ton.
Life Insurance Conditions.
I'VE all remember the control of a GER
tain life insurance company with capt.
tai of only 100000, sold a few years ago
for 100000, when the maximum divl-
dend was fixed in the charter to z per
cent, or $4,000. Certainly that vast sum
was not invested expecting returns OF
only $4,000 per annum, when the same
amount in government bonds even would
yield $4,000.
mo; the company had assets approxi-
mating $500 OOO, 600 The control Of such
a volume of trust funds, ii honest and
wise, Is very profitable. 1t has recently
changed hands again, and presumably at
yet higher price.
Taking the price paid for the control
of that life insurance company as q
measure OF value. l do not think I over
state the fact when say that the TWO
largest corporations in the world. In
terested as they are. directly or through
their Affiliations in nearly every line OF
business, and owning or controlling
probably in excess of 100 of our largest
financial institutions, with, / suppose.
81, 600, 600, 600 in assets outside of their
own capitalization. can AFFORD to pay the
national debt for q perpetual charter
for a central bank, safeguard the
smaller interests as you may"