The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-08-05
GOVERNMENT PAWNDRoKING.


into the associations provided for by this
law may forward public securities of
various kind and get currency for
them at the rate of ninety cents
on the dollar. They may also deposit
such other securities, private and COM
mercial, as the Treasury viii approve,
and on such securities they ill get an
advance of currency to the amount of
seventy. five per cent of the par value
of such securities.
On the evening of Wednesday, De
cember 4, 1907, there was meeting
held in the Commercial Club Of this
city, at which resolution was
unanimously passed advocating precise
ly this same form of obtaining relief
in case of currency pauics, but in more
extended form, The proposition, rs
passed by this meeting, was that where.
as, "some $340, 900 900 in Government
interest.bearing bonds is now tied up
IN private hands and unavailable for
uso either as money or security for
money individuals, firms, or corpora"
tions having Government securities Of
various kinds should be able to deposit
them with the Treasurer, or some pub
lie depository, and get on them ad
vances of currency The resolution as
passed was as follows,
Whereas some $40 900 900 in Govern
| ment interest bearing bonds is now tied
up in private hands and unavailable for
use either money or security for
money. Now, In the judgment OF this
comrnittee, Congress should at once pass
| a law for permanent relief and present
| solution, making II Incumbent on the Sec
| retary of the Treasury 10 exchange at par
currency for bonds. with National de-
positories. National banks, and ind-
viduals. and that National repositories
and Nationa! banks be empowered and
directed to exchange with the individual,
| currency for National bonds upon de-
| mand. and that the National Treasury,
the Government repositories and National
banks holding such bonds. upon tho re-
turn Of the currency, with reasonable
tax or interest, on sufficient notice. must
return to the individual, corporation or
institution. the bonds pledged for such
currency
And in cases where the National treas
rency on hand for exchange. tho Ma
tional Treasurer. through the proper of
tories and the National banks with blank
bills and permit them TO issue National
bank notes of different denominations up
TO the amount of the United States bonds
Incorporation.
The paying back of the currency and
the return of the bonds as provided
for therein. is the precise equivalent of
the retirement of the emergency cur
rency on the release of the securities
pledged on its issue, as provided IN the
Aldrich- -Vreeland bill But this was
secuted by the Eastern press as 'pawn-
broking,' a ridiculous proposition alto
gether, something that ought not to be
entertained for moment, and that
could not be entertained upon any
sound principle of financiering.
And vet we have in this Aldrlch-
Vreeland currency bill precisely the
same principle, introduced and carried
out in precisely the same way. Only
under that act the banks are given the
sole privilege of obtaining this Gov
ernmental favor. But if the Govern
ment is going into the pawnbroking .
business. accepting its own securities
and such other securities as 1t may
approve, and advancing money upon
the same, why should the banks be
specially favored9 Why is it necessary
for an individual TO put his money into
banking concern and then that bank
ing concern 90 into an association with
other like banking concerns, before
he can obtain this issue of Govern
ment prepared money on securities de-
posited9 Why should not any citizen
of the Republic offering just as good
security, IN fact precisely the same Sc
curlty, obtain like advance of money!
| We do not see the least propriety in
| the Government making distinctions of
this kind, If il is going into the
"pawnbroking business, why should
| it not treat all alike? And If it Is
| pawpbroking to advance money to
individuals on their deposit OF Gov
crnment bonds or private securities,
why is it not pawnbroking also for the
Government to advance currency on de-
posits made by banks that combine and
| form themselves into banking assocla"
tions7 We do not see the least differ
encc. either In principle or detail be-
tween the procedure under the Aldrich-
Vreeand act with respect to banks,
and the proposition advanced by the
Commercial Club meeting in this city.
In fact, we should be glad to have the
difference pointed out, if anyone can
see any The banks, to be sure, have
currency issues aside from the emer
gency currency provided for in this
law, and they have deposits and Sc
curities and are doing banking bust
ness. But all of this is aside from the
emergency currency proposition. That
emergency currency stands on It's own
footing entirely aside from the general
business of the bank, and has moth
ing at all to do with it, That
business is closed on it's various ac'
counts, assets, and liabilities, as stated.
These are not TO be infringed upon IN
any respect by the emergency currency;
and since the emergency currency
stands out by itself, entirely alone and
separate from the general business
which the bank conducts, we do not