The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1911-11-21
PRESIDENT OF BANKERS ASSOCi
ALTON SAYS PLANS OF CURREN.
CY REFORM WILL DO.
THEY MUST Be NON-PART|SAN
Watts Says If the Bankers Would
Work to that End, it Can be Kept
Non-partisan Issue--Conferences
With Commission.

|
posed plan for the reform of the cur
rency and banking system of the Unit.
ed States be kept non-partisan, its en-
actment into law will be an easy
accomplishment. And it could be kept
a non-partisan issue, ii the 1000 bank
ers here would work zealously to that
end upon their return home.
SO declared f. o. Watts, president
of the American Bankers Association,
in addressing the convention Of its
members here today. Mr.. Watts
strayed, he said, from the beaten path
of precedent, to discuss the theme
which has been made the keynote of
the convention proceedings.
Surely there is no good reason
why the question should become
partisan one he said. There is no
party principle involved in such a CO.
operative agency and nothing but pref
udice or the extremity for an issue,
which certainly does not exist in this
day could cause either of the two
great political parties to treat the
subject differently from what they
should proposals for good health or
pure food, or river improvements, or
the building of a great canal. IF by
any chance it drifts unavoidably by
the bankers and business men into a
party alignment, the only hope OF max
ing it an effective issue TO the party
opposing the plan would lie in its
ability to appeal to prejudice through
talk of Capitalization and control by
special interest. Neither proposition
could be maintained before the
thoughtful citizenship of this country,
and when the light of reason entered,
the party making such an appeal
would suffer as such parties have al
ways suffered in the past.
I'VE can show that instead of be-
ing Capitalization the proposal is de-
centralization, the power coming to
the central agency for all banks in
just such a way as the power is placed
in the chief executive of the nation
The president becomes the composite
of American ideas, and when not so
there occurs a shifting of authority.
SO the Central Reserve Association
would always be the composite of the
standing for the best In our business
life.
"The Currency Commission and Of
ficers of your association have been
in a number of conferences with the
chairman and members of the nation
al Monetary Commission, and those
having the responsibility of forming
plan showed remarkable willingness
to hear and adopt any suggestions
tending to keep the control away from
speculative marts, keep it apart from
political control or prevent its being
at any time political issue, keep the
investments of a character that would
make any control of little value COM
pared to such an outlay as necessary
to acquire it.
Those expressing a fear on the
question of control seem to deal only
in generalities instead of giving some
good reasons for the belief that any
selfish interest would seek to control,
or that if sought it could be attained
The plan expressly prohibits the hold
ing OF shares by any individual or
other than banking corporations, so
that direct stock control is forever
impossible, and, therefore, to get even
indirect control it would be necessary
for such interests to purchase control
of the majority of the shares OF more
than half in number and amount of
the twenty thousand independent
banks of the country. The use VI
such a stupendous sum as necessary
is highly impractical. The suggestion
appears foolish to those analyzing the
situation and to be a serious reflection
on the good sense of those in mind
when special control is mentioned.
Undoubtedly those interests which