The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1911-07-13
Our Washington Letter.
(By Clyde H. Tavenner, specia
Washington correspondent of The

members or the House are working
like veterans. The present house i
one that no Democrat, or any othe
American citizen need apologize for
l believe that the country thorough,
appreciates this, too
Thus declared speaker Cham
Clark. THE Democrats in the Hous,
are fighting a good fight continued
the speaker, cs he looked up from .
desk piled high with correspondence
reports of Investigating committees
and an assortment of books sufficien
to serve an ordinary man as a com
plete library.
as literally as possible every promis.
made to the people.
eve promised in the Denver plat
form to reform the rules of the Hous,
and We have done it. That is an &C
complished fact.
eve promised the people that W.
would submit proposition to amend
the Constitution to permit the people
to vote direct for United States Sen
ators. The House promptly passed
such a measure.
eve promised to pass a bill com
polling the publication of campaign
expenses before the elections. That
has been done.
Eve promised to admit New Mexi.
co and Arizona. We have done ou1
best to bring about that. 1t is up to
the Senate.
eve promised to cut down the
disbursements of the Government.
We have already made beginning
by abolishing more than one hun
dred useless offices in and about the
House of Representatives, thereby
saving $4,000 annually. This is
only an earnset of what we will &C
complish.
eve are living up to the Jeffer-
sonian doctrine of economy in the
public expense that labor may be
lightly burdened. No doubt we will
be sneered at by spendthrifts as
cheeseparers, but hard headed, SEN
sible folk will indorse our action, be-
cause 1t deserves to be Endorsed.
eve promised to repeal the tariff
on wood pulp, print paper, lumber,
timber and logs and that those arti-
cles would be placed on the free list.
So far as the Democratic House is
concerned that pledge has been full
filled in the Reciprocity bill and the
Farmers Free List bill which sleeps
in the Republican Senate.
"Twenty-six Republicans voted for
the Underwood wool bill. 1t had q
majority of 121. My prediction is
that it will pass the Senate and be-
come law and prove to be of vast
benefit to the American people by
cheapening the cost to the consumer
THAT is not ALL continued Mr..
Clark. eve are going on down the
line. We will take up cotton next,
and then steel and sugar and other
foodstuffs. We are getting to a tar
III for revenue basis. This is DEM
ocratic doctrine. II the Senate will
do it's duty the people will be greatly
benefited by this session.
Taft Still With Aldrich.
President Taft's recent statement
that the adoption of ex-senator AL
drlch's currency system, designed to
put the control of American money
absolutely in the hands of Wall street
bankers, is the most important legis-
lation now pending, has resulted in
the old issue being raised between
himself and progressive republicans.
He has presented himself and his
administration as new menace to
public interest, and raised the DEM
ocrats and progressive republicans
to higher plane of public USEFUL
ness, as the only effective force the
public can absolutely rely upon to
resist the aggressive money power
of Morgan and the presidents efforts
to serve it.
| Both Aldrich and Taft declare
there is no intention of establishing
anything like central government
bank. But nobody can read the AL.
drich plan in detail without realizing
that it is central bank of issue
that he proposes. His so-called
Reserve association of America" is
to be the depository and fiscal agent
of the national government. 1t is
to have the sole issue power. 1t
may receive deposits from those ma
tional banks that are stockholders
in it. 1t shall establish branch
banks, which, just as under the cen.
trail government bank scheme, will
rush their local deposits to the cen
trail bank thus taking money out OF
the community which would other
wise be loaned out for investments
in home enterprises. 1t may buy
and sell government and state Sc
! curities and gold coin or bullion.
1t may rediscount paper for banks
depositing with it.
In short, the Aldrich reserve as
ISOLATION is a bank with immense
privileges and powers, but without
the name of a bank. Wall street
/ will control it. 1t is obvious that the
words central bank" were omitted
because of the prejudice against
such an institution by the country
banks. Uncle Sam once tried a CEN
trail bank. 1t was manned and ma
nipulated by politicians and brought
panic on the entire country. AL
drichs tlimsy Misrepresentation, even
though it be Endorsed by Taft, will
accomplish but little. Remembering
it's last experience, this country will
not stand for another central govern