The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1911-01-19
ALDRICH ON CURRENCY.

Senator Aldrich has finally made his
rcpor, ON tho currency This report
was anticipated in the New York pa
pcrs, and ono of the strongest financial
journals in the country gave it Il pretty
thorough analysis. prnnouncing tho plan
Rltogethcr ridiculous. The statement
yas made hat Senator AldIich gave up
his contention for 4 central bank in an
effort to placatc the Morgan interests.
f, which are opposed to any form of cen
! tralIzIng financial power, except III
themselves. Senator Aldrich gave ont
verbally the substance of his plan ut
a dinner in the White House nearly two
form. and thc dispatches carry pretty
full report of it.
! Practically. il amounts 10 this. a con.
| tinustIon of the currency associations
| provided in the Aldrich Nrceland law of
three years ago, II provides an inter
medisry between these fifteen associa-
tions aud the Treasury in The form of
what Mr.. Aldrich calls reserve asso-
citation, or as he first called it, "mech
anism. lnIs central association is de
signed 10 he the executive force through
which the currency associations formed
in different divisions of the country
will act. It's powers are definitely fixed
IN the proposed currency measure. and
the means whereby il shall he organized
and controlled are specifically laid
down. All that part of the bill goes 10
the matter OF working operation. and
the details are entered into very fulIy.
While this central association. or
mechanism. would not be known AS a
central bank, IL would bc The Govern
ment 5 depository; it would fix OK
changes or discounts, and eventually
issue notes which would replace those
of tie National banks. So that while
this central association IS not called a
central bank, ii amounts 10 the same
thing.
The matter that will be of the most
immediate Importance TO the public,
however. is the proposition for this re-
serve association 10 issue its circula
tion upon the retirement Of the bond.
secured circulation of the National
banks, upon new form of security, ap.
proved commercial paper and valued as
sets. Tie association. however, would
take care of the Government bonds here.
tcforc used as basis for circulation,
for ten years. This. il is claimed. would
prevent serious fluctuations in tho bond
market, and would meet the commercial
necessities in a wav that tho National
bank currency cannot now do. 1t is
manifest that something additional to
or different from Government bonds as
a basis of circulation must be provired.
Otherwise, VIC would have To keep get
ting further in debt all the time, in or
der to afford basis for currency issues.
1t is about time, however, that the Gov
ernment got ont of debt as much as
possible And with the new postal saw.
ings banks in operation, whereby depos-
itors can call for the issue of Govern
mcnt bonds at their pleasure, the brakes
against going into debt will have to be
applied somewhere. So far as the meas.
urc may dlloTd felle1 against Il restrlc-
ton of the currency caused by the scare
ity Of Government bonds, the measure
will probably approve itself to the bank
ers. But we do not believe that the
measure will approve itself to Congress,
nor that the final word has been spoken,
by any means, in the way of currency
relief, when this Aldrich measure has
been fully presented and considered.