The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1913-09-22
"iTHERsPooN ISSUES PROTEST
AGAINST HOUSE ACTION ON
CURRENCY MEASURE.
EXPLAINS HIS VOTE ON BILL
was one of Three Democrats VOTING
with minority-says it Contain.
MANY G'arins Defects"-severe /,
Criticism of Leaders
(By f. D. Lander, Jr.)

washington, D. C., Sept. 22.-Declar.
Ing that the "gold-bug" amendment 70
the currency bill is a useless inex.
cusaDle and wanton insult tn fo,r-
nIths of the Democrats of the Nation -
Representative Witherspoon of M;ss,s
Slppl has issued a protest against the
action and an explanation of his vote
against the currency bill.
Representatives Witherspoon. Cal
loway Of Texas and Elder of Louisiana
were the three Democrats who voted
against the bill, and in this action, Mr..
Witherspoon declares he did not
violate the party caucus, but that Rep
resentative Carter Glass and the other
party leaders who accepted the Repub.
lican amendment without the consent
of the caucus had really deserted the
party.
The amendment is useless" said
MT Witherspoon. at accomplishes
no purpose and is manifestly put there
to crafty Republican delusion on the
gold standard question"
/ Not only does Mr. Witherspoon at
tack this particular amendment, but
he declares the whole bill has many
glaring defects" 1T is utterly con-
trary to my ideas Of finance and cur
rency. 1t is based on the wrong prin-
| ciples. Its prime purpose, like that
of our present system of finances, is
to destroy the use of money as a
medium of exchange so far as the
law can accomplish that senseless OBJ
iect, by requiring the banks to collect,
monopolize and lock up in their vaults
as much money as possible, in order
to create in them high credits which
they can loan to the people as a sub
stitute for money at rates OF interest
sufficiently high to compensate them
not only for the loan but also for the
idle cash they have stored away, and
thus carry out to its logical conclusion
the principle of the gold standard
heresy.
1--WE have had the gold-bug standard
for many years, and we have given it
a fair trial. We have a system OF
! finances based on the gold standard.
and we know from such experience,
filled with disasters, darkened by
panics, disturbed by strikes, and
cursed by fabulous wealth on the one
hand and widespread and extreme pow
erty on the other. the calamitous and
intolerable effects of the system. It's
legitimate and inevitable fruit is the
existence of a money trust by which
less than a dozen men control the
money and credit of the country, and
before which every industry Of the
land bows In servile submission"
/ critlelzes Democratic Leaders.
Mr. Witherspoon is severe in his
criticism Of Democrat leaders for &C.
i lcepting the amendment to palliaie
Republicans and humiliate abimetalHs
tic Democrats. This humilisfi6f
proposition for the democratic ,szae u
the House to barter its prineiples nor
one psltry Republican vote Nas 20.
swered by substitute oFerrc ~ DE
| democratic members OF the ounit.
: tee and was accepted by zertseman
: from Pennsylvania, Mr.. Foss. %ho said
1t was better than his own, and this
substitute now presents the pitiahle
, confession Of democratic error anc
republican triumph.
, The gold standard Is in my opinion
. the product of selishness, avarice ant
. greed on the part of those who orig
. mated, propagated and dis-eminate'
. It. and ignorance and stupidity on tn
= part of those who accepted IT,"
= In stacking the bill as whole, Nj
= Witherspoon pointed out that the bi
: gives too much power to the feders
. reserve board; that although a
. amendment has been put on the bi
y admitting farmers products as leg
= innate securities, the federal reser
= scontinued from Page Three.
&.[I 4 =. -.