Evening star., 1913-07-13
INSISTS ON PROBE
OF money DEVIL y
Chairman of House Rules
Committee Urges Renewal
of the Investigation.
PUJO INQUISITORS READY
WITH FIFTY WITNESSES
Mr.. Henry Declares Further Inquiry
Would Strengthen Cause of
Currency Reform.

currency Reform.
In further pursuit of the money devil. y
Representative Henry Of Texas intro.
duced into the House yesterday after.
noon resolution to rehabilitate the Puic
money trust" committee, and. in .
statement Of explanation to The Star. de.
ciares that the recent big bank failure in
pittsburgh Is just one more reason why
congress should know directly "how
these great institutions use their en-
pioyes and dummies to wreck and loot
banks and rob innocent depositors OF
their. trust funds"
Representative Henry, who is chairman
j OF the rules committee and classed as q
Bryan man. has ever since the currency
Dill began to take from consistently urged
that the currency bill should not over
shadow the necessity for an investiRa-
uon of the money trust, which,, he SAYS.
exists and can be found strongly In
trenched If the probe reaches far enough.
At the same time he makes 1t clear that
he does not intend to hinder the progress
OF the Giass-Owen currency bill. He
nao on hand fifty witnesses for the
money trust Investigation at the close of
the previous session and that the surface
OF the situation had merely been scratch
ed. -
Explains Need Of Further INQUIRY,
In his explanation of the need for fur
tner investigation Mr.. Henry said:
Ihis new resolution to proceed with
tne investigation of the money trust is
introduced by me solely with q view to
aid and expedite confederation OF pendins
banking and currency LEGISLATION. Wafh
intent e retard action on the Glass-Owefl
nilL ANA Necessarily reforms HI our ma
ti0Aai banking laws. The Investigation
or the money trust can be conducted con-
currently from day to day by the bank
Ins and currency committee while they
are formulating the currency bill and
changes in the banking laws. Indeed,
this Is absolutely essential In order to
secure light and information on certain
vital points
However. the first necessary thing is
70 amend the statute that gives exclu-
sive visitorial powers to the Controller
or the currency. and to clothe either
house of Congress with plenary inuuisf-
tor1al powers to examine into the AFFAIRS
OF the national banks. which are the mere
committee on banking and currency
snouid promptly report the bill intro
duced by me amending the federal
statute SO that Congress may investigate
the affairs of national banks and compel
the controller of the currency to do its
bidding and not to proceed in defiance
OF the congressional will
This bill passed the House by prac-
tcaliy unanimous action last Congress
and the Senate by inaction defeated it
II Is perfectly manifest that it shoul6
now be passed and the money trust in.
quiry then be hastened to aid the bankine
and currency committee to obtain all the
valuable information still concealed tina,
will be of vast Importance In the solu
ton Of the currency problem and the en-
actment Of appropriate banking laws II
pursuance with the Baltimore platform
pledges.
Pittsburgh Failures an Example.
'The Pittsburgh bank failures empha
size the need Of knowing at first hand tn,
| inside workings of the great banking in
stitItions. how they manipulate and wa
ter their paper and assets. We should
know directly how these great institu
tions use their Office boys. stenographers
officers, porters and dummies to wreck
and loot banks and rob innocent deposi
| tors of their trust funds. The Pujo com
mittee said it has barely scratched tn,
surface Of the rich mines Of materia
along these lines In hidden receeses tina
should by all means be explored.
THE PuJo committee urged prompt re
| newal of the investigation, and in obedi
ence to their wise command I have In
troduced my new resolution. They stated
| that the controller of the currency abso
! lutely blocked them, and refused vital in
| formation, and that fifty witnesses wer,
present. ready to give important evidence
when the Sixty-second Congress expired
and the powers of the committee wer
| exhausted.
1T is proposed by the Glass-Owen bill
| to take state banks and trust companie
into the federal reserve associations
Hence, Ii Is necessary to know the char
acter Of their business, so that we ma
determine on what terms and to what ex
tent We will allow them to participate Ii
our currency system. Then we shoul
adduce evidence to ascertain how Wal
| street always forces the appointment o
how they are able to gobble up thes
roads and control them under our defec
tive procedure for reorganizations
Power of Congress.
| Congress has the power to examin
these state banks and trust companie
with view of determining upon wha
terms they shall become component part
OF a federal reserve system.
Then We should probe deeper into tn
affairs of the great banks and bankin
centers TO ascertain whether there !
any justification of the great hue an
cry that certain banks will surrende
their federal charters and take out stat
charters in case the currency bill l
passed. We need to dig deeper into thei
manipulations. schemes and conspiracie
In order to understand why they SO grea,
~ dread the eye OF federal scrutiny
THE new features of my resolution ex
plain themselves. and, / think, will com
mend themselves to all patriotic mind
who want all possible light and informa
tion while we aresnow embarked upon tn
difficult task of revising our currenc
| system and revising and rewriting ou
archaic banking laws. In behalf of tn
people ! invoke the quotation, Let ther
be light.