Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1913-10-27
SENATOR PREPARING NEW CUR.
RENcY MEASURE FOR INTRO.
DucTIoN.
DIFFERS FROM BOTH GLASS
AND VANDERBILT IDEA8
cummins TO Introduce Bill Early In
November 40 Substitute for Pending
ProposaIs-scnator Kenyon Planning
to Bring About Reform in Custom Of
Aiding Widows of Senator'S.


Minis, who has been working on cur
rency bill for weeks, gradually Is COM
pleting it and will introduce it in the
senate early next month.
1t promises to attract widespread at
tention and it will deal with the cur
rency situation in manner not dealt
with by any other measure. 1t will
differ radically in principle from either
the administration bill or the Vanderlip
bill tho possessing features in common
with each Of these.
Senator Cummins will propose
United States bank with branches pub
licly owned, and government controlled.
! but not simply a bankers bank or
banking system.
The bill passed by the house and the
bill advocated by Vanderlip provide
j simply for bankers banks.
A Combination Bank.
Senator Cummins proposes that the
bank provided for by his bill shall be
both bankers bank and commercial
bank. In other words, he will permit
it to make loans to the public The
administration bill provides manner
| whereby banks can get loans from the
regional reserve banks by rediscount-
ing paper. The Vanderlip plan, thru
different machinery. provides the same
| thing. but neither provides that an in
dividual can 60 to the central banking
organization and get loan.
Senator Cummins will provide that
the bank Of the United States. when 1t
appears that the banks Of any COM
munity are unable or unwilling to ex-
tend credit to a person who presents
proper security, may itself loan that
person money. The bill will limit to a
certain percentage Of the deposits Of
the United States bank the amount Of
money which, may in the aggregate be
SO loaned.
Check on Banks.
1t is Senator Cummins' idea that II
the public is to get real benefit from
the new banking and currency meas
ure. 1t must be made impossible for the
banks of any community to hamper or
hurt the credit OF any individual.
Allowing the government bank to do
commercial business to the extent Of
| acting as a check on other banks. he
considers, will afford the public the
protection it needs.
In all the bills pending, including the
administration bill, the public Is unable
to get any credit from the federal re-
serve bank or reserve system.
Nj. Common People can approach
the reserve banking system only thru
some bank. One of the secrets Of the
| strength of the Bank of England Is
! that it Is a commercial, not bankers
bank, and there is much complaint by
various monetary experts that this idea
has got no attention In congress. Sena-
| tor Cummins intends to emphasize It.
To Stop Expensive Custom.
Opposition to the time honofed GUS
| tom of the United States senate to vote
one years salary to the widows OF de-
ceased members is contained In res
! olution Jointly drawn by Senators Ken
yon and Borah. which will be intro
duced in the senate. Senator Kenyon
| has had 1t in mind for several months
| to introduce such q resolution. He
! mentioned this fact few days ago to
Senator Borah, who said that he. too.
was opposed to this custom Of the sem
ate, and had been intending to offer
resolution to stop 1t. This CONVERSE
! ton resulted In an agreement between
| the Junior senator from Iowa and the
senior senator from Idaho to Join in
submitting the resolution.
Synopsis Of Resolution.
The preamble Of the proposed resolu
| ton sets forth that this practice Of the
senate In voting a years salary to the
| widows Of deceased senators has Seen
continued for many years: that it has
become the established custom; that
| there Is no authority OF law for it;
! that it constitutes an unwarranted do
nation of public funds for private pur-
poses, and that, therefore, 1t Is the
sense and judgment of the senate that
hereafter no such donations shall be
| made and that said custom shall cease.
Senator Kenyon Saturday, discussing
| the resolution in his Office, called at
| tention to some of the recent payments
which have been made under this Gus
tom. These were to the widows Of the
| late Senators Elkins Rayner and Nix
| on and Vice President Sherman.
| E!kins Was Rich.
| Senator Kenyon said Senator Elkins
died worth about $10,000,000; that Ray
ner and Nixon were millionaires and
| that Mr.. Sherman was a very wealthy
man. Payments to widows OF senators
under this custom amounted to about
s50, 900 last year. $500 to each OF the
first three and $4,000 to Mrs. Sher
man.
Senator Kenyon said: "Of course
that amount annually will not bank
| rupt the government, but, in my opin-
ion. the practice is wrong and ought to
be stopped. It 10 another Of those
petty things the people Of this country
would put an end to in hurry II the
question should be given to them to
decide. An effort was. made about
twenty five years ago to put stop 70
this custom, but 1t failed.