The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-06-23
BILL VINES ON CURRENCY BILL
by BILL VINES

! properly safeguarded. This word elias
tic sounds familiar and we greet it
with pleasure. 1t is one of our old friends.
| Webster saws that elastic" means haviu.
elasticity, and elasticity means IA prom
erty in bodies by which they restore
themselves to their original forms.p That
is trouble with our currency 1t will
not restore itself to its original form.
One gets his weekly pay, he starts to SAM
pie the brand of wild and unconfined joy
on f street or some other busy thorough
fare, and his weekly dividend shrinks
away in a most alarming manner. Next
morning when he is full of poignant regret
and soured gin rickeys, his weekly pay
| refuses absolutely to restore itself to Its
original form. There is no elasticity
| Whatsoever Certainly this is a step in
the right direction, and we eheerfully sub
scribe to this view OF the bill. However.
| we view with some suspicion the
/ last clause. We think 1T untmely
and irrevelant. We believe that the words
| properly safe-suarded' should 30
stricken out and we will suggest an
amendment TO some of our influential
friends in the House.
indt mas peeH the greatest CflN Dack
to our present system of currency. | am
| sure that the great mass-the rank ana
the file-of the common people will agree
with me, that our currency has been too
we'll and too properly safe-guarded. This
| safeguarding business has been over
done In the past, and the banks of the
country have put entirely too much ex-
preston in 1t. 1t is reactionary TO have
those words in a progressive reform bill
| 1t shows a lack of confidence which has
always been a characteristic OF the
American banker and ought not 10 be
encouraged. This safe guarding business
is one fundamental reason why 80 many
of us are unfamiliar with our circu-
lating medium: how can we know any
thing about the currency when it has
been properly ''safe-guarded'' in the
past that we can never get in handshak-
ing distance of a ten dollar note? It is
one of the crying evils.
What the common people want is an
elastic currency that will restore itself
to its original form and some system bv
which a little heat can be put into a
bankers foot. Also it would add greatly
to the circulating powers of our currency
system If board of arbitration could
be appointed in connection Herewith
authorized to settle all differences between
capital and labor in a fair and equitable
manner by splitting the differences in
their views about wages. For instance.
If the managing editor believed that I
was worth $40 "a week, and / believed
that | was worth 500 a week, this board
of arbitration would settle the whole
question by ordering the managing editor
to pay me just half the difference be-
tween us. Nothing could be fairer than
this and it would increase the circfIlation
of currency which is thing much
desired.
I am afraid that 1 have been little
too backward in expressing my views
to the President upon this subject, if I
had been alive to the situation | might
have succeeded in embodyng some of
them in the bill, thereby greatly i'm
proving it. However. it might not be
too late, and l will suggest them to
Oscar.
In the meantime let us hope for the
best