Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1916-11-02


and automatically responsive to the
genuine needs of business. With the
assurance of such credit facilities, the
genius of our people operating upon
cur wonderful natural resources has
already established stable prosperity
based upon sound principle and a de-
gree of wealth never before dreamed
of in the world.
We have overcome the faults of the
old r publican financial system
through the federal reserve act. We
have destroyed the concentration of
bank reserves in the great financial
centers and have distributed them
throughout the country by establish
ing twelve federal reserve districts in
each of which we have located a great
financial reserve bank. Into each Of
these federal reserve banks we have
put the reserves of the national banks
Of each district. Each federal reserve
bank is under the control of local
boards of directors, chosen by the
banks of the district, and the United
States government. We have provid-
ed for an elastic system of currency
and credit which will always be suffi-
cient for and automatically responsive
to the legitimate business needs of the
country, because these credits are now
based upon notes representing actual
commercial transactions, or notes Sc
cured by live stock or the staple COM
modities of the farm, or upon agricul-
tural transactions representing the
actual production and marketing of
crops. AS the needs of these gen.
timely beneficial enterprises expand or
contract, currency or credit expands
or contracts with them. What won
derful transformation this has made
in the business of the country! There
is now enough credit for legitimate
the farmer who wants to fatten his
cattle, produce his crop or market his
crop when it natures. Under the fed
eral reserve system interest rates
throughout the country have been re-
duced and are becoming more and
more uniform, so that the merchant or
farmer in one part of the country with
a thoroughly we'll secured note can ne
gotiate it on almost as reasonable
terms as his competitor or fellow
worker in another part of the country.
We have given our national and fed
eral reserve banks the right to estab-
fish branches in foreign countries and
to deal in acceptances based upon our
export and import trade. American
banks are for the first time in Ameri-
can history put in position to compete
with foreign banks and to help Ameri-
can commerce throughout the world.
Already our banks and bankers are
dong great things for American trade
because of these new powers given
them by the Democratic federal re-
serve act. We have substituted dollar
exchange for dollar diplomacy, which
is the true way to secure and hold our
share of the worlds commerce. Dollar
exchange represents the conquest of
foreign markets through friendship
and reciprocally advantageous trade
relations. Dollar diplomacy represents
the attempt to secure foreign conces-
sions and trade by force-by the use
Of the army and navy of the United
States.
This wise policy has already made
dollar exchange known throughout the
world and has largely displaced the
pound sterling as the common medium
of exchange for the worlds commerce.
These twelve Federal Reserve
Banks have given to the people of
each of the twelve Federal Reserve
Districts an Independent financial or
gOniZatiOn of their own, supervised by
the Federal Reserve Board, a respon-
sible Government board at Washing
ton, and assures to them control of
their own affairs and suficiency and
stability of credit at reasonable rates
of interest throughout every month of
the year. No longer are the people of
these twelve Federal Reserve Districts
the financial vassals of small and
powerful group of Wall Street men.
Now, what have Mr.. Hughes and
the Republican party had to say about
the Federal Reserve System? Not a
word o. praise; not single intima-
ton of generous recognition of splen-
did piece of work we'll done; on the
contrary. only petty and carping criti-
cism. Mr.. Hughes has, by implication,
condemned the Federal Reserve Sys-
tenn. If elected, does he intend to re-
peal it? l believe he does. | believe
that he and the Republican party in
tend to destroy the twelve Federal
Reserve Banks now established and
to substitute therefor one central bank
located in Wall Street, and to re-es-
tablish through that central bank the
control by Wall Street of the credits
of the country.
This is a very vital question to the
people of the United States. Can they
afford to take this risk? Can they
afford to make a change now which
would mean tremendous business up
heaval in the country and put in jeop-
ardy the great prosperity which is