The Washington herald., 1916-08-22
SAYS COMPTROLLER
KEEPS STATE BANKS
FROM MONEY SYSTEM

J. J.. Farley, president Of the Bank Of
Valley City, n. D, and former tress,rer
OF the North Dakota Bankers Assooa.-
ton, has made public a letter vyJtten
July 10 to John skelton Williams, Comp
troller OF the Currency, OF which the fol-
lowing is a copy:
Your twelye-page pamphlet entitled
Decision Of the Comptroller Of III. Cur
reney on the Application for a Renewal
OF the Charter Of the Risss National
BANK bearing your official seal printed
at the Government Printing once, dis
triouted at public erpensce under your
Thanking privilege. and addressed TO IN.
president and board Of director, Of this
oank, has been carefully read and oop-
sidered by the undersigned.
As this bank is organized under North
Dakota law and is accordingly not under
your lerisdiction or control, assume that
copy has been mailed at government
expense TO all the banks Of the country,
sIate as wei as national, and that there
wac intended. assume roor.ov.r Tb,t
your real intention IN giving vour lsbo-.s
explanation Of what you call your sDe-
cslon IN such liberal dirnensIons mt
Withstanding the scarcity and hieb cost
/ OF INK and paper, is in the nature Of a
stump speech. setting forth ex psrte your
sloe OF the legal controversy between
your ONCE and the Risss Bank recently
terminated in the banks favor.
also understand that your so-oslled
decision to grant a renewal OF the Rigs.
BANK charter was the direct result IN
TACT the necessary sequel, TO tn. more
Important decision Of Mr.. Justice Mccoy
: : IN the legal controversy referred TO. Al
lhough the decision last referred 10 must
have been highly satisfactory TO the or
GERS and directors OF the Riggs Bank. a,
II was 10 bankers generally throushout
lhe country, l do not anticipate that they
Will deem II necessary TO circulsrfze the
banks OF the country, a. you have done,
even though you might offer them tn.
IIee use OF the government printing press
ana the mails for the purpose Of placing
their side before the public They are not
in politics and you are
They can assume that the banker, Of
the country and the people generally ar.
sufficiently Informed at present as 20 IN.
respective merits OF the controversy. II
any lingering doubt remained OF your
personal and political Hnimus in the mat
tiers in controversy between your orros
ana the Riggs Bank, your pamphlet die
trlouteo so widely at the expense OF the
taxpayers would remove such doubt
Moreover, It furnishes final and conclu-
siNe proof that the decision OF Mr Jus
tce Mccoy was full and clear reflection.
not only Of the law and the equities in
the case. but OF public opinion ae wen.
The bank Of which 1 am president
lie one Of the few State banks in North
Dakota with sufficient capital TO be eligt-
BILE under the law for admission into IN.
Federal Reserve System. In banking
capital, less Investments IN real .,tste
Il is in third place among the more than
go banks now operating under our State
law. The officers and directors Of the
Federal Reserve Bank OF the Ninth Die
/ trict have repeatedly invited and urged
US TO Join and have frequently asked our
objection to Joining. We are fully con-
scious Of the great benefits 70 trade, in
oustry and investments as well as the
business OF banking specifically, that are
possible as a result OF the Federal re
serve system, 81 administered wisely and
kept free Of personal and political in
| fUences. and We would gladly pay our
| pro rata share OF the expense OF main
tanning the system, which is now being
( borne by the national banks exclusively
We are conscious. too, ss all must
/ be, including yourself, that the reserve
/ bank system will not reach its full
/ measure OF usefulness while more than
! three-fourths OF the country's banks
| remain outside and we look with mis-
| givinEs. you must on the numerous
! conversions OF national banks into State
banks now taking place throughout tn.
! country. which must result in a further
/ weakening OF the Federal reserve sys-
TEN. There must be good and sufscient
| reasons for these numerous conversions
! that are taking place, and there must
also be reason why eligible State banks
except in a very few isolated cases, sre
not Joining.
The writer OF this letter is Demo
Crat, his predecessor in the once Of
/ president was a Democrat. and four OF
our nine directors are Democrats which
/ IS a larger proportion than Is usual in
/ this overwhelmingly Republican State.
/ We give full credit TO the present Demo
cratic administration for placing the
/ Federal reserve law on the statute books
and for the honest and patriotic inten-
/ ton OF President Wilson 10 make the
| system a success.
But we have no present intention Of
/ joining the Federal reserve system, nor
/ OF converting into a national bank, and
| our principal reason for deciding to re-
/ main outside and Of continuing TO ope--
fte as a State bank Is John SHELTON
Williams. the present Comptroller Of the
! Currency. from whose authority we are
now happily and wholly FREE and we IN
| tend TO remain so."-wsu Street Jour
nal