The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1916-06-23
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of the country in and around Wall
Street-a power that is currently be-
lieved to be responsible for all our
financial panics. 1t was a system that
was for years acknowledged even by
some of the leaders of the Republican
party, to be faulty and Inadequate to
the needs of the country, but that par
| ty was afraid to undertake to reform
the system except as directed by Ma
tional Bank interests and because of
the opposition of those interests to
any radical change in the system, or
because the party lacked the construc-
tive ability and the progressive lead
ership to formulate a healthy and
wholesome system of finance. But
the Democratic party took hold of the
work of reconstructing our national
banking system as soon as it got full
control Of the government, and in the
face Of dire predictions, the powerful
opposition of the National Banks and
threats of panic, perfected and passed
the Federal Reserve law. Already it's
wisdom has been proved and it is gen.
orally acknowledged by the ablest
financiers to be almost perfect in its
working and a safeguard against
financial panics. The makers of the
Republican party platform did not
dare criticise this measure, but were
as silent as the grave on it, for they
were too narrow to commend it.
Then there is the Rural Credit law,
fashioned somewhat after the FEEDER
al Reserve law, that has just been
passed by Congress and has the Pres
ident's Endorsement. As soon as the
system can be organized and put into
operation, farmers all over our land
will have place where they can bor-
row the money they need for i'm
poFelhcHL anu ehleIlSlOH VI Inelr
business at low rate of interest and
on liberal terms. The Republican
platform does say that it "favors an
effective system of rural credits as
opposed to the ineffective law pro-
posed by the present Democratic adj
ministration. But it doesn't at
tempt to say wherein it is ineffective
or how they could improve on it. The
Republicans certainly didn't happen
to hit on any such favor to the farm
ers during their more than forty years
of control.
The Federal Trade Commission is
another piece of Democratic construc-
tive and progressive work, whose
practical workings in insuring fair
business competition and helping those
who want to do legitimate business
have already been verified. And there
is the labor legislation enacted, the
proposed merchant marine bill, the
defense preparedness bills, the Pres
ident's foreign policy, the Mexican
situation and the attitude of the ad-
ministration, that deserve attention,
but small local paper cannot in
single editorial or in a single issue of
the paper, give them such attention
as we would like; but they will be
touched upon later and perhaps fire.
quently as occasion demands in the
course of the campaign.
The Democratic party is proud of
this record, as it has reason to be,
The Republicans and their platform
bring no argument against any of
these measures, and while they sneer
at them, which is about all they can
do, they have not a single specific
thing to offer in their stead The in
ference must be, therefore, that if
given the opportunity they would go
back to the flesh pots of Egypt rath-
er than move forward. But they don't
dare say so. Do the American peo-
pie want to go back and not forward
It is for them to say.