The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1919-09-07

tanned to the measure were thus pre-
senteo by Mr.. Huddleston:
This bill enables national banks to
own stock in other corporations. l
regard that as bad in principle, and L
am not willing to approve it
The bill authorizes national banks
to divert their capital to purposes
wholly different from the purposes for
which the banks were created 1t au-
thorizes a misuse--a perversion-of
their assets such as l must oppose.
1T enables banks to divert thor as
sets from domestic uses to use in for
eign countries. and L would not be able
to vote for bill of that kind.
But there is another ground, Mr..
Chairman, which it seems to me is still
more important than any of these. This
bill enables national banks, in sub
stance and effect, to form combine.
That is to say they may go in TO-
gether. each one subscribing for GER
tain amount OF the stock OF a corpora
tion--owning an equal amount in it
and being practically equal partners
in that corporation, so that under this
| bill they may be able to form sort
of financial trust which will enable
them to dominate any industry they
choose For Illustration, the national
banks of the south would be permitted
under this bin to finance an immei.s Sc
cotton exporting con poration, Coz
Germ of such a vast strength of cap
ital that there would be no hope Of
anybody competing With it in foreign
markets.
They would be able to finance their
corporation in such way as that there
could be no other competitor in the
business. and in that way it could mo-
nopolize the cotton-exporting business
and control the export of cotton, jug
gle the price at will. sell cotton at
whatever price it chose to fix to the
people in foreign countries, and pay
whatever it pleased to the producers
in this country.
Here we are, as it seesm to me, 60
ing on with very little thought--for
it seems that this particular crotchet
in my mind if it be a mere crotchet,
has not been in anybody else's mind
it seems to me We are going on with
very little consideration in the House,
busily creating a vast financial ma
chine which may have such immense
powers that it will be able to crush
any industry that comes within the
scope of its operations.
The capital of the banks is not
merely their private concern 1t be-
longs to the people, and the banks
| simply hold it in trust for the public
| benefit. / am not willing, MIR. Chair
| man, that the resources of banks built
| up by them out of the peoples conf
dence, out of the money that the peo-
| Pile have loaned them or that the gov
eminent itself has loaned them, should
| be used as an engine of oppression, as
| a means of fostering monopoly, or IN
! erecting a vast trust to sap the
strength of American production"
| Very briefly Representative Plat
replied:
"Mr. Chairman, 1 move to strike out
, the last word for the purpose of say
| ing few words in reply to what the
| gentleman from Alabama (Mr. Hud.
dleston) said when he spoke about the
possibility of a great financial cor
poration which could dominate our ex-
port trade through the instrumental
tiles provided for in this bill. The
United States Steel corporation, when
is the dominating force in the homo
city of the gentleman from Alabama,
can sell it's steel rails to a company
in South America or in Europe and
take the bonds of that company. 1t
has sufficient financial resources to be
able to do that-to be able to extend
credit over a long time The Genera.
Electric company can sell it's electrical
| equipment to Europe or South Amer
| lea and take bonds of the company to
which it sells it. and the Standard on
| company can do the same. The Bald =
win Locomotive company not only can
/ do it but is doing it; but smaller con-
Germs cannot take these long time Sc
curities and secure. with them the cap
itai they have to have on hand to pay
the wages of their men and to buy the
raw material, and this is for the pur-
pose of enabling the smaller manufac-
turing concerns and the exporters of
cotton and grain, and so forth, not 10
initiate business, but to continue the
| business we are doing. to get the for
eign trade that we are entitled to and
must have to enable our demands to
he met"