Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1921-02-11
U. S. FACES ERA
OF PROSPERITY
Comptroller of the Currency
Says Nation Is on Sounder
Basis.
BANK RESOURCES SO BILLION
Country Will Soon Enter Upon New
Era of Prosperity and Healthy
Progress-LowerP Prices Hinge
on Reduction by Middleman.

Washington, Feb. 9.-The country
lis now in many respects on sounder
basis, economically, than it has been
FOR years, Comptroller Of the Currency
John Shelton Williams Informed con-
lgresS in what he described as his
,"seventh and last annual report
/ Def1ation, obviously inevitable a
year ago, has come, he said, and prices
lof many basis commodities and raw
materials have returned to pre-War
Elevels or below.
1T now remains for the middle
man." the comptroller declared, ITO
adjust his profits to the new prices
before the ultimate consumer will re-
Iceive the benefit of the reduced -cost
Eof living"
Labor, however, Mr.. Williams said,
must soon determine whether shut
down and idleness are to be preferred
ito lower wage scale which takes into
consideration the lower living charges.
mills and factories cannot afford to
Operate unless they can turn out COM
'lnodities at prices the public can afford
to pay, he asserted, and it is better
for the manufacturers to operate and
produce goods at cost or at a very
narrow margin of profit than to close
down entirely.
Participation by labor with capital
in the profits he suggested as the
only principle to restore business.
when conditions abroad become
more settled or stabilized" Comp
troller Williams declared in a summary
of the present outlook, "and when
at home much needed adjustments are
effected in the costs to the consumer
of steel and iron products, which are
still quoted at twice their prewar
price, and when coal for which the
government itself has paid in recent
months as much as four times the pre-
war prices. and certain other conlmodi-
ties which are now being kept up arti-
ficially or as result of monopolistic
control far above the preWar figures,
get back to normal, our country, resid-
ing on solid foundation, will be pre-
pared to enter upon new, and, let us
hope, long enduring era of prosperity
and healthy progress"
During the fiscal year ended June 30,
1920, the comptroller said, there were
1857 national banks in operation, the
highest number ever reported, and de-
spite the difficulties encountered, they
made the best record in immunity from
failure in about 40 years.
The percentage of the capital of
failed banks to the total of all banks,
he explained, was about 2-1000 of / per
cent, or 16 times better than the aver
age for the entire 81 years since the
Inauguration of the system.
Combined resources of all banks in
the country on June 30 1920, includ-
ing national, state and federal re-
serve, the comptroller said, aggre-
gated $50, 153, 100000.
Figures showing for the first time
the business of the principal borrow
ers from national banks were present
ed by the comptroller. Loans and dis
counts on November Is, 1920, he said,
aggregated 13,764,000000, of which
loans to farmers and live stock raisers
amounted to $1,99 100000, or IA per
eent; loans to manufacturing concerns
appropriated $780,, 100000, or q per
cent; to merchants, mercantile con-
Germs, individuals in the jobbing BUSH
ness and trading wholesale and retail,
S3. 5S1. 900 900. or % per cent.
During the last fiscal year, the
comptroller reported, three presidents,
eight cashiers of banks and 80 as
sistant cashiers, tellers, bookkeepers
and others Of national banks were
convicted of criminal violations of the
banking law and sentenced to terms
of Imprisonment running up to six
years and varying fines.