The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-11-13

of those two sections. Governor liar ding did not deny that what Senator Smith said was true, but he told Sena- tor Smith and others that he did not intend to charge the progressive in terest rate at all on loans or discounts in the South and West-that he intend ed to apply it only to New York. He said that New York was getting more money than she was entitled to and rate amendment fastened on to the Federal Reserve Banking Act so that he could use it against New York. He said that by doing that he could and would greatly reduce loans to banks and speculative interests in New York and would then have plenty of money for the South and West at the crop moving time.
 That sounded good. The South and West had a right to demand and right to expect that a sufficient amount of money be sent into the two sections to enable the cotton and grain producers to market their products so as to obtain profit and make a success of their business.
 Governor Harding and the Republi- can Congress succeeded in passing that amendment and thus perfecting their plans for bringing on panic.
 The stage is now set and the dread full tragedy is ready to begin. Cover nor Harding is waiting for instructions from Republican leaders. He is ready to begin his part in the terrible drama, and on May IS, 1920, Republican Sem ate passed a resolution calling on Gov ernor Harding to know what he was going to do about bringing on defla- tion. Governor Harding understood and working in concert with Republican leaders, he replied promptly that he would use every power at his command to bring about the situation sought by the Senate resolution.
 Senator Owen of Oklahoma, an able and courageous senator, one of the authors of the Federal Reserve Bank ing System, stated in the Senate at the time the deflation resolution, ad- dressed to Governor Harding and the Federal Reserve Board, was peg on which they intended to hang their plan for a panic, and he was right about 1t.
 The Republican convention met at Chicago in June to nominate a candl- date for President and write plat form. It will be remembered that Sem ator Borah, Republican senator from Iowa, stated at Chicago on that oc- casion that what he saw there on the part of the big financiers, who were trying to control the Republican con yention, reminded him of the corrupt and degenerate days when theNemperor- ship of Rome was bought outright sold on the auction block to the highest bidder.
 That Republican convention, in it's platform, declared in favor of a policy of deflation. Hon. Warren G. Harding peace to his ashes!-a very clever gentleman personally. but one with whom I differed very sharply on poiitl- cal questions, was nominated by the Republican convention for President. In his acceptance speech he declared in favor of a policy of deflation, and Governor Harding, who had been court ing favor with and doing the bidding of Republican leaders for several weeks then, wired the Republican candidate for President congratulations upon that speech-a speech not only promising deflation, but attacking the Democratic party and promising to undo what the Democratic party had done. When Gov ernor Harding sent that telegram, he was sitting in his office at Washing ton not a hundred yards from the White House where Woodward Wilson, his stricken chief, lay battling for his lllt. III lliGI tClS6 Laiiy ao III HID PAOAAAPs reply>to the Republican Senate, Cover nor Harding was giving assurances that he, as head of the Federal Reserve Board, appointed as Democrat by a Democrat, ,swas ready and eager to aid the Republicans in carrying out their plans to produce a panic. Republican victory in the presidential campaign seemed certain and Governor Harding wanted, not only to make sure that the Republicans would permit him to serve out the two years remaining of ms term as governor of the Federal Re serve Board, but he wasN striving to so please the money lords of Wall Street and Republican leaders that they would of the Federal Reserve Board and thus make his reappointment as governor of the board for term of ten years an absolute certainty.
 The time had come for action. No longer was it necessary to keep their purpose hid. All of the arrangements for bringing on the panic had been made. The farm loan banks were closed. The War Finance Corporation was closed and the Repuglican Con- gross had fastened on to the Federal Reserve Banking Act that cruel and criminal progressive interest rate 1920 was brought about and under which a bank in Alabama was charged STA per cent. They never disclosed their purpose to produce panic to the public until it was too late for the farmers, merchants and bankers of the South and West to take the steps necessary to protect their interests. If they had started their deflation panic in January the farn4er would have known how to shape his business so as to make his losses on the years transactions as light as possible. He would not have involved