The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1934-01-16

CURRENCY uncertainty which has been
~ retarding business recovery should be re-
moved BY the Presidents message to congress
There has been sincere fear of 16-to-1
silver or Of printing press currency. The I'M
known future OF the dollar plus the nervous
ness caused by the indefinite managed cur
rency experiment. left private capital I'M
willing to risk new investment for recovery.
There resulted kind Of capital strike, re-
fusal to put to work the vast unused credit
resources available This was an inevitable
human reaction.
The President now has faced and met
this situation by his declaration for sound
money and for eventual sterilization on
gold bullion basis between so and so per cent
Of the value Of the old gold dollar
This newspaper believes that the Roose-
welt monetary policy as stated to congress
yesterday is wise and Just. eve believe that
it has better chance Of working than any
alternative policy which he could have chosen
at this time.
OF course it will please neither the ex-
IRENE inflationists nor the extreme deflation-
lists. It is frankly conpronise-an attempt
On the one hand to preserve the advantages
without the disadvantages Of the old gold
system which collapsed; and an attempt on
the other hand to experiment with man
aged currency to stabilize dollar purchasing
power but within stated limits and on an
adequate gold base instead of on printing
press capacity.
II the public understands this policy and
If the business community will give it de-
served support, private capital will come out
Of hiding and industry will begin to PICK up
rapidly.
The Roosevelt program is:
Congress is to amend the law, which now
permits the President to place the value of
the dollar anywhere between 100 to SO cents.
so that hereafter the range must be between
60 and so cents. Moreover congress is asked
to inpound in the United States treasury all
monetary gold thus taking from the federal
reserve banks the gold which earlier was taken
from individuals and corporations and thus
changing our system from a gold coin to
gold bullion basis
The profit from Observation-Disclosures
S3,400.000000 and $4,2O00O0O0O, depending on
the CnOlCe OF rate within the 60-tO-50 cents
Imits-therefore no longer will accrue to the
reserve banks, but to the people through their
government. Of this sum about $4,000 900
will be used as foreign exchange sterilization
fund similar to the successful British fund,
and the remainder will swell the general gov
eminent reserves.
Extreme inflationists would prefer to cut
loose from the gold standard altogether. They
argue that there is insufficient currency, and
that the gold dollar IS unjust and unavoidable
because it makes the debtor pay two or more
dollars for every dollar borrowed in times of
high prices.
The Roosevelt program rejects the argu-
ment for more currency, as such. Since there
is more currency and credit available now
than at the peak of prosperity, the problem is
not to get more currency, but to put into cir
culation what we have Hence the necessity of
large government expenditures for wages and
goods until private capital resumes it's normal
expenditures and creates rapid monetry circu-
latiOn
Under the Roosevelt program the infla-