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The Commoner
INARCH 1914
to tho quantity of money in the community.
This bill should be welcomed by the banks be
cause itr'giVes them advantages enough t6 make
every banker happy, but not advantage enough
to enable them to make everybody elso miser
able. While this law gives privileges to banks, it
restricts, restrains, limits and hedges them about
in such a way that they can not hurt the people.
And while it gives tho banks the privilego of
helping tho community it gives the people a
victory such as they havo not had in forty years.
This bill recognizes that the government has the
sovereign right to issue money and tho plain
people should build bonfires from ono coast, to
the othor to celebrate the first victory they havo
won since tho war on a monetary question.
It not only gave the people, acting through
the government, the right to issue the money
but it gave the people, acting through the gov
ernment, the right to control the banks. This
was the point that was most attacked. They had
a meeting of bankers in Boston a few months
ago, and a banker from Arkansas made a speech
in support of the bill; the press dispatches said
that he was the only man in the convention who
favored tho bill. When he asked who should
control the board, the delegates shouted out with
one voice, "The bankers." Nobody but a banker
would ever have thought of anything so absurd
as that. There is not another group of people
anywhere in this country who have the audacity
or impudence to suggest that they be permitted
to regulate themselves, and the only reason they
have is that for forty years they havo been the
Joseph with a coat of many colors, the favorite
child.
Do the railroads demand the right to select
the members of the interstate commerce com
mission? Who would think of letting the rail
roads pick the men who regulate them; and yet
they have as much right to do it as the bankers
have to ask that they be allowed to regulate
themselves. Whose money is it that makes the
banker rich? His own? No. If he loaned only
his own money he would not go into the bank
ing business. Whose money does he loan? He
loans other people's money. Am I right when I
say that 85 per cent .of the money that the banks
loan does not belong to them? If I am mistaken,
I desire to be corrected. I am informed that
statistics show that 85 per cent of all the money
loaned by banks belongs to depositors. Who
says that the owners of 15 per cent should have
entire control of the banks, and that the people
who own 85 per cent should have no voice in
the regulation of the banks.
Wpodrow Wilson did not take that view of
the subject. He was not afraid when they said
that this board would be a political board if it
was appointed by government officials. Do we
not do everything else by political boards? Are
not our judges political boards? Are not our
congresses political boards? Are not our execu
tive officers members of political boards? . What
does a political board not do? Do not these
political bodies make the laws that protect our
property? Do they not make the laws that
regulate marriage and divorce? Do they not
enact the law's that govern the bequest and
descent of property, and do not these boards
these men elected by the people do they not
make the laws that provide for capital punish
ment? If the people, speaking through political
boards, have the right to usher a man unpre
pared into the presence of his God, who says
they have not sense enough to regulate the
banks?
Woodrow Wilson was on the people's side,
and you have the law as it now is, because he
was not afraid to protect the rights of all the
people in defiance of the demands of the few.
And then this law broke the monopoly of the
national banks. Ever since tho national bank
was organized, it has had a monopoly of the
favors of the federal government; whatever in
fluence the federal government could exert for
the help of a community was exerted through
the national banks. More than half of our
banks are state banks, and state banks have to
share with the national banks the burden of. the
business of the country. Why should a man be
told that if he is borrowing money of a state
bank he must close his account and go over and
borrow of a national bank in order to get the
benefit of the national treasurer's aid in a time
of emergency?
This law admits the state bank to participa
tion with national banks. The first law of this
kind wo have had since the power of the na
tional bank became dominant in finance. The
The Congressional Campaign
Next November the people will elect a now
house of representatives and one-third of tho
senate, and it is of the highest importance that
the democrats should be successful in this elec
tion. When the now congress convenes tho presi
dent will have completed the first half of his
term and it would bo a severe disappointment
to him to have to work with a republican con
egress during the second half. Defeat for the
party would not only prevent the enactment of
remedial measures, but it would raiso a pre
sumption against the administration and greatly
weaken tho party for the presidential campaign
of 191G. It behooves every democrat, therefore,
to bestir himself and contribute his mite toward
the winning of a victory.
How can it be done? First, by tho selection
of good democrats as candidates. Records should
be scrutinized and the tendencies of aspirants in
quired into. A distinction should be drawn be
tween the man who does right under compulsion
and the man who does right becauso he wants
to. Tho man who has to be coerced Into tho
doing of that which is right is an uncertain
quantity at best and subtracts from the energy
of the party, because a part of the energy of
those who are reliable has to be employed in tho
persuasion of those who would otherwise go
astray. No man has any claim upon a public
office except on the theory that he can do better
than anyone else the work that the people want
done, and something more than ability is re
quired to do tho people's work.
In this land, whero wo aro approaching more
and more toward universal education, it is not
likely that a public man will lack intelligence.
It is much more difficult to determine a man's
fundamental bias than it is to measure his in
tellectual ability. "Ah a man thinketh In his
heart so Is ho" tho heart needs to be examined
into nioro than the head.
Is tho man In sympathy with tho mass of tho
people who demand protection of their rights?
Or Is ho In sympathy with tho fow who clamor
for privilege? And, If In syn'pathy with tho
poople, Is he Incorruptible? Is he proof against
tomptations tho poworful tomptatlons that
ono hns to resist when he deals with large af
fairs? Has ho tho moral courage to stand alone,
If need be, in the defense of the right, or is ho
afraid? Tho conscientious man, whose heart is
on tho people's side, can bo trusted to deal with
questions as they arise; no othor man should bo
considered, no matUi' how well educated or
brilliant ho may be.
The democrats are now In power not only in
tho nation but-largely throughout tho states.
This dominating position can only bo retained
by tho election of men who measure up to the re
sponsibilities imposed by success. Let each
democrat do his duty and use his influence
towards tho selection of those w.lio can bo
trusted. Tiie president has done his part nobly;
now let tho party stand by him and uphold his
hands by sending to the senate and the house
of representatives those upon whom ho can rely
for an Istanco In embodying democratic prin
ciples into legislation. W. J. BRYAN. .
first law that recognized the rights of these
other institutions and put the men who deal
with them upon the same footing as tho men
who deal with national banks. '
But, the great advantage of this bill is that
it breaks the power of Wall street, and disinte
grates the money trust. Do you know what
that means to this country? You do not havo
to wait until the law is in operation to find
out what It means. A few months ago there
were indications of a stringency. There were
evidences that, by concerted action, there was
to be a withdrawal of circulation, a restriction
of credit, and a tightening of the money market.
(Concluded on page 13.)
t
REPEAL OP THE CANAL TOLLS LAW
On another page will be found the president's
plea for the repeal of the law granting American
coastwise vessels exemption from tolls at the
Panama canal. The law is regarded by foreign
nations 'as a violation of treaty obligations and
the president, being specially entrusted with the
responsibility of representing the nation in its
relations with the outside world, has asked for
a repeal of the law. His message puts the re
quest upon high grounds, and there is no doubt
that tho public will support him. Our country
will not mar the glory of a great enterprise by
doing anything that would raise a question as
to the nation's honor in its dealings with foreign
countries. W. J. BRYAN.
Rural credits and water power conservation
are two important matters of legislation which
the democratic administration will endeavor to
thresh out before the adjournment of congress.
Bills embodying the idea of the party leaders on
these matters are now in process of being draft
ed. Tho steadiness of purpose to redeem plat
form pledges which marks the democratic con
gressional plan of action is causing republican
leaders to look worse than worried.
It may be said, without danger of successful
contradiction, that it was no fault of the jingo
English newspapers, with their hasty and in
temperate criticism of the American nation's
policy in Mexico that will make it possible to
celebrate the one hundredth aniversary of peace
between English speaking nations.
Eastern railways are discontinuing the sale of
liquors on their trains, following the example of
several railroads in other sections. In time the
only tanks to be found on American railways
will be those immediately attached to the engine.
HIE ANNIVERSARY DINNER
On the evening of March Gth tho cabinet gqve
a dinner, to tho president and his family In cele
bration of- the. first, year of their association to
gether. It Is needless to say that it wasan-enjoyable
occasion.
Tho fellowship which has characterized the
president and tho members of his official family
has attracted the attention of the nation. A
cabinet meeting Is an Intellectual treat to those
who attend It; tho members have become ac
quainted with each other and acquaintance has
developed into confidence. Tho president Is a
rare combination of open-mindedness and inde
pendence, and his example has been a potent
factor In welding the secretaries together.
Ono of tho most important elements In tho
successful working together of the executive and
his advisers is the fact that each and every one
in the group is in a position to follow his judg
ment and conscience without consulting any
special interest. This Is tho open secret which
explains the freedom with which they confer and
tho heartiness with which they cooperate. They
owo allegiance to the same constituency the
people and have a common purpose the pub
lic welfare.
TUB BAKER BILL
On another page will be found a letter written
by a young Hindu of Calcutta, India, who is at
tending the Nebraska state university. This
young man makes objections to some of the pro
visions of the Baker bill, and particularly empha
sizes the importance of eliminating the restric
tions of tho bill imposed on Hindu students en
tering the United States for the purpose of at
tending our universities. The provisions of tho
bill requiring a student to secure a certificate
from a British officer that the student has suffi
cient means to pay his expenses while attending
school in the United States, this young man de
clares, amounts to practically the same as ex
clusion, as ho claims that it is almost impossible
to get such a certificate issued. If this young
Hindu's claim is true, the. change that he sug
gests has some merit and could easily be accepted
without affecting the Intent of the bill.
Former President Taft has been "obliging"
by giving his views as to the future of the re
publican party. In view of the large number of
states that organization carried in the 1912 elec
tion, it requires an optimist of Mr. Taft's size tf
figure out any sort of a future for it.
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