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Show CURRENCY BILLS READY. It appears that tho portion of President Presi-dent Wilson's special message to Con-gross Con-gross which recognized the need of banking and currency reform has been taken up with a good deal of activity by some of the members. As was to bo expected, a number of bills- have been introduced already in tho session designed to reform tho currency and authorizo what is necessary to be done by way of expansion of our banking business to correspond with the expansion expan-sion of our commerce and trade. It is to bo assumed, as a matter of course, that these voluntary bills are crude, personal efforts, aud yet some of them may have some quality or point of merit, that could bo utilized in a practical measure which tho best experts ex-perts will agree upon. The voluntarj efforts of Congrcssmcji anxious to solve the currency question arc not, as a rule, expected to be of any practical service; aif(I still, it is always well to examine these bills to sec if something meritorious may not bo fouud in ihem. Usually, however, the man who is tho readiest with his measure, the most voluble talker in behalf of it, is the man to be avoided as a man of fads, with nothing substantial to found cither "his bill, or his talk upon. Representative Carter Glass of Virginia, Vir-ginia, who is or will be Chairman of the Banking and Currency Committee, is expected to introduce tho bill that will be approved by the administration, and that will have the endorsement of the Treasury Department- Mr. Glass is represented as conferring with Secretary Secre-tary McAdoo on currency matters, and on features of the financial situation which would necessarily havo to be taken into account in the framing of a banking and currency bill. Mr. Glas reports that he and Secretary McAdoo arc in perfect accord on the bill that will be introduced in the House, and it is probable that the bill which ho will iutroducc will be the bill that will pass, if indeed any at all is passed. In the Senato there arc many bills already introduced. The Monctary Commission bill has boon introduced by Senator Weeks of Massachusetts, but it is not nt all likelv that this lull w?H be acceptable to I he Houe scnator Hiuhtutk propo.ci wi,a - praifua' a re-enactment of the Vrecland bill for tho forming of currency associations throughout tho country; ho proposing twonty of such associations, which would bo in effect twenty rcscrvo nuclei nu-clei for the mutual support of all banks within the association. This contemplates contem-plates the compulsory joining of all of the banks withiu a given district or area with tho association as formed. Tho objections- to this policy aro something some-thing similar to those that arc brought out when it is proposed to compol tho banks to guarantee each others' deposits, de-posits, and then, as Bhowu in practico under tho Vrcolund bill, the trouble is for a bank to get out of tho association onco it is in it. Wo do not see that any of these Senators or members of the House pro-pose pro-pose an extension of the' banking system sys-tem so as to provide agricultural credits cred-its such as arc provided in Germany, Franco, and other European nations; but any currcuc- or banking proposition which leaves out tho agricultural credit banks or trust companies would certainly cer-tainly fail to meet tho situation. Wc hope that Representative Glass's bill, when hp presents it, will bo found to cover this point, especially sinco ho says that ho and Secretary McAdoo aro at one in this matter, and wo do not bclicvo that Secretary McAdoo would approve any bill that failed to provide for agricultural credit banks. Wo' are glad to see that tho membors of' Congress aro disposed to take up this matter of legislating on tho currency, cur-rency, and hopo that the offorts made will bo such as to result in tho formulation formu-lation of a satisfactory bill that may be at once simple, offcetivc, and com prehensiy( |
