Show 0 A National Topics Interpreted by William Bruckart D D. C. C I National Press Building Building- Washington Washington It It begins to appear that the Roosevelt elt ml adminIstration ministration has returned from fron Home Nome Affairs its excursion Into to the Fore foreign parts am amIs and andIs andis Is now ready t to engage In rehabilitation of domestic domestic domestic domes domes- tic affairs to the exclusion of or International International international Inter Inter- national problems except the matter matte of ot reciprocal Is true that tha Secretary Hull of the Department of ot State Secretary Roper of ot th the Department of Commerce and Sona Sona- tor norah Bomb In the senate have hav talked about foreign affairs In one om way or or another but hut none of ot them then occasioned any observation or suggestions sug sUJ- from the White House b by their assertions Among the occurrences In the recent recent recent re re- re- re cent period that tend to show how hov the administration again is ts putting home affairs to the forefront anthe an are the new banking bill the plans for foi recovery revival under the five fi billion billion bil bil- bil lion dollar public works bill anc and the determination of ot house and senate senate sen sen- ate lately under a n White House Hous spur to clip the wings of If 11 no not wholly eradicate the so called so-called called holding holding holding hold hold- ing companies Attention might b be called also to the uprising in th the Department of or Agriculture where when Secretary Wallace and AgrIcultural Adjustment Administrator Chester Cheste Davis ls combined a u few days ago to tc eliminate wing left-wing members Of f theIr theli respective staffs They did it summarily sum sum- marily but the end Is not yet et either as ns respects plans of 1 Wallace and DavIs ls or o the yelps eps that may be expected from the radicals who were ousted The general Information Is that In shelving foreign n matters Mr Roosevelt noose has determined to lay laj aside the St St. Lawrence waterway control controversy ersy until pressing ng domestic matters are ore disposed of ot Almost in inthe Inthe Inthe the same breath It can cann be said that new v activity has b been en disclosed on the part of ot the New Dealers to spread their doctrine Into the states state and establish If It possible uniform laws everywhere concerning privately private private- ly owned utilities such as ns electricity and gas While no one will say so It Is the understanding that considerable considerable consid consid- erable pressure is being placed beh be behind behind be be- hind h nd the effort to get et state legislatures legislatures legislatures legisla legisla- tures to pass uniform public utilities utilities ties bills measures which have been drafted In the Public Works administration administration admin admin- here Probably as ns important as any legislation leg that has gone to congress In recent months New Banking Is the new bank- bank Bill ing lag bill It was transmitted to congress congress congress con con- gress in a most unspectacular man man- ner nero There was no out and endorsement endorsement en en- by the White House nor was the sponsoring of ot the draft made clear The legislation was dropped Into the house hopper the day after Representative e chairman of the house committee on banking and currency had given gl out his own summarization Chairman Chairman Chair Chair- man Fletcher of the senate committee commit commit- tee on banking and currency received received received re re- the bill the same day ns as Mr and Immediately went Into a huddle with himself behind closed doors floors to study the draft Later he announced with apparent pleasure that it was a great piece of leg leg- Now that the bill has been prInted print- print ed and Is available for public Inspection inspection In In- a n perfect furore has been bee aroused The conservative critics began bejan be- be I gun gan jan to squawk Immediately that the I I measure proposes to destroy the federal Reserve Reser s system stem and concentrate concen- concen rate on power of credit and currency cur cur- rency ency expansion or contraction In Inthe tJ the Jie e hands of a n small group in the treasury they contend that this amounts to establishment of ot a central central cen- cen ral bank and that under our politIcal teal cal system a central bank hank would mean an unstable currency What more nore could there be he then they ask to o destroy confidence In the currency currency cur- cur rency which we wo use New Dealers In defense of ot this new banking legislation have been gIven to making wise cracks about the he Old Dealers who they assert desIre to see conditions of 1028 and 1920 1029 repeated repented They cite with some justification It seems to me that central banks exist In most of ot the major mojor countries of ot the world and that hat that their service has not been a n aad abad bad ad thIng tiling at nt nIl all Further the New DenIers Dealers nr argue uc that the political capal capital cap cap- Hal ital al of ot the United States is in Washington Wash Wash- Ington and und the financial capital capItol has been In New York Why they ask should there be such a division In between these two schools of ot thought are sound money advocates and courageous conservatives es who take tale the position that the bill has hns many many good qualities and that it likewise has lure many provisions definitely definitely to be avoided n To summarize the banking legislation legis legis- lation and lation-and and I think It is of ot paramount para para- mount Interest to Centralized j every everyone one because Control It touches the currency currency currency cur cur- rency and credit so directly the directly the real end likely to result from the tile legislation Is a cen- cen centralized centralized control In Washington ton of the tho very r center of ot business s 7 H c money The bill proposes to establish Ush lish what Is called an nn open market marke committee In Washington and to Include In In- elude dude as ns members of this committee commit commit- tc tee three members of ot the Federal Federa Reserve board The two remaining members would come from Federal Federa Reserve banks From this It I Is seen that the Reserve Resene board becomes becomes becomes be be- comes the dominant body It tokes takes no stretch of the Imagination t to recognize the tho possibilities Mem Mem- bers of the Reserve board they are appointed for a term of ten tei years ears sometimes resign or die dio offIt off orr It Immediately becomes possible therefore to make the Federal Reserve Reserve Reserve Re Re- serve board a purely political bod body dominated by the President of ot the tin United States The function of the open market marke committee as proposed in the bill billIs Is to order the purchase or sale o ot of government securities in the open oper market If It these securities are an bought the Reserve e banks issue currency for them and they Increase tho the amount of money in circulation thereby easing credit If It the b banks bank sell bonds which they Uley have In their theli portfolios the currency paid for tor those bonds bon s obviously Is taken out of or circulation and that action results results re re- suits in a contraction or reduction of ot the amount of or credit available If It for example the occupant ol ot the White House Douse at any time happens happens happens hap hap- pens to be an out out and and out Inflation inflation- 1st It Is easy to see how government government government govern govern- ment bonds can CID be absorbed by the Reserve Resene banks and new currency put In circulation In whatever volume volume volume vol vol- ume the administration policies re re- quire Another phase of ot the bill would allow national banks and state sUite banks that are members of or the Federal Federal Fed Fed- eral Reserve system m to make loans on real estate for tor a year twenty-year term Five Firn years is the present limitation One Luis has only to go back bock for an on examination of ot causes of or hundreds of or bank failures In recent re rc- recent re- re cent years to discover that the live live- year limitation probably Increased the mortality among otherwise sound banks to a greater extent than any other factor There Is another section of ot the tho measure which I think Is w worthy of close Federal Ro- Ro Worthy of s serve e r v e examina Examination It proposes to combine t the h e Jobs of governor and agent and that the bank policies should be executed by the governor go who Is selected se se- selected by the bank board of ot dIrectors tors This provided something of or a Ii dual control a n check and balance on the exercise of power Now however the effort Is to be made to combine the Jobs and make snake the bend of or the bank back a strictly government government govern govern- ment meat representative e That course naturally Is In tn line with the Roosevelt noose program of ot extending er- er tending ending and expanding federal au- au hority The President has constantly constantly con- con Increased the scope of ot power pow- pow er r and Influence exercised from Washington The current offering offerings Is s accepted everywhere as ns bringing under inder federal domination completely complete- complete ly y the banking system of ot this na- na na- na tion ion It does so because none can deny that the Federal Reserve banks tanks hold a club over the heads of private bankers wherever they may any be So I believe It Is a n fair statement to o say that Mr Roosevelt noose or those who rho are responsible to him Is reachIng caching out to amplify the control of f credit from Washington ton which was Initiated through tho the tion on Finance corporation the Home HomeOwners HomeOwners' HomeOwners HomeOwners' Owners Owners' Loan corporation and other other oth- oth er r leading agencies The Federal Reserve Reser system was set up accordIng according accord- accord Ing to the debate on the measure In congress at nt that time to decentralize ize credit control and break brenk the grip rip which New York exercised over the 10 volume of credit Now apparently it Is all coming back to Washington In connection with the adminIstrations adminIstration's adminIs- adminIs atlon's attention to domestic affairs af- af tails fairs ilis and the consequent legislative legisla- legisla tl tive ve changes es attention might well be 3 centered on the meaning of some or of the moves One Washington observer ob- ob server ser wrote In his newspaper the tho theother theother other her day that the administration was as renewing Its notes at nt the bank What he referred to was the extension exten- exten slon sion on of life of or the Reconstruction Finance corporation and the pumpIng pumping pump- pump Ing g of more blood Into the veins of ot the e Home Owners' Owners Loan corpora corpora- tion Something similar has occurred with respect to the Reconstruction Finance corporation which has been given gl new life and about In new v money by an act of con con- gress Then President Roosevelt noose has hns asked risked for renewal of the life of the National Recovery administration and for re enactment of ot the National Nation Nation- al Industrial Recovery pry act net both of ot which expire next June 10 As a result of these maneuvers a good many observers are of or the I opinion that the recovery reco efforts I have ha not been ns fiS successful as their optimistic sponsors had predicted a I I year rear a ago o. o 0 2 Western Newspaper Union I |