The Nonpartisan Leader Newspaper, June 13, 1921, Page 5

Wall Street “Riled” Let’s Smcker' The True In’ards of the Case of Colonel Frank White, U. S. Treasurer, - and the North Dakota Farmers’ Program Bonds Washington Burean, Nonpartisan Leader. | HE first congress after the adoption of the American Constitution passed a law creating the treasury department. The law was signed by George Wash- ington, president, and John Adams, this old federal act prohibits any person employed in the treasury department from being “concerned in the purchase or sale of the bonds of any state or of the United States.” And now, 132 years later, something has hap- ' pened the forefathers of the Republic could not have guessed. The law they passed and signed is. being distorted by Wall street papers in an effort to reflect discredit on those handling the sale of North Dakota bonds, which Wall street has boy-_ cotted. - The situation is amusing, in splte of the appar- ently deadly serious effort of the big financiers to make capital out. of it against the bonds, which are being offered directly to the people to enable the organized farmers’ program to be carried out. Here are the facts, after reading which you can chuckle along with friends of the farmers’ move- ment here at the national capital: Colonel Frank White of North Dakota, former governor of the state, was appointed recently by President Harding as United States treasurer. He is not a Nonpartisan leaguer. - In fact, he opposes most of the League program and at one time was . groomed by the League opposition for the gover- norship of his state against Lynn J. Frazier, the farmers’ governor. But Colonel White, who led a regiment in France in the late war, is not in sym- pathy with the Wall street boycott of North.Dakota bonds. He apparently realizes that the attempt to throttle the state financially, just because the farm- ers control it politically and want to carry out a farmers’ industrial prqgram, is bad for his home state—bad even for the anti-Leaguers of North Dakota. TREASURER’'S STATEMENT HOLDS BONDS ARE GOOD It is said some of the substantial bankers of North Dakota, who also realize that the Wall street boycott in the long run will hurt the state and help rather than injure the Nonpartisan league, had a conference with the new United States treasurer. At any rate Colonel White issued the follow- ing statement under date of May 16: These bonds have been passed on- by both the state and federal courts and are a valid obligation of the state of North Dakota. = The present state debt outside of this issue is less than $250,000, less than 2 cents on each $100 of the as- » sessed valuation of the taxable prop- . erty of the state. 1¥I||s bond issue has back of it the cntire resources of a great state—a state with 45,000,000 * acres of fertile farm land with hundreds of thrlving cities and towns. The assessed valuation of all property of the state is about $1,500,000,000. This - bond issue of $3,000,000 amounts to but 20 cents to - each $100 of valuation. The-state_of North Dakota . has always taken care of * - its -obligations. Both principal and inter- . est. of all bonds heretofore issued have been paid the . day on which they were due. T.lhe pndyn;ent of th‘e gm- ci and interest o ese l-opnds is amply provided for and they will be paid exactly according to their terms. FRANK WHITE, (Treasurer of the United States of America). Instantly - Wall street “saw red.” - Its press blazed forth in indignant condemna- tion of the new treasurer for daring to state the simple facts about a valid bond issue of _his own state. Washington correspondents “of anti-farmer Republican papers interested in seeing North Dakéta bankrupted, if pos- sible, through failure to sell its bonds, sent long denunciations of Colonel White for pubhcatlon all over the- country, especially vice president. Among other things in states where the League is orgamzed. Few daily papers have failed to pounce onto White and de- mand his resignation. If Wall street had stopped by saying that it was “bad taste,” or “not.customary,” or “indelicate,” for a United States treasurer.to state the facts to the public about an issue of bonds in his own home state, they might have got away with it to some extent. But breaking of a few precedents.does net condemn publiz officials in the eyes of most com- mon, ordinary folks. So they didn’t stop at that kind of a charge. They alleged that the colonel had violated the law and that he could be punished ‘by a fine and removal from office for making the statement. And that’s where they made their mis- take. LAW DOES NOT FORBID WHAT COLONEL WHITE DID For the lavs;, quofed at the outset of this account, means only that persons employed in the United States treasury department shall not be financially - interested: in the sale of state or government bonds —that they shall not be in the way of making a profit through the sale of such bonds. For if the old law signed by President Washington meant - anything else, the United States secretary of the treasury could not boost the sale ‘of the govern- ment’s own bonds. Ex-Secretary McAdoo would have committed a crime- in boosting Liberty and Victory bonds during the war. retary of the treasury would be a criminal for say- ing that present bonds being issued by the govern- ment are a good investment. Note that the law covers United States govern- ment bonds as well as state bonds, and covers all persons employed in the treasury department, which of course includes the secretary of the treas- ury as well as Colonel White, United States treas- urer. And so to date Frank White has not been fined or dismissed from office, in spite of the Wall street clamor over his indorsement of the North Dakota ~ bonds, and Wall street editors are feeling rather cheap over their ill-advised charges. Incidentally, Colonel White has had an example close to home of what the forces of greed and plunder will do to discredit- any person, -even a respectable non- Leaguer from North Dakota, if he stands in the way of the decrees of the big financiers. A few A VISION OF WALL STREET FINANCIERS Your HONORs HE WANTED Yo GOVERMN HIMSELF AND CONTROL WS RATURAL. RESOURCES = PAGE FIVE -the bonds. .or that there is no market for them is proved un- issued the following -White’s statement had been attacked in the press: Or the present sec-. //////, £ —Drawn expressly for the Leader by W. C. Moms. experlences like this may yet make Colonel Whitc -a Leaguer. Incidentally also, Wall street and its press havc given absolute proof that there IS a boycott of Their claim that the bonds are not gooc true, for they object to the bonds being sold direct to the people. Otherwise they could have no objec- tion to what White said. - They are out to preven’ the farmers’ program being carried out. THEY won’t buy the bonds or help their sale, and they would prevent other persons buying them by carry- ing on a dirty propaganda and by telling lies about. the treasurer of the United States and the laws of the nation. To appease Wall street the treasury department statement, after Colonel The statement in the advertisement of bonds of the state of North Daketa which appears in today’s news- papers, purporting to- be signed by the treasurer of the United States, is entirely without authority of the treas- ury department. Thus, apparently, the incident will end. White’s indorsement of the .bonds stands as his own per- sonal opinion about them, not as a statement on behalf of the treasury department, which was all that White intended anyway, according te his friends. Few will think it was bad taste, even if not cus- tomary, for a United States treasurer, under the circumstances, to tell the public facts about valid bonds of his own state, even if it did “rile” Wall street. And all know now that the charge that White violated the law is false and misleading. It George Washington and John Adams have not turned in their graves in protest over this distor- tion of the law they signed, they will never have better cause. HOW PAPERS HANDLED THE WHITE STATEMENT ‘A story of the White affair sent out by Edgar Markham, a Washington correspondent, is typical of those sent to anti-Nonpartisan league dailies. This was published under various headlines, in- cluding such captions as this: Frank White’s in- - dorsement of North Dakota bonds repudiated by superiors—act punishable by fine and removal from office.” Mr. Markham said in the course of his “news” report: “New York financial and banking circles, which refused to help float the $3,000,- 000 state bond issue which the state bank of North Dakota is trying to sell, were reported to be greatly excited over what ap- peared to be administration in- dorsement of the Nonpartisan league venture. Their wrath went to the point of getting in touch with treasury de- partment officials.” The same article add- ed the following touch: “Whether the official . repudiation will consti- tute the end of the epi- sode remains to be seen. In the past officials have submitted their resigna- tions for blunders of less importance.” In view of the facts such comment on the case is funny rather than anything else. The drive of North Da- kota to sell the bonds di- rect to investors, without having to depend on the big banks or bond houses, is proceeding with suc- cess. There has been a fine response from all over the country, but it will take 'a few more months of intensive work to sell the whole issue. People in 31 states have already purchased some of the bonds.