Pueblo Chieftain

FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD POLICIES ARE CALLED CYNICAL AND CRUEL

Washington, D. C., Aug. 22.—Federal reserve board policies in connection with price and currency deflation are "cynical, cruel and inexcusable" and constitute "financial tyranny and criminality," J. S. Wannamaker, president of the American Cotton association, charged today before a joint congressional agriculture committee.

The board's methods, he added, "are heaping up gold in the United States at the expense of all civilization speaking."

For agricultural producers the witness asserted the federal board and banks were responsible for the general price decline. The board's pressure still was being exerted upon "bankers who are afraid of their shadow, who may find all their loans called by the reserve banks any minute, and dare not disobey its orders," according to Wannamaker, who asked the commission to recommend legislation for general revision of the reserve board personnel.

He proposed that the personnel be composed of twelve members, nominated from the various districts as representatives of industry instead of banking who should be appointed by the president and confirmed by the senate.

Further, he suggested that the commission recommend the instant reduction in federal reserve re-discount rates to a basis of three and one-half per cent on Liberty loan collateral.

"The federal reserve banking system, created to serve the people by its administration has made the people servants of the system," he asserted.

"Its policy will require the American people to pay with deflated dollars a national debt borrowed in inflated dollars."

Price declines that have been effected lately he declared, will not help consumers, because "they have left nothing or agricultural producers to do but combine and reduce production so low in the future that prices will give us some margin of profit and let us pay our debts."