In my Message to the Congress a year ago I spoke as follows of the currency: 

“I especially call your attention to the condition of our currency laws.  The national-bank act has ably served a great purpose in aiding the enormous business development of the country, and within ten years there has been an increase in circulation per capita from $21.41 to $33.08.  For several years evidence has been accumulating that additional legislation is needed.  The recurrence of each crop season emphasizes the defects of the present laws.  There must soon be a revision of them, because to leave them as they are means to incur liability of business disaster.  Since your body adjourned there has been a fluctuation in the interest on call money from 2 per cent to 30 percent, and the fluctuation was even greater during the preceding six months.  The Secretary of the Treasury had to step in and by wise action put a stop to the most violent period of oscillation.  Even worse than such fluctuation is the advance in commercial rates and the uncertainty felt in the sufficiency of credit even at high rates.  All commercial interests suffer during each crop period.  Excessive rates for call money in New York attract money from the interior banks into the speculative field.  This depletes the fund that would otherwise be available for commercial uses, and commercial borrowers are forced to pay abnormal rates, so that each fall a tax, in the shape of increased interest charges, is placed on the whole commerce of the country.

“The mere statement of these facts shows that our present system is seriously defective.  There is need of a change.  Unfortunately, however, many of the proposed changes must be ruled from consideration because they are complicated, are not easy of comprehension, and tend to disturb existing rights and interests.  We must also rule out any plan which would materially impair the value of the United States 2 per cent bonds now pledged to secure circulation, the issue of which was made under conditions peculiarly creditable to the Treasury.  I do not press any especial plan.  Various plans have recently been proposed by expert committees of bankers.  Among the plans which are possibly feasible and which certainly should receive your consideration is that repeatedly brought to your attention by the present Secretary of the Treasury, the essential features of which have been approved by many prominent bankers and business men.  According to this plan national banks should be permitted to issue a specified proportion of their capital in notes of a given kind, the issue to be taxed at so high a rate as to drive the notes back when not wanted in legitimate trade.  This plan would not permit the issue of currency to give banks additional profits, but to meet the emergency presented by times of stringency.