The Fireside Chats of Franklin Delano Roosevelt: Radio Addresses to the American People Broadcast Between 1933 and 1944Roosevelt, Franklin D. (Franklin Delano)
History
The Fireside Chats of Franklin Delano Roosevelt: Radio Addresses to the American People Broadcast Between 1933 and 1944
Roosevelt, Franklin D. (Franklin Delano)
Depressions -- 1929 -- United States -- Sources; New Deal, 1933-1939 -- Sources; Roosevelt, Franklin D. (Franklin Delano), 1882-1945 -- Oratory -- Sources; Roosevelt, Franklin D. (Franklin Delano), 1882-1945 -- Political and social views -- Sources; United States -- Economic conditions -- 1918-1945
I know that many people are worrying about state banks not members
of the Federal Reserve System. These banks can and will receive
assistance from members banks and from the Reconstruction Finance
Corporation. These state banks are following the same course as the
national banks except that they get their licenses to resume
business from the state authorities, and these authorities have
been asked by the Secretary of the Treasury to permit their good
banks to open up on the same schedule as the national banks. I am
confident that the state banking departments will be as careful as
the national government in the policy relating to the opening of
banks and will follow the same broad policy.
It is possible that when the banks resume a very few people who
have not recovered from their fear may again begin withdrawals. Let
me make it clear that the banks will take care of all needs--and it
is my belief that hoarding during the past week has become an
exceedingly unfashionable pastime. It needs no prophet to tell you
that when the people find that they can get their money--that they
can get it when they want it for all legitimate purposes--the
phantom of fear will soon be laid. People will again be glad to
have their money where it will be safely taken care of and where
they can use it conveniently at any time. I can assure you that it
is safer to keep your money in a reopened bank than under the
mattress.
The success of our whole great national program depends, of course,
upon the cooperation of the public--on its intelligent support and
use of a reliable system.
Remember that the essential accomplishment of the new legislation
is that it makes it possible for banks more readily to convert
their assets into cash than was the case before. More liberal
provision has been made for banks to borrow on these assets at the
Reserve Banks and more liberal provision has also been made for
issuing currency on the security of those good assets. This
currency is not fiat currency. It is issued only on adequate
security--and every good bank has an abundance of such security.
One more point before I close. There will be, of course, some banks
unable to reopen without being reorganized. The new law allows the
government to assist in making these reorganizations quickly and
effectively and even allows the government to subscribe to at least
a part of new capital which may be required.
I hope you can see from this elemental recital of what your
government is doing that there is nothing complex, or radical, in
the process.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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