Well, this saviour came and calmed that assembly; in a magical way, subdued all fear, removed all perplexities, daring to do, so some say, what some bankers themselves dared not even hint. Greatness of mind saved them and the nation and not the greatness of our gold reserves, and this greatness of mind has been acknowledged by all, not with the reluctance of envy, but in the spirit of sincere thankfulness. Greatness of mind, then, saved the nation from the consequences of that psychological evil, fear and madness. It was the right mental solution to a mental disease. The spirit saved the spirit. So it has been throughout the ages. Greatness of mind has led nations on. Littleness of mind has brought them down. And who will deny that it is littleness of mind that has brought Germany down? A nation derives its greatness from the greatness of its greatest souls. The nation was saved, then, in the hour of destiny by obedience to wisdom. We cannot imagine in the future a vaster crisis than the nation--yea, the world--faced in that dark hour in August. It was not alone the magnitude of it, it was the suddenness of it. We were unprepared for it, and if wisdom could save us in this hour, what can we hope from wisdom in the hour of less peril? Had wisdom not prevailed, had we abandoned ourselves to divided counsels and to folly, we might not have saved ourselves from the consequences had our gold reserves been much higher. They might quickly have disappeared. Theoretic lines of safety would not then have averted the wreck. They would not, with magic power, have kept the public back. In that hour some would have cried hysterically: “Lend, lend, lend!” Others, “Save, save, save!” and only confusion and perplexity would come of it. But the public were told, by the representative of the Government, by the authoritative voice of the nation itself: “Be calm! All your wants will be supplied! The Government will supply them.” When a hungry multitude is clamouring for food, mad with hunger, and when the barns are filled, they are not appeased if told there is only sufficient food for a few. Tell them there is enough food to go round, even though it must be given sparingly, then the clamour dies down and the multitude becomes calm and patient. We saw no multitude clamouring for gold. The clamour was merely anticipated. There may have been no clamour, but it was wise to anticipate and prepare for its possibility. At the right moment, therefore, the public were assured that money, not gold, would be forthcoming in any amount. It was money, not gold, that allayed the first symptoms of fear. With this money, no matter though it were paper, the public were content. The notes were instruments of law that placed them in an impregnable position, and in an impregnable position they knew they were safe.