and the Kentucky, Captain W. C. Cowles.

There were four divisions of the fleet: the first, under command of Rear-Admiral Evans; the second, under Rear-Admiral William H. Emory; the third under Rear-Admiral Charles M. Thomas; and the fourth under command of Rear-Admiral Charles S. Sperry. The fleet was manned by some 14,000 men, and the value of the ships and stores was estimated to be approximately $100,000,000. The first point touched in its itinerary was Port au Spain, Trinidad, December 29, 1907. Leaving there, the ships proceeded to Rio Janeiro, Brazil, arriving January 12, 1908. Here they were royally entertained by the citizens of the Brazilian capital, and left on the 22d for the Straits of Magellan, arriving at Punta Arenas, Chile, February 1. At this point the ships commenced their northward journey to the Pacific Coast of the United States, touching at Valparaiso, Chile, and Callao, Peru, finally arriving at Magdalena Bay, Mexico, where a month was spent in target practice. The first part of the voyage was ended by the arrival of the fleet at San Francisco, May 6, the ships having been at sea over two months. On July 7, pursuant to orders from Washington, the fleet began the long voyage by the way of Europe back to its starting point. On this journey it visited Hawaii, Australia, the Philippines,

Japan, and Chinese ports, reaching the Suez Canal January 3, 1909.

After passing through the Canal, a month was spent visiting Mediterranean ports, during which time the fleet was honored by the crowned heads of Greece and Italy; the king and queen of Greece dining on board one of the battleships, and RearAdmiral Sperry being entertained at Rome by the king of Italy. On February 6 the ships left Gibraltar on their homeward voyage across the Atlantic, arriving at Hampton Roads, February 22, 1909.

In this voyage, perhaps the most remarkable ever made by a fleet of battleships, 45,000 miles were traveled, the time occupied being a year and two months, or 433 days. Of these 190 were spent in cruising, and 243 in various ports. The fleet visited every continent on the globe, and sailed across every important sea. During the journey around South America the health of Admiral Evans became very precarious, and although he maintained command of his fleet, he did so during a period of great physical distress. On the arrival at Magdalena Bay, he relinquished the command, being succeeded by Rear Admiral Thomas, who, in turn, a few days later, was relieved by Rear Admiral Sperry, under whose command the fleet continued its circumnavigation of the globe.

The tremendous industrial expansion that set in soon after the close of the war with Spain, began as early

as 1904, to bear the logical fruits of such an era of prosperity. Many rumors gained circulation that there were men in the saddle at the financial center of the nation, New York City, who were apparently riding to a fall. These had failed to recognize the fact that deeds tending to throw discredit on the methods of business in vogue at that place would rapidly plunge the whole country into economic chaos. One of these accusations was to the effect that certain

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high financiers were gaining con

trol of banks and insurance companies in order to use their surplus in furthering speculative enterprises of a decidedly questionable nature. The proof of this fact was brought to the public attention in a sudden and almost accidental manner, through the exposures developed by a noisome family quarrel in the Equitable Life Insurance Company. This company had experienced a long and very successful career under its founder and president, H. H. Hyde, whose share in the property had passed upon his death to his son, James H. Hyde, the presidency falling to J. W. Alexander. Mr. Hyde, it seemed, had but the slightest conception of his responsibilities and had abused his power over the resources of the company in a manner that menaced its integrity and threatened the savings of thousands of people. As the result a feud was inaugurated between the president of the company and himself that soon

reached the columns of the public press. The revelations were so extraordinary that an investigation became imperative, which under the skillful direction of Charles E. Hughes, was extended to all companies doing life insurance business. The report of the Armstrong Committee of the New York legislature (February, 1906), which had undertaken this highly desirable piece of house-cleaning, revealed a condition of affairs almost beyond belief. It was shown that many of the great companies were in the hands of officials who were guilty of every abuse from negligence to actual embezzlement; that vast sums of money were spent in bribing legislators, and still more vast ones paid to officials who did nothing more than sign the receipts; that schemes of promotion were financed by the companies through the influence of insurance officials who hoped to profit by the same. These and many other irregularities were brought to light, and as a consequence criminal action was brought against five of the officials, which with suicides, deaths, exiles, and resignations, effected a more or less cleansing of the insurance household. Legislation for the purpose of preventing a recurrence of such conditions has been passed by New York (1906) and the majority of the other States, that of Texas being so drastic that 14 companies left the State immediately upon its passage. A bill for Federal regulation was proposed

by Senator John F. Dryden, the president of the Prudential Company. This, however, was unfavorably reported upon by the committees to which it was referred, on the ground that insurance was not interstate business, and therefore Federal legislation regarding the same was not constitutional.

In spite of these revelations of the devious methods of modern finance, and the shock given to the credit of the financial center of the United States, the era of "flush times " still continued. The year 1906 was one of the most prosperous the country has known; there were splendid crops, wages were advanced, new records were made for iron and steel production, the railways had more business than they could handle, dividends were paid on stock that had never before earned a cent, and money was plentiful for promoting any kind of speculative enterprise. By the end of the year, however, it was evident that affairs were taking a downward turn, resulting during March, 1907, in a general unloading of speculative securities, producing a so-called rich man's" panic on the stock exchange. In spite of the fact that the crops were as large, and industries as active as in the previous year, values continued to decline, producing a temporary stringency in August, which was followed by a financial crisis of unusual severity on October 14, precipitated, it is said, by an endeavor of the Heinze brothers,

Charles W. Morse (later imprisoned, but pardoned), and others to corner the copper market. The collapse of this pool, the tremendous unloading of securities, and the failure of speculators to meet their obligations, produced for a while a condition of affairs that threatened to close the stock exchange. This was prevented by the act of J. P. Morgan in coming to its rescue with $20,000,000, and by the cessation of stock dealing on margin. As the men who precipitated the crisis had obtained control of a chain of banks by the questionable process of purchasing one with the funds and securities of another, the frightened public losing confidence began to withdraw its deposits from the banks in Manhattan and Brooklyn, which resulted in the suspension of the Knickerbocker Trust Company and some half dozen other bańking institutions, and it was only by the most vigorous efforts on the part of Secretary of the Treasury George B. Cortelyou and the leaders of finance that more serious disasters were prevented. As it was the damage that was done was beyond calculation, and swept over the whole country, producing in every place of importance a repetition of the conditions in New York.

Various causes have been assigned for this panic, but none seem to explain why it should have occurred during one of the most prosperous years in the history of the country. One explanation is that President

Roosevelt's persecution of corporate interests was responsible; another that it was caused by the endeavor of these interests to discredit the administration, and force favorable legislation; the third theory was that it was due to vast increases in the gold supply, and the according decrease in its purchasing power, resulting in rising prices, speculation and undue expansion of business. Whatever might be the true explanation, one thing was conclusively demonstrated, this was that the currency system of the nation lacked the flexibility necessary to permit it to cope with conditions. such as the 1907 panic.

Legislation had already been instituted in the Fifty-ninth Congress; two remedial systems being presented. The one that was finally passed, March 4, 1907, known as the Aldrich Bill, provided for the following modifications of the currency laws: the issuance of ten dollar gold certificates; of one and two dollar silver certificates, replacing the ten dollar silver certificates outstanding; the abolishment of the distinction between government receipts from customs and from other sources; and the giving of the Secretary of the Treasury discretion regarding the kinds of bonds to be required in securing public deposits in national banks; the publication of lists of such securities annually; the equitable distribution of deposits among States and Territories; and the increase of the amount of national bank notes that could be

withdrawn from circulation in any one month from $3,000,000 to $9,000,000.

While this plan gave the Secretary of the Treasury more freedom in dealing with situations such as the country was experiencing at the time of its passage, nevertheless it was still felt to be inadequate, and the demand for further currency legislation continued. This resulted in the presentation during the Sixtieth Congress of a number of schemes for improving the currency laws. The one that was adopted, the so-called Aldrich-Vreeland Act, provided for the issuance of additional of additional emergency currency to the extent of $500,000,000 in times of financial stringency, the banks issuing the same to pay a tax of not more than 10 per cent. for the privilege of issuing the same, and to deposit in the treasury United States money to the extent of 10 per cent. of the emergency notes as a fund for the redemption of the notes of failed banks. The privilege of issuing these notes was given to any national bank in good standing, and the officials of the Treasury Department were authorized to determine whether this emergency currency was necessary or not.

This bill was bitterly fought by the Democratic party in Congress, with whom were united a number of Republicans who conceived that such legislation might increase the hold that the moneyed interests had upon the country. The most active oppo