The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1842-03-07

st. Louis.
Correspondence of the HERALD
ST.. LOUIS, Feb. Is, 1872

St Louis-Benton- Banks, &c.
DEAR BENNErr-
have been a sojourner in this young mammoth
city ofthc West for some weeks, and will give you
the re suit Of my observations. st Louis il EN-.
phaticalIy the New York ofthe West. Every thing
here is Of that go.ahead character; the merchants
and people generally have all that restless energy
and activity peculiar to the citizens of our own
great emporium. 1t is quite natural that such is
the ease. Nature has given St. Louis those great
natural ad vantages for commerce and manufactures
that, like New York, it is great in spite Of ITSELF
The business naturally drawn here from an Immense
extent Of the most magnificent country in the world
has been so great, that even during the past few
years OF pressure and monetary difficulties, the in.
cre,se in population and buildings, great as they
have been, have scarcely kept pace with the de.
mand. The numberlsss houses, blocks of stores,
and buildings of various kinds, put up here within
the last few months, remind me of New York in
former days. All this prosperity, too, has continued
without the aid ofbanks ,or anything but the natural
resources ofthe city and country, and the indomi.
table energy of the people. Missouri, you know,
is regular Tom Benton State 1t has but one bank,
and that does nothing but buy and sell little exc
change, by which operations it makes perhaps
enough to pay its President, cashier, and clerks
for their trouble in keeping the banking rooms and
other apartments clear Of the dust and cobwebs
The sank, from all that can learn, is poorly man.
aged concern, and the State might as well be with.
out any bank at all 1t sevcs, however, to feed and
cloihe some dozen Or more poor locofoce chaps
whom the public are bound to provide for any how
Mr. Benton perhaps gets discount now and then
Washington, enables that s'Ball Of Bashan" TO bel
low 80 Justify against banks and bankrups. The
devil himself is not hated in St. Lo.is more than
Benton. When he comes here (Which, am told.
the streets to see him psss, as they wsulda North
ern bear, or Buffalo Bull. Benton understands
the matter fully and does not exhibit much
in public. bu receives the homage ofhis supporters
at his house, or the house Of a friend The snly
redeeming point in his character with the people
here, is his pluck The Western people will nj.
ways have some respect for a man Of courage, and
am told, by those well acquainted with Benton,
that he has the courage Of lion, and has proved it
in several bloody ARRAYS on the island opposite St.
Louis.
Speaking of banks, there was the greatest flare
up here Yesterday in currency matters, which has
occurred for a long time. Though st. Louis has ne
banks, yet it cursed with the worst currency M
der b sven. They had the Mineral Point Bank
bills here BY the thousand, and that concern blew
up and went to the devil One of the banks OF Hi
nois tAen flooded the county with shin plastcrs
The other day that bubble burst and the people
SUITE red to the tame Of some 5000, 900. Yesterday
banks for ST. ous, refused to take the bills OF the
State Bank Of Illinois in payment Of notes, or on
deposite That institution has in circula,sa ssn,e
So 900 ,0C0; the whole country is flooded with IL;
II has formed for years aim ost the only currency
Missouri, Illinois, Arkansas, Wisconsin and Iowa.
When il refused by the Offices yesterday morn.
ing, const rnation for while seized every man you
met, for no one would teueh the paper from that
moment, What the consequences will be il is i'm.
possible to say. Some thinks the bank sslvent.
What the people are to have for circulating me-
dunn, heaven only knows. How much longer the
people efthis great3 nation will suffer themsev
TO be swindled by bank charters remains to be
seen.
Slickney, the gentlemanIy proprietor OF the
flanters' House, gives grand ball this evening at
the saloon Of that splendid Establishment. shall
drop in during the evening" and take look at the
81. Louis fashonabes. ST. Louis can boast OF quite
an array Of lovely women, and The ball to night
is to be the erandest Of the season, they will an
doubleday all be there The city to-day presents
very gay appearance. Three or four military com. |
panies ont the streets thronged with oafers
and negroes, and pretty women, the latter making |
Purchases for the great ball tonight. The negroes
~ the slave States appear to enjoy the holidays Of
American freemen ~ much rs their masters. ST. |
Louis is well stocked with the professions-I am |
told there are ninety.fv lawyers, over one |
hundred Physlcians, and ealy ten parsons in the |
city. Mere anon, u.