Baton-Rouge gazette. [volume] (Baton-Rouge, La.) 1819-1856, 1842-02-12

THE BANK prLL.-Gur New Orleans cor
respondent has expressed an opinion Of THIS
bill which corresponds so well with our own,
tina, we feel willing I'd refer to it as orthodox,
without troubling the reader with a recital
of our views. notwithstanding, we will call
attention 10 a few items in the law that strike
us as egregious abeurdities.
lst. The 4th part Of the LIST section is not
English; people may guess at the sense OF
tie article, but the language does not explain
or express il.
In the I'd section, the 1st and Cd articles
specifying the necessary qualifications for
members of the board of control, are indefi-
mite and ungrammaticol. Example the 2nd
qualification ia thus expressed.
Mot to be a director or commercial part
ner of any bank director or officer Of a bank"
Not to DO a director Of any bank director !
This may be English and it may he comtnon
sense, too, for anght we know. Bank direct
ors may have directors and the law may de-
fcnd the board Of control against such char
acters, on the principle that the "master is as
great az his man !"
The 3D. section relates TO debts already due
the banks and the LIST article thereof, pro-
vides that said debts shall be renewable on
certain conditions, one of which is, that the
debtor shall, i'm addition to the interest, at eve-
ry renewal, pay Is per cent. on ti.e original
sum Of tho debt. Recsllect now, that this act
is passed, ostensibly, for the ~reliefsas well as
security Of the people; and then ask whether
this provision, setting aside the method of ac-
commodatiou practiced by banks, is ~calcula-
ted TO relieve or distress debtors! For i'll
etance A debtor owes on an original sum Of
$4,000, ten thousand dollars. BY the estab-
lished rules Of banking he reduces tho A.
mount Is per cent. each ~year--the sum of his
payments decreasing each year with the sum
of the debt. Such was the old rule the new
one makes the payments the same each year,
viz: 5000 We do not object to this section
as bad, "ab initio-from the word CO." Gas
our worthy representative in Congress has it,;
but is it an improvement on the subject in
question.
Section 9th provides that every bank shall
receive at it's counter in payment for debts,
the notes of all other banks operating under
this act and section 18th provides that no
bank shall pay out any notes. but its own
But how, then, asks the reader, is a bank to
rid itself Of the notes of its neigfbor, if il be
not allowed to pay them out +! The same Sec
ton (12) provides, that banks on opening their
doors in the morning shall exchang &c the notes
OF each other taken the previous day. That
is: the Louisiana bank, which has very few
notes in circulation, must take the"notes Of the
Atchafalaya, and the Exchange banks, leach
of whom have out a great deal Of paper), for
its dues, and send, this morning, to each bank
their notes taken at its counter yesterday,
and receive in return the amount OF its own
paper which they, respectively, have taken.
Now, from tho relative circulation of these
banks, it is fair to suppose the Louisiana bank
might receive in one day as much Of tho pa
per Of the other two, or either of them, as
they would receive Of hers in a month How,
then, is the exchange prescribed 20 be effect
ed
Section 90 provides that after the passage
OF this act, no bank shall issue any note of "a
less denomination than $5;' and other passa-
ges fix the time for resumption of specie pay
ments on The 30ta September neyt. What is
to supply the place Of the small notes to be
called in between the present time and the
30th September next! The law does not say
The 22d section provides that after the 30th
September next, no poor person, widow, or
of bank stock but that all such property
shall be- thrown into the hands Of capitalists
and money dealers!
DIV VIC SiSpG . anu llihts ttp, WtLllUUL
a word on that device of Incompatible wis
dom--the board Of ~coatros. We must leave
the subject to future day, when, we trust,ac-
cording to his promise, our city correspondent
will expose its laundering features in their
true light. !,
One remark more, however. We cannot re-
gard the passage of this bill il, the House, in
any other light than a premeditated satire up
on the Senate. The House saw the faults
the folly-the absurdity of the bill, and final
ly adopted ii, in retaliation ON the Senate for
so far doubling their common sense, as to I'M
dertakc to force upon them such a galama-
tias. Much better would it have been for both
Houses to have adopted a resolution to adj
lourn. Some money would thus have been
saved to the people now a bill, which carries
its own notification with it, has become a law, |
and three more salaries, Of $1,000 each, are
established