Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, IA [i.e. Ind.]) 1839-1854, 1843-03-04

lection Of debts by the bank and oiher., would
have been pressed to tho ruin Of thousands: in.
stead of a gradual depreciation OF property and
labor TO new and unavoidable state Of things, Il
would have been so abrupt as to make men des.
peraie: even the etock OF the State 10 the bank
would nave been impaired, and that OF indiv iduss
mostly lost and the losses TO citizens Of the State
would have been tenfold greater. The course
pufsued by the bank IS This: il paid tho deposifo
debt TO the General Gov ernment Of - 427 SS7:
II checked the contraction Of new, ard facilitated
the collection Of old debts; paid tho interes, on
the 1880 900 State bonds sold for bank capital,
kept up competition among produce buy ers, often
To their own injury, yet TO the benefit of the far
mer. and by its operations and that Of the Sink.
ing fund. u has realized clear proft 10 the State
Of $3.50 900. after deduciing its bad and doubtful
deb,s. and 500 900 for future deb,s"
In thus Gala: and conclusive manner, Mr.. Mer-
rill meets all the charges against his bank. aud
refutes the calumnious report of the State agent,
as wei! rs tho FLANDERS implied in tho resolutions
OF tho House OF Representatives. There moro
severe rebuke conveyed in this plain and dispas-
sIonate statement Of facts, than there would have
heen in the most sarcastic reiort; and if there
was any sense of shame in the authors Of tho
resolutions, they must have felt how completely
the diynicd reply Of Mr.. Merrill had put them
down.
Among the instances Of the unfairness Of tho
State Agents Report. Mr.. Merrill referred TO q
list Of the names Of borrowers which he had fur
nished, and tho publication of which, by the Leg.
Islaiure. he urged ITO prevent that most mischie.
vous error OF favori'ism, 10 preserve tho bank a.
gainst large and excessive loans against loans for
The purpose Of shaving and b. okerape, against
monopoly of tho facilities Of the bank Of officers
ard directors, against the practice Of dealing in
fictitious bills of exchange, and against long and
extended loans without curta,lmeni." rs If tho
existence of these evils would be prov ed, and
their recurrence prevented by publishing the
names Of debtors. % this proposition Mr.. Mer-
ril1 remarks" Ia the last ttken from tho Indian.
polls Branch, forty ono persons are published a.
bank borrowers. who do not at this time owe IL .
cent: and could returns be had from all tho
branches, there would be probably ten times
the number who have since paid their v hole debts.
To many borrowers from The Bank il is VI Just
and cruel in the extreme, 10 publish without any
their private TRANSACTIONS. The nero
fact Of owing bank might seem of little impor.
tance were not tho name uf the borrower hold
up 10 be pointed at, ms II a new and dangerous
crime had been committed. Tha, persons Invoiv.
ed by endorsing for friends. or by losses sns,ain.
cd ia enterprises for the public benefit, should be
hunted out for detes,a',on. wnh M me n,on Of tho
e took they hold. the business they have done. the
me ms hey have for pa rnen,. the MIST rtunes
they have met with, !. singular IN justice; that.
when tho times are thought to Justify granting
relief TO most other applicants. those indebted
banks often the most useful and enierpr,sipv cit.
zeDs Of the State, aOd no prev led from
making pnnc'Ual payment bv tho relief lava io4
others, should be advertised and rendered unable
10 meet their liabilities, md then abused for this
inability IS an occurrence that history IN it's va.
led details Of folly and crime has seldom before
&c.