Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1845-1854, 1845-06-12

tfs
furnish fruit enough for All practical pur>
poses. "--BaH. Americdn. s'5fo1T
From the PennsyI
The recent explosion Of the Bank Of St.
Clair, Michigan, with capital of one hundred
thousand dollars, and circulation Of more
than half million. together with the tottesing
and doubtful condition of many other bankA
in that section, not only in Michigan but IN
Ohio, and the failure of several large cofnmer&
cial houses connected with it, have produced
an excitement almost unprecedented, and seem
to have aroused the people to q realization of
their insecurity under the present reprehensi-
BILE system Of banking, with no safe -guarda
and but few restrictions. ...tss..
| The enormous issues Of the Bank Of 81.
Clair, and the remarkable industry which it
mauifests from all accounts, its agents exhib.
tied In extending its circulation through all
parts of the West, can leave no doubt that the
disastrous result was either produced BY The
most wild and reckless speculation, or by .
determination of the directors to get as much
of their paper out as possible, afnd suspend
with full hands. In either case the result af-
fords an insight into their mode Of operations,
and it is confidently hoped lesson 80 dearly
bought will not be lost upon the community.
As 10 ever the case with the failure Of such
institutions, the loss has fallen principally up
or those least able to bear it; and widely as
were the issues Of this rotten institution DIFF
fused through every part Of the State In which
it was located, lit will be seen from the extracts
below, that the people of Michigan are by no
means the only sufferers, The law prohibit.
ing incorporated banks Of other States from
establishing agencies in OHIO, for the cifcula.
ton of their paper, having been repealed by
the last Wing Legislature Of that State, this
bank seems to have eagerly embraced the op.
portunity, and flooded the country with its
worthless issues, so that at the time Of lie fail.
ure they constituted large portion Of the pa.
per circulation in q considerable part Of Ohio
and other sections Of the West, and the loss
now falls heavily not only on business men,
but on the agricultural and laboring classes;
scattered and located at almost every point
where energy and enterprise could be useful.
and where such disaster will be most severe
ly felt. 4aa aR3.
Il cannot be but that these enormous abusea
of corporate privileges, which are becoming
| of such frequent occurrence, will ultimately
| lead to q more sound and correct feeling in
| relation to our monied institutions, and Con.
vince the people that specializing fnsnciers
are unsafe bankers, and the last persons inlthe
world who should have control Of banking in
stltutions with power to manufacture money
| to order and to any amount, In no section of
the country have the people been rlundered
to that extent by bank failures, that they have
in Ohio and Michigan. Their a'Red Dog"
and "Wild Cat" currencies have for yeas bean
eating up the substance of the people, 81 and
destroying their prosperitY.eand il may be re-
garded as the barblnger Of better times that
the citizens Of those States have now taken
hold Of the subject at their public meetings.,
at many Of which the standard has been
boldly planted upon the principle Of individ-
ual liability, and States Prison penalty, and
determination manifested ere long 10 raise
the cry Of determination, unless the practices
which have been carried on 80 long BY these
swindling concerns are stopped. There can
be no good reason why those who plunder
under the shelter of q bank charter, shall not
be regarded in the same light as those who
commit the same crimes on the public high.
way: and there can be no security to the peo.
pie until our legislatures enact and enforce
wholesome and salutaYy laws and restrictions
against bank swindling. 5es isF,5s, {.
In reference to the failure Of the Bank OF
st. Clair, and the d,scredit which attaches 10
the issues Of several other banks. by which
their notes are depreoiated from s5 10 SO per
cent. the Detroit Free Press uses the following
language, which may be regarded as the indi-
cation Of the future course Of the Democracy
Of Michigan, upon the question ef which L
treats:
"The people of Michigan, we doubt not,
have learned wisdom from.the past and will
not submit to any more bank charters being
given, for the purpose Of robbing them. The
time 10 prevent the organization af banks ID
when application is made to the Legislature
for acts Of Incorporation. The past must
have satisfied all, but those determinsd MOTTO
be satisfied, that the nearer we fapproach the
standard of hard money the better We are off,
and the less the danger Of fuctuation Ia the
price of produce. Banks should be made ID
do business safely. The individual liability
clause in bank charters has been cardinal
principle Of the democrats, and has alwsys
been opposed by the wings. We believe With.
this afe-guard the people would be less lia.-
bic TO losses by failures, and banks would be,
conducted much more carefully. When TIA
late banking law of Ohio was before the Ler.
islature, the democrats In a body asked for this
security, and the wings in body opposed ii.
II has ever been SO. The two great parties
have been divided on the bank question, since
the first charter of national bank; but exps>
rience has taught the great mass Of the Nhig
party to no longer follow their leaders. Nus
merous failures have taken place in this
| State within the last eight years, and not
one Of them has ever paid any thing to the