The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1851-01-29

Oil tie rlcn productions oil Ire soil. 10 sus-
tain these interests is the plain duty Of every
citizen. Can it be done by limiting the cir
culation to gold and slver2 Those best ac-
quainted with the financial affairs Of the
country, say no. They insist that our cur
rency, with all the aids we receive from
banks, is inadequate to our wants. Withdraw
from circulation the S425, 000, 600 of bank pa
per now in circulation and put in circulation
the S5l 100000 Of specie in the vaults of the
banks and you will withdraw from circula-
ton SIS, 900 Of currency; a result which
10 friend to commerce or the interests of the
agricultural portion of our people would de-
sire. Yet TO annihlate banks, would produce
tEis very result. Hence the cry for banks
The people IN the portion of the State from
which come, are generally in favor of a
State Bank and branches. In the northern
and central portions, the cry is ' free banks"
For myself, | can say, that il | must choose
between the two systems, | am decidedly in
favor CT the State Bank system My great
anxiety is that we should have none but
sound, solvent, specie paying banks, and il we
cannot have such. let us have none. The
State Bank opportunities as near to this
standard as any banking institution well can.
Will Tree banks do as well? This inquiry
can only be answered by comparison. as we
have no practical experience in free bank
ing.
In New York the free banking system is
said 10 be the most perfect, yet they have
broken banks there under the free banking
laws as | will endeavor to show from the lol-
lowing extract from The Democratic Review.
Il periodical favorable TO free banks:
in the working Of the free banking law
thus TAR, it would appear that l39 b inks have
be, n started under ii. or these, SIS are in
operation, 81 have been closed by the propri-
elo-s without loss 10 the bill holders, and hir-
ty have been closed by the Comptroller. OF
these, &c have been settled at rs per cent. ay-
erage."
From this extract it will be seen that OF the
thirty free banks that had been closed in New
York. twenty six paid but seventy-six cents
Oh the dollar. W!at the remaining four paid,
we are not informed. And, sir, upon whom
Goes this loss fall 2 1t does not usually fall
upon The banker nor does it usually tall upon
the merchant. No, it fails upon the unsus-
pecling farmer ard laborIng portions OF The
community-upom the working classes upon
"ihuse who earn their living by the sweat OF
their brows'-it Is this Class that suffers most
10y these futures.
They must have means upon which TO live
aud are compelled from necessity, 10 dispose
OF The notes they hold, at ruinous discounts
Out OF 130 banks brought into existence un-
der the free banking system in New York.
only So are in existence. the balance having
gone by the board. just Contrast that sys
TEN with our own-in fact there is no COM
parison TO be irsituied-the one is 50 supe-
rior TO the other. Here the bill holder is al
WAYS saie-Ihere his security is uncertaln.-
h.,t nj, ,h.p h.,
is based upon an ample specie bass-ihe
other upon what is termed" ample collateral
security deposited with an officer of Stlte. !"
IL may not be amiss TO inquire what is IN, aat
by ample security in New York. 1t means
United States and State SIT cks, aud bonds
and mortgages upon real estate. | have al
ready said that thirty of the free banks in n
York, have failed, and that twenty six oil
them paid but seveniy-sIx cents OH the dollar,
yet they had all deposited ample collateral
security with the Comptroller" How then,
you are ready 10 ask me, did il happen that
but seventy six cents Oh the dollar WAS pail
by this batch oil broken banks 10 the bill hold
er! A ready answer will be found 10 this
enquiry, in the report oil the present Chi e
Magistrate of The nation. made while Comp
roller OF the State of New York His re-
port shows that in selling OF these ample Sc
curliies." great losses were sustained. For
example the Farmers Bank OF Orleans had
deposited SCI, 900 of Indiana five per cent.
bonds this large amount Of bonds were soid
lor. sig III so. or Sis $50 30 less than they
were pledged Tor. The Erie county bunk
had deposited IFS part of its ample security"
mortgages on real estate, for $4,000. The
property morigaged, exclusive OF buildings
was appraised a. 50! 500. These mortgages
sold iof $4,000. Tn. st. Lawrence Bank had
deposired-
SIS 600 Illinois State 6per cent.
stocks which were sold
for - So 5S7 50
$4,000 Arkansas State 6per Ct
stocks which were sold
for 1885 90
2l,277 Bonds and mortgages
which were sold Tor i2,ioO 90
SSl,277 S27232 so
From this statement it will be seen that
SSi.2 OF ample securies" pledged by The
81. Lawrence Bank. were sold Tor ST., 1888