The daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1848-1851, 1851-02-21
Banking Capital.

Misrepresentation, as regards banking capital,
their circulation and loans, are constantly being
put forth in certain of the Northern and Southern
prints, and the facts drawn from them at war with
the plainest rules of arithmetic. To accomplish
their ends--the destruction of all banks, however
safe and well managed-they mnblushingty per-
vert the most reliable statements, and substitute
high class figures of their oton, for those growing
out OF the transaction, varying in amount from 10
to 100 per cent They possess the singular facniiy,
too, OF never committing mistake in favor OF the
solvency OF bank, let the valuable and available
captal Of the institution be ever much greater
than its circulation and discounts The discrep-
ancy, of which the following article complains is
a modest one, in comparison with thousands almost
daily published for party purposes, exhibiting, as it
does, 0,iy "a per cent less solyency than the New
Jersey banks actually possess;
Ne,c Jersey BanhS.-A money article, recently
in NcwYork paper, by many considered oracular
on matters of finance, makes direct attempt to
injure the credit Of the banks of this State. After
statement in columns Of their circulation, dis
counts and specie, taken, apparently, from the re-
turns published in this Paper, the writer proceeds
TO say:
"fhe banking capital of New Jersey on the 1st
January, 1851, was S3, 754 900 but little more than
one half the amount OF loans and discounts The
proportion Of specie on hand to bills in circulation,
to sixty. This is by means favor
able exhibit, and confirms the impression we have
long had, that the banks of New Jersey are by no
means in safe sound position"
There is here criminal mis-statement, or at
least, criminal careessness on such subject il not
at the time Of writing the article at any rate, in
suffering it TO go uncorected. The columns Of
figures preceding this slanderous fling, are footed
up as follows:
discounts. Calculation. Specie
If these figures were correct, the proportion of
specie to circulation is / to 6-insead of to 90.
But the figures not correct. The Daily Adyer-
tlser which was evidently before the writer Of that
article, in the table therein published, foo,s up the
column OF circulation, as it came from the office of
the Secretary Of State, and rightly, at S3,O46,9jS,
difference Of $500, 900; showing that the proper
on of specie to the circulation was to 81 50, or
tlereabout.
But this is not all. With capital of SO, ,754, 900
it seems the Jersey Banks have only S3,046,95S
clrcuation-an excess of capital over circulation of
S707942 With great Difference to our Wall street
fnancers this hardly shows our banks unsafe.
But why did not this financial critic print the full
returns of the Jersey banks That return shows
that their discounts amou ted 10 81 1853 007 while
their basis .or this is as follows
Capita S314l90
lue ron oihei banks...., IL SIS .66s
Less du- otier haLk4....... 33,4S ..
haance 4io2iO
TOTAL. ~ ~ 81
Is this an Unslie business ! Ii may be said that
the balance due from other banks, is au unfair item.
We do not why-but il it is, we have always
understood that safe banking business might be
done 10 amount much greater than that OF capi-
tai and deposits. How many business men DO a
business no larger than their capital?