Glasgow weekly times. (Glasgow, Mo.) 1848-1861, 1860-03-15
BANK COMMISSIONERS REPORT.
Bank Commissioners Office, !
St. Louis, Feb. ! 1860. (


His Excellency, R. NJ. Stewart, Cover
nor of Misssuri:-Sir: l herewith hand
you nv semi andlal report, showing the
condition ef all the Banks and Branch
Banks in the State, on the lst day of Jan'y
1860, as reported by Inc 10 the officers OF
these several Institutions, under oath.-
There are now thirty-eisht Banks in opera
tion, and the amount oi
Notes discounted is, $4,992,24 63
Bills OF Exchange, 9,1J9,U2l a
Coin ON hand. 4,i6O,9l2 %
Circulation outstanding, 1854 $50 UO
Capital stock paid up, 9.O529ol ii
..llhougn he law creating this o.hc: Goes
not impose upon ne the special duty of re-
porting 10 you any defects In cur banking
system which experience mieh: suggest, or
such as tie working Of the system Itself
might develop, | should, nevertheless, feel
.l4t had tailed in discharging, with EGe-
iIy, tho important trusts confided 10 my
hands, if | were, on the present occasion ~
emit calling your attention 10 the many Sc
nous and alarming eTIc!s which pervEde
tie entire system as It is now carried on.
Some Of these evils doubtless result from
the im perfec.iUns Of the law; oihers-and
some 0! tAem OF the most serious charac-
ter, Il may be said-arise from the manner
in which the law is executed and which
are beyond Tic power Of correction, as it
Dow stands. There is much dissatisfaction
existing in lilo public mind relative 10 the
manner in which The business Of cur banks
is conducted. and IL many respects there
are strong grounds FOR complaint. For my
own part, k.yc from the beginning regar-
ded the system as highly Objectionable. and
every days experience has served but 10
strengthen and conirm first impressions
II has certainly failed % meet The necsssi-
ties and jus, demands Of trade, and has lal-
len far snort u securing the ends Of those
who enacted the law, ard, think, has dis
appointed he expectations Of all those in
strulnenial in adopting it.
For the period Of twenty years, commen-
eng in TIE year 1887, and contiDu;ng thro'
the entire time of the existence OF Tic Bank
OF The State Of Missouri, no people in A
merica had sounGsr circulating medium,
or one with which they were better sH'ls-
fed, than were the peop.e Of Missouri With
theirs. The paper issued by that Ban!:
was at ali times convertible into gold and
silver, and was generally worth premium
over specie, because Of It's convenience aid
the promptrcss with which i. was always
redeemed whenever ard wherever present
ed for redemption. Under the system o.
mutual redemption adopted OF the part 0.
Parent Bank and Branches, their paper was
not onlr received and held Is the people Of
our own State as the equivalent o. gold and
silver. but such was the confidence Of the
public mind in regard to that Bank and IFS
general management. that its issues circu-
lated as freely and currently as gold with
the people of all our neighborng Sta,as, ex
tending even 70 the distant regions oil Tex
as, California and Oregon. With that sys-
ten the people had generally become salts
led and were willing TO see it continued,
although many Of them regarded all Banks
Of issue as being Of doubtful utility, if not
dangerous 10 Q sound and healthy state Of
business. Such was certainly the state OF
( the public mind al the lime Of the passage
of the existing law, and it is quite clear 10
my mind that The authors Of that lew de-
signed and intended ccn'inuarcs, IN the
main, Of the same principles and policy
which had been SO correctly and faithfully
adhered 10 by the old Bank throughout the
whole period of IFS existence. This must
be apparent to the mind Of every one who
has given the subject the slightest attention.
The language Of the Constitution under
which all our, Banks are chartered, as
well as the main and leading features Of the
law itself, bear un!nistakeabie evidence of
the fact. The Constitution requires that
every bank shall be based upon specie
capital. and made liable to redeem its is
sues in gold or silver, and the forty-fourth
section Of article one, of the bank act, pro-
hibits in express terms, every bank from
doing business upon "ctrrency," thereby
clearly showing the design and intent OF
those who framed and enacted the law.
II is very clear 10 my mind that those