M'arthur Democrat. (McArthur, Vinton County, Ohio) 1853-1865, 1861-01-17


AS compared with the several
amounts on the duplicates Of 1859,
this shows an increase in the qu tntity
o! land Of 1870, 1868 acres:
Increase in the value Of
land, not in cities and
villages, Of S54,153,9s7
Decrease in value OF real
estate in cities AID vii
lagos of 1878, $50
Total increase in the val
ue OF real estate S45780, ,307
Total decrease in the value
OF personal property 9,3S7,657
ON BANKS.
The suhjects of banking and cur
rency, address themselves with equal
force and directness to the people Of
the State. Whateverth theories We may
entertain on these subjects; whatever
ingenious and beautiful visions Of a
penp'e without. banks, and gold and
EsilvDr their only currency, thesprscti-
cal realities are before uS:-W We have
banks; we have paper money, AS .
matter of fact, banking is but one of
the divisions Of labor into which com.
merce is sub.divided, and among eve.
ry commercial people the business
proper Of the banker is as indispsnsa-
ble as that OF the shipper, transporter,
or consignor, in transacting the bust.
ness OF the country. The practical
question which addresses itself to the
Legislator is not whether the State
may or may not dispense with the
use of all banks, but what is the best
system or plan Of banking for the peo-
pic for whose interests he iS called up
on to act. and how, and to what ex-
tent should it be applied.
And 80 also OF the currency of the
State. so long as the people Of Ohio
are in business connection with the
people of other States, we are and will
be in the receipt and use Of the banks
OF other States which circulate with
the issues Of our own banks, Of which
to the extent Of their existence they
take the place and become the subst:.
tute. The practical question is not
whether we are to have paper money,
or gold and silver as tho common cur.
rency Of the State, but whether we
are 10 have the issues Of foreign banks,
or of banks existing within our own
State, responsible under our own laws,
and regulated and controlled by our
own action. The experiment has been
tried, not only in Ohio, but in several
other States, OF dispensing with bank
issues under State authority with one
uniform rcSult-the introduction of a
debascd and foreign currency, incon.
vertible into gold and silver, with all
the disastrous and demuralizing con.
sequences OF such a currency. We
should learn wisdom from our own ex-
perience as well AS from the experience
nt other States in this matter. AT this
very time Ohio is suffering great IN.
convenience and loss from the depre-
ciated currency Of other Stats whoss
banks have suspended the payment OF
specie. 1t was to obtain relief from
such currency that our existing sys
tenn OF banking was established under
the act OF lS45, creating the State
Bank Of OhiU, and other banking COM
panies.
1t appears from the quarterly report
of the a uditor, Tor November last 4 nat
the entire banking capital Of the in
corporated banks OF the State, 10, viz:
s5,sol 1854
So branches Of the State
Bank of Ohio. $4,1o45o
independent banks 632 2s4
| free banks ,l24.6O0
The entire circulation ct
the same time was, viz: eS,SStYSST
Branches Of State Bank e7,A03,95e
Independent banks Slil SIS 65S
Free banks Ilt r. ypg 655,2i8 HJi
This amount Of banking capital asd
issue bears d very small proportion, 90