Arizona citizen., 1875-09-11
Bank of California Failure.


 For the past two weeks, we intended to have made some remarks on this failure, but other matters got in ahead It demonstrated in the clearest possible light, several facts, chief of which are the apprehension of the people that il was unsafe; that people should beware of bank, however large its advertised or real capital which deals largely in the paper of corporate companies whose stocks seldom have a marketa ble value according to the merit of the business upon which they are based and that banks winch do not deal in such securities ''-as they are erro neously called are worthy of conf dence and are advantageous to the great body of the people. Banks that deal largely in stocks of uncertain val ue, naturally enough educate their off cers to do likewise. Contrary to Oul expectations, the late President of the California Bank was a defaulter in 8 very large sum, as this dispatch shows
 SAN FRANCISCO, September 4.-Tle Bulletin publishes a statement Stifeh6{ C.. Mills, former president andSCN'act ing manager of the Bank of California to the effect that there was defalca ton on the part of w. c. Ralston, which will amount to between four and five million dollars, and that an over. issue of stock of the bank has been dis covered, the amount of which is not yet known. This will not in any way affect the arrangements now being made for re-opening the bank.
 Notwithstanding this development, thousands of people will continue to believe that Ralston never intended to rob the bank or its depositors, but that like the bank, he engaged in large and doubtful speculations, and as the bank speculated upon the funds of its pat rons, so did its president And with all its wild management, on the day it closed, wonderful amount of coin was paid out-as per dispatches $1 ,40O,- GOO; and this is quite an enormous sum for bank to keep in its vaults and do a profitable business.
 The failure also demonstrated the soundness of the other San Francisco banks. Several of them paid out near ly million, and the National Gold Bank and Trust Company even more and had coin and abundance of resour- ces left. Had the run been on one or two banks with such an exhibition of resources, the soundness of none of them would have been tested as in this instance, for in this case every one was put upon its own bottom, and all but three stood the pressure without even temporary suspension, and two of these three needed only few days to convert their sound assets to enable them to meet all obligations. We much doubt if the banks of another city of it's population in the world, can make such showing of ready money as those of San Francisco have. With all that city's reputation for stock gambling, but one of its banks seems to have been doing an unsafe business and even that one is to be re-opened and no doubt safely conducted here after
 Down this way, but very few people had paper on the Bank of California. We saw one certificate of deposit for one thousand dollars which was issued to W. H. Hardy, and in the hands of a teamster, (Mr. Brash we believeO and MT. Nelson of Davis & Nelson, may have had three hundred dollars unpaid at the time of the suspension. We hear of no others having that banks paper. The temporary failure of the bank, will have a wholesome effect, and the fact that it resumes so soon with such a tremendous dedication and large overissue of stock, exhibits the wonder ful financial capacity of its trustees and friends.