The New York herald., 1879-12-18
Since JAM l. s2s3, 400 S333 429 $337 Oo9
At an auction sale in this city to-day the following
| securities sold ut the prices given:-

At auction sale in this city to-day the following
securities were sold at the prices given:-
$4,000 Arkansas State per cent funded debt bonds,
Nos. 1632 to 1885 inclusive. $1,000 each dated Janu
ary l, 1870. interest payable January and July l.
coupons unpaid OF January l. 1873, and subsequent.
1914; 1852 interest in brig Stella now lying at Bos-
ton, for $3.50; so shares Mercantile National Bank,
500 each. 81 200 shares Standard Consoli-
dated Manufacturing Company 500 each. %;
per cent income bonds, due March l. 1882. interest
March and September. March, 1874. coupon on. az !;
ond mortgage ponds. So; 100 shares New Jersey Mid
United States per cent registered bonds. one of
80 shares New York Gaslight Company, $i05
each. s1H; 200 shares Peoples Gasight
Is shares Boston and New York Air Line ' Railroad
Company common, 500 leach, tx; $53 70 Boston and
New York Air Line Railroad scrip, Z; shares How:
ard Fire Insurance Company. $50 each, 104i4; 6
shares United States Fire Insurance Company. S25
each 126; 10 shares Niagara Fire Insurance Company
Insurance COMPANY. $25 each. 1s4; Is shares Amer
ican Exchange Fire Insurance Company, 500 each.
10ln shares Merchants Fire Insurance Company,
$50 each 1853; 10 shares Mechanics Fire Insurance
Company. $50 each. l7o; 16 shares Now York Equi-
table Insurance Company. s3S each. lG2h; . shares
New York Equitable Insurance Company, $50 each,
1925; 40 shares Loriliard Fire Insurance Company.
s25 each. sly; 10 shares Star Fire Insurance Com
pany, 500 each, with privilege of subscribing to now
stock 1Il 40 shares Produce Bank, $50 EACH As; 80
snares New York. Providence and Boston Railroad
Company Bloomington line) (hyp). 500 each. 1861 80
shares New York Gaslignt Company. 500 each. so.
On Monday Mr.. Isaac W. White, cashier of tho
Chase National Bank. wrote to Comptroller of the
Currency Knox follow :-"Are silver certificates
a legal tender? Can they be counted In re-
server To-day reply was received. in which the
Comptroller says:-
"EIrst-The only legal tender quality that silver
ceracsses have is that they receivable for
toms, taxes and all public dues. Section OF the act
OF Congress passed. February -. 1873.
''Second-Thcre is no authority of law sor count
ing silver certificates as part OF the lawful money
reserve which national banks required to hold"
In view OF tho fact that tho now Interest law OF
this fixing the rate ut six instead Of per
cent goes into effect tho LIST OF January the sub
joined summary OF the laws and decisions OF the
courts on the question of usury has timely inter-
est. They are extracted from q circular issued to
bank managers by Mr. John Thompson. vice presi-
dent OF the Chase National Bank. aud endorsed
by well known attorneys;-
Section 5l07 of tho Revised Statutes of tho United
Statcs relating to national banks. provides In SUBJ
stance that such banks may take such rate OF inter-
is allowed by the laws Of the State. Territory
or District where such bank is located and where
no ratio OF interest is 6xed by such laws such bank
may take rate OF interest not exceeding seven per
cent per annum.
Section 5.iys prcscribes the penalties for o viola
tion of the provisions OF tho preceding section
viz, Tho bank shall forfeit the entire interest
which the note, bill &c carries with it, and that in
case greater interest has been paid the party pay
ing may recover back in an action. &c.. twice the
amount of the interest thus paid, nc.
The Court of Appeals of this State, In the case of
the First National Bank OF Whitehall James
Lamb 100 N " 95), held that the true construction
of the United States act that national banks To-
Gated in States which had usury laws were gov-
ernod by such laws and liable to all tho penalties
prescribed by such laws aud that the penalties &C.,
prescribed by the United states statute only applied
to the banks located IN States, NC, which had
usury laws, and held the plaintiff could not
on the ground of usury under our State law.
BY chapter 163 of the Laws of 1870 the Legislature
of tho state OF New York passed an act which ex-
tended to and placed banks organized under
State banking law on an equality with national
banks.
Under this act tho Court of Appeals Of this State
in the case of Farmers Bank vs.. Hale (59 N. Y. p,
5 held that the expressed intent OF tho Legislature
being to place the State banks on the samo level
with national banks and the Court having held in