Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1879-12-03
THE NATIONS FINANCES.
Annual Report Of the Comptroller OF tn,
- Currency.

Hon. JohnJ. Knox, Controller of the Currency
In his annual report to Secretary Sherman
gives brief history of the growth of the deb
Of the United States, and the financial opera
tons of the Government from the beginning o.
the war to the present time. The report says
3The total number of national banks organ.
lied from the establishment Of the national
| banking system, Feb. Is, 1868, to Nov of the
present year is z, 438. OF these, 3O7 have gone
into voluntary liquidation by the vote eff share
holders owning two thirds of their respective
capitals, and eighty-cne have been placed in the
hands OF receivers for the purpose OF closing
up their affairs, leaving 1850 in operation al
the Gate last named.
Since my last annual report thirty Eight
banks have heen organized, with an aggregate
authorized capital of 1855, 600, to which So
800, 40 in circulating notes have been issued
Thirty eight banks with an aggregate capital OF
81, $50, 900 have voluntarily discontinued bust
ness within the said period, and eight banks
have failed, having total capital of 81 $780, 600
| The insolvent banks included two, with CAPT
tai Of $7OO, 600, which failed after having gone
into voluntary liquidation"
| The report is accompanied by tables exhibit
ing the aggregate average capital and deposits
on May 81, 1879, of all classes of banks other
than national, and the capital and deposits of
the national banks on June ii following. The
aggregate capital Of the various classes Of
State, savings and private banks, says the
| Comptroller, has diminished from Sis, 400,
GOO in 1876 to $3.50, 500, COO in 1875 and the ag
gregate deposits have fallen off from 2,075,
300, 900 in 1876 to 81 893, 800 900 in 1879 re-
duction Of $62, 900 600 in capital and $1S1, 800-
600 in deposits during the last four years. The
national banking capital has diminished $45,-
| 100000, but the deposits of the national bank
ers are almost precisely the same that they
were in 1876. Savings banks with capital show
reduction of about 81 ,0OO,0 600 in capital and
the same amount in deposits. The capital and
deposits of State banks and private bankers are
less by $17,O0O, 900 and $685. OO0 600, respective
~ The greatest reduction, however, is in the
deposits of savings banks without capital,
which have diminished $97, 500, 00O"
Upon the subject of the funding of the pub
lie debt the Comptroller says:
sThe great war debt of the United States 8
contracted in Jess than four and q half years.
In 1885 the country was entirely out of debt,
and on Jan. l, 1861, the whole debt of the
Union amounted to but $50, 243 TIL. During
the next ak months it increased at the rate of
about 81, 600, COO month, being, on the LIST day
of July, 1861, 500, $50, S73 During the next
year it increased at the rate of more than
$50, O0o, OOp per month, and at the close of the
fiscal year ending July 1, 1862, it had reached
| 1854, 176. 412 At the end of the succeeding
year it was considerably more than twice that
amount, being, on July 1, 1868, 81, JIG, 772, 138
During the following year it increased nearly
$7OO, 0OO, 900, reaching on July l, 1864, the sum
of s., 1918, 7S4, $40. During the next nine
months, to the close of the war, April 1, 1865,
the debt increased at the rate of about s2, 600
goo day, or about sec, O0O,O 600 month, and
for the five months next thereafter, about So
DOC, geo per day, or about 800, 100000 month
reaching its maximum on Aug. 81, 1865. at
which date it amounted to 81, S45, 907, 626
San aggregate Of more than 81 ,276, 0CO, 600 Of
temporary obligations of the Government of
~,o1 49, 80. ~
cent was funded within the three years which
followed the close Of the war, and the skill and
good judgment displayed in so doing can only
be fully appreciated by those who are familiar
with the difficulties and delicate conditions un-
der which this great work was accomplished
SThe temporary loans, certificates of indebt-
edness, 100 notes, and all the other items of
the debt, except the legal-tender notes and
fractional currency, which have been largely
reduced, have been paid, have matured and
ceased to bear interest, or have been funded
into $50 6 per cents, of which more than one
thousand six hundred millions (s1, 6O2, $50, 800
were issued.
"Ihe acts of July IA, 1870, and of JAN 90
1871, authorized the issue Of bonds for the pur-
pose Of refunding the $50 6 per cents The
former act authorized the issue of 81 500, Co.,
600 Of bonds, $500 0O0, 0J0 of which were to be
per cents, payable ten years after date at the
pleasure Of the United States; $500, OOOOOO Of
Az per cents, payable in fifteen years; and
$1,000, OOO, 600 payable in thirty years from the
date Of their issue, and bearing interest at the
rate Of per cent per annum. The act provided
that these bonds should not be sold for less
than 3heir par value in coin, and that the pro-
ceeds should be applied to the redemption of
the 500 bonds. The latter act increased the
amount of the 5-per-cent bonds to $500, OOO. 600
and provided that the whole amount of bonds
issued should not exceed the amount originally
authorized; and the subsequent act Of JAN %
1879, authorized the refunding or exchanging
of any other Or 6-per-cent bonds which were
redeemable at the pleasure of the Govern
ment.
"The whole amount of the funded debt, on
the LIST of July, 1871, was 1,915, 33442 700, of
which 81, 437. or, 800 consisted of $50 bonds,
and $194, 567, 300 of 10-40 bonds. On the first
day of August, 1871, nearly $50, GOO, OOO-$65,-
subscribed for, chiefly by the national banks.
During the same month an agreement was en-
tered into by the Secretary-Secretary Boutwelrs
report, 1871, p. xvii--with Jay Cooke & Co.,
for the sale of the remainder of $500, 100000 Of
said bonds, and, in the month of January, 1873,
similar arrangements were made for the sale Of
a large additional amount The remainder of
the $500, 600 0OO-$17S 54S, 3O0-was sold during
the next three years, the Secretary of the
Treasury stating, in his report of Dec, 6, 1875,
that he had the pleasure Of announcing to
Congress that the funding of $500, 600 6-per-
cent bonds into those bearing 5-per-cent in
terest has been accomplished Secretary
Bristows report, 1875, p. xii"
Referring to the resumption operations OF
the Treasury Department, the report says:
SThe act of Jan. Il, 1875, required the Secre-
tary Of the Treasury to redeem lin coin the
United States legal tender notes then outstand-
ing, on their presentation for redemption at
the Office Of the Assistant Treasurer of the
United States in the city of New York, in sums
ofnot less than $780, on and after Jan. l, 1879.
At the time Of the passage of this act the lead
ing industries and general business of the coun-
try were very much depressed. The agricult-
ural classes were largely in debt, and the
failures Of mercantile establishments and man
ufacturing corporations in the three years pre-
vious represented more than $5O0,OO0,O00.
During the succeeding years an era Of economy
supervened, agricultural products greatly in
creased, and the balance of trade was turned
largely in our favor, the excess of exports over
imports for the fiscal year 1876 being more
than $79, COX. 600, in 1877 more than $151 ,O0O,-
900, in 1878 exceeding $257, 900 600, and for the
year ending Sept. 80 last more than 1924 Co.,
700. For 1878 the excess was more than three
times as great as that of 1876, and more than
swo- thirds greater thar that of 1877
-The Resumption act not only fixed the day
of rosuprfif,Y hut o,,tborizod the Sacratary