The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1881-03-12
NATIONAL BANKS.
Their Deposited Notes
are Refused Them.
DECISION OF THE SECRETARY
OF THE TREASURY IN
THE MATTER.

WAsHINGToN.i March 1.-THE decis
ion reached by the Cabinet to-day on tn,
request of national banks to withdraw thei
legal tender deposited to retire circulation
maintains that the precideDts of the de
partment in similar cases should be ad
hered to aud no return of legal tender.
made. Secretary Window expresses th,
opinion that no stringency in the money
market need be apprehended. owing tt
and are being purchased by the govern
ment.
The text of the decision is as follows:
To the President of the Merchants
National Bank. Cleveland. Ohio-Sir
am in receipt Of your letter of the 5th
inst. stating that your bank had, during
the previous week deposited with the
Assistant Treasurer at New York $780,
900 in legal tenders, with the view of re-
firing that amount of its circulating notes;
| that bonds to secure the same. amounting
to 100000 had been forwarded from
the Treasury to New York, and that the
| bank now desires to return them to the
Treasury of the Unites States and receive
back the above amount of legal tender
notes.
AS the action taken in this case would
establish a trule by which the depart
Uent would necessarily be governed in
regard TO similar requests from other
banks, some delay in occasioned IN an
swering your letter, received. it seems,
| since the 18th ult. About $l9 600, 900 of
| legal tenders have been deposited by
banks for purpose like that mentioned
| by you. Of this amount about $i1 900, 900
was returned by the Treasurer. The
request, therefore, having been received
before any redemption of notes had been
made or security bonds delivered in such
cases, the transaction being incomplete,
the department had clearly the right to
return the notes as had been done, OF
the rem aiming amount about $4,000, 900
of security bonds, therefore. have either
| been surrendered or redemptions against
ths amounts deposited have already been
made, and the transactions have been SO
far completed that it has been decided
that the precedents Of the department in
similar leases should be adhered to. and
no return of legal tenders b2 made.
In this connection it should be stated
that no apprehension of an unfavorable
result need be entertained in this matter
Since the 25th ult., the department has
paid out for bonds purchased. about
Sc 500 200 and is to-day paying out on
like account an additional amount of
| S.. 100000. In addition TO these payments.
there has been advanced from the treas
ury sirce the first inst, to meet paym ents
of arreages OF pensions the amount of
81 ,5S3. 844, and on the 3Ist proximo there
will fall due of interest more than 81 .000,-
900. and there are on hand of incomplete
national bank notes, which can be issued
| at once to banks. the amount OF $4,000. 900.
which in the aggregate. it will be observed,
will take an amount of legal tender notes
which have been deposited by the banks
since tho 10Th uit, which it is now desired
should be returned Letters have also
beea received asking if the identicalU nited
States bonds held as security for circulat
ing notes which were recently Withdrawn
by national banks can be redeposited with
out transfer. This request will be granted
if the bond bears no assignment except
that of the Treasurer of the United States
to the bank returning it. The decision,
although signed By Acting Secretary
French, was actually rendered by Secre-
| tary Window. Owing to the pressure OF
business upon the Secretary, Assistant
Secretary French signed to days business.
1t is the rule of the department that the
entire business of any given day shall be
| signed by one person.
| The census bulletin shows that the
native increase the past ten years has
| gained upon foreign immigration,
A delegation ofCongressmep and prom
inent citizens of Illinois to day congratu-
lated Secretary Robert Lincoln on his
appointment as Secretary of War. Dircc-
tor of the Mint Burchard presented the
gentlemen to the Secretary, who responded
i1 brief speech. Col Robert q. IngersGll
was called on for speech and paid glow
Jog tribute to the memory of Abraham
Lincoln and congratulated the country on
| me selection of a worthy SOD of so eminent q
patriot, for Cabinet position.
A TOTTERING TOWN.
MAHoNING, Pa March 1.-THE collir
| les IN the town have undermined the
whole section of the valley. leaving the
| town built on a crust of earth. Every few
weeks this crust settles and sometimes
drops entirely cut of sight. The result
has been that the value of property in the
vicinity has been greatly jepreciated.
| Houses which were built together lean
apart at the roofs as much as eighteen
| inches 10 some cases, while iu others the
whole building has settled that much.
| Occasionally people get up in the morning
to find crack of six or eight inches, and
Of unknown depth. across their back yard
| The road in front of the Methodist Epis
copal Church has settled several inches,
SILVER DOLLARS.
WASHINGTON March 1.-THE larges,
order ever received for standard silver
dollars came in to day from Philadelphia.
A single bank in that city ordered 100 600
Of these dollars. They will be shipped by
express IN bags. The weight ia about
three tons, or 900 pounds Treasury
officials are considerably puzzled to know
what cne bank wants with so much silver.
| bur they Imagine that il is to pay rent
under old leases, which have rua for half
a century or more. and which are payable
| ia silver 20 avoid the fluctuations of less
substantial money In any event the
off Gals we're glad to get the order. as the
wants are crammed with silver. which
comes ia about three times faster than it
is paid cut.
COAL STRIKE.
A special sto the Inter Ocean from
| Bloomington says:
Kerrieau, the miner whose discharge BY
the Mclean County Coal Company was