Morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven [Conn.]) 1848-1894, 1890-01-30
LONDON BANK TELLRRs.
Experts in Handling moneY-Featur.
OF she Ruxllsh System.


OF she English system.
From the Boston Commercial Bulletin.l
A London bank teller always experiences
. feeling of relief when he finds his money
correct at the close of Fridays work, and
this feeling is usually shared in by the rest
of the staff, who cannot leave the bank un-
til he either discovers his error or satisfies
himself as to the actual shortage. The great
bulk of the shortages made across bank
counters in England are believed to occur ON
that day.
Next in order of bad days for the teller,
or cashier, as he is designated in Londsn,
comes Saturday, but there the bad luck is
ineligible. Saturday is wages day, and no
sooner has the teller filled his till and loaded
up his shelves with silver in Eve and ten
pound bags than the days work sets in like
flood. Until twelve O'Clock he is paying
away with both hands; after that hour, if he
ceive heavily, for Saturday is also the last
day of the week, and every one elects that
the bank should receive his deposits rather
than that he should keep them in his own
less secure custody over Sunday.
In beginning work on Saturday the Lon
don teller faces an open mahogany counter,
Of which the portion controlled by his desk
le PROBABLY Blk 1eeb AouS ny tuI0o Iees Wl0es
He likes to have good, square view of his
customer, and it is one of the canons Of
British banking that the eyes of the staff
shall command the counter. With such an
open counter the chief clerk ia able to see the
whole field under his eye at one time, and to
relieve the oyerstrain at any particular desk.
The effect of the exposed condition is bene-
fetal, too, on the staff, the members of
which preserve steadier demeanor and at
tend more closely to business while under
the eyes of the public.
The London teller iS q1ick manipulator
of coin. This is largely owing to the fact
that the smallest note issued in London is of
| the value of five pounds or twenty-five dol
| lars. When asked for gold in a greater
amount than his eye can count at a glance,
| the teller, after counting it quickly with q
piano-forte motion, throws it with his cop.
| per scoop into his faithful scales, and 30
checks his count. The weights of these
| scales are arranged In suitable numbers.
The teller also checks the gold which he re-
ceives by weight, and here his knowledge of
| his business will be tested. One hundred
| new sovereiRns are of full weight, rather
more, in fact, but the same number taken at
haphazard will be found to be nearly half a
sovereign Cor one-half per cent) short in
weight, while one hundred POUNDS sterling
In ordinary half sovsreigns are sometimes
twenty shillings (or one per cent? short In
value. The teller can quickly satisfy him.
self as to whether the deficiency II caused
by shortage in the weight or the count by
dividing the amount and weighing one moie-
ty against the other. If they balance evenly
| the count is correct, and the difference is
due to uuderweizht. IF the latter exceeds
the average stated, the coin will need to be
specially examined; there is probably some-
thing wrong.
l vuitI lin N nrovonk the C0ir from
rolling over and to aid the teller in scooping
up the money. The teller usually counts
with the first two fingers of both hands,
simultaneously; sometimes he uses six fin.
gers, and a teller has been known to count
four hundred and fifty sovereigns in one
minute, working against time. An expert
| teller will count one hundred pounds ster.
| ling value of silver in seven minutes. When
it is remembered that the coins are always
mixed, and consist of eixpences, shillings,
| 6orins, half crowns aud crowns, with never
q decimal convenience among them, thii
will reasonably be considered as remarks
BILE feat.
The annual loss from wear and tear of eoli
coin in England by reason Of the absence o
small notes is almost incredible. In Scot
land the issue of one pound sterling note
displaces gold to great extent. The Scotcl
teller excels in counting paper money. Il
/, lingering bundle of notes he is king o
| men. Placing the packets upright eGa1ne
his left palm, and seizing the top corner be
tween the finger and thumb of his righ
, hand, he will turn over the notes 80 quickl
that an ordinary observer will be as entirel
deceived as by the three card trick, and vii
probably count only sixteen or seventeen t
!: the teller's twenty. Then, to check hi
. count, he will either alternate his hands, OF
placing the notes horizontally on his counter
he will count them toward himself with th
same paralyzing speed.
. The Scotch counter is twice as wide as th
London one; it is elevated in the center an
is minus the rim, which facilitates the Kns
lish teller's dexte1ity with the coin. tt
: Scotch teller In Edinburgh is rallied in. Hi
domain is little island by itself, he TAXI
Q no responsibility, he carries no balances
q his head, and will not look at a check unit
I the ledger clerk, far off in the corner, h'
Q countersigned it.
t An advantage which the English tell
< possesses over the American and the Scote
teller lies in the fact that he issues olea
!. notes only. The Bank of England has Il
B exclusive privilege of note issues in Londo
4 and within a radius of sixty miles, rigl
q conferred for certain valuable consider
/. ton granted to tho government in yea
Il gone by. All the notes received by the Lo
a don teller are sent into the Bank of Epi
. land. and they are not reissued. The ave
age life of five pound sterling bank note
two or three weeks, that of one hundr,
! pound sterling bank note three days-th
= is, the interval between it's issue and retu
. | 10 he hank Gpol 1ooth