The Sunday herald and weekly national intelligencer., 1891-03-08

Five times year the Comptroller of the Cur
rency calls for statement of the condition of
the national banks all over the country on a
certain day, and, while the particular day is not
known until the call is made, general expec-
tation of the call can be guessed at, and the
bank officers endeavor to have their house in
order for it, so that they may be able to pub
lsh good showing or their resources and liza
bilties.
Borrowers generally can tell when-a call is
expected by the fact that accommodation is
trie less liberal than at other times, as the law
requires reserve of 25 per cent of deposits to
be always on hand. This rule does not apply
with so much force to our local banks as to
those in the large money centres, as the neces-
sity for violation of It does not apply with
the same consideration as in New York and
elsewhere, where large sums of money are so
constantly needed
1t will no doubt be matter of agreeable sur
prise to my readers, as it surely was to me, to
find that, by comparison with the same time
of last year and the year previous the amount
on deposit in our local national banks and
trust companies exceeds that of both those
times, and this, too, notwithstanding the troub-
ulous times through which we have but recently
passed. 1t is also learned that our private
banking institutions are in much better condi-
tion than ever before with large increase of de-
posits, so that altogether the situation as far as
Washington is concerned shows very healthy
state of affairs. This condition is especially
shown in the growing ease of money and the
ability to secure accommodation on good col
.laterals or indorsers when needed
The total amount on deposit in our thirteen
national banks, two trust companies, and one
savings bank, as submitted to the Comptroller
49, g ~,
$12, 127, S41 Is, while on the 2Sth of February,
1890, the amount stated was $10,976, ,0561O and
on the Goth day of February, 1889, the amount
then on deposit aggregated but SO, 76S, $40 .1S.
AS will be remembered there great pie
thora of money one year ago, and the ability to
secure good uses for it quite taxed the skill of
our local financers, and rates ruled correspond
ingly low. The showing to-day quite refutes
the oft-repeated story about the boarding of
money in the proverbial stocking, and other
places supposed to be equally secure, and proves
that the vaults of our banks are still considered
the safest place to deposit money in and the
easiest place to get it out of when needed.
The amount of loans and discounts show
natural increase and prove the wisdom of our
banking magnates, who believe rether in loan
ing it out, so as to have it in circulation, than
boarding it up and precipitating matters.
The total amount of loans and discounts on
the Goth ultimo was SO, ,5S5, ,S37.34, while one
year ago the total was but 81 SIC, 1886, and on
the 26th of February, 1859, it aggregated
.SO,O to,too.oO. Iue uSuIeS gwen dJ GulS UlIne
would apparently show that the banks had ex-
ceeded the limit, but as the amount loaned in
cludes million and half by the security and
trust companies, which is represented by their
large capital, the banks really have over half
million in excess of the legal reserve.
Taking the amounts in detail, the figures are
of interest as showing the changes in position
of some of the banks, the Citizens particularly
taking large lead in the amount of deposits
and moving up from eighth place to sixth in
the line. Central advanced from fifth to second
in the total deposits Metropolitan dropping to
third, and Columbia to fifth in consequence
The Republic holds it's own. The Second and
Farmers and Mechanics give place to the Citi-
zens', as stated, and West End gave way to the
Lincoln and Traders, both starting after that
did The Ohio having been in existence only
three days. naturally comes last. The trust
companies show up well as repositories of the
peoples money, the American Security already
having good lead on three of the banks,
while the large and increasing amount left in
the Savings Bank prove the continued conf
dence in that time-tried institution. and shows
pretty conclusively that we have larger num-
Der of prudent and frugal people than the out
side world gives us credit for