Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1892-10-29
BAD MONEY


tat Fiuaneeei ing.
Business men will not fail to see that
the banking system now proposed 10
THE country by the Chicago convention
would if adopted, pro Il worse finan-
ciid atiliction than the flooding of the
country with grcenbacks. which so
large a portion of that party recently
favored For of grcenbacks it could be
said that they would have the govern
ment back Of them, but if the old sys-
rem Of state banks should be revived
l.tey would become, as they did before,
Q s.uiceWay for pouring over the cOun-
Ig Hood Of notes without proper
security. All would NOT be 50. bat there
would be millions OF unprotected or
only partially secured money in circu-
hilUu.
President Harrison, in his letter Of
acceptance, yiyidly recalled the condi-
ion of affairs when the old system Of
state banks was in its baleful prime
The postmaster-geuer in a cOmmuni-
cation to the last congress. presented
some startling statistics on the failure
of private banks. which become Of
momentous interest since the demo-
Gratis have announced it to be their
policy to remove al restrictions upon
the circulation Of state banks. The
acknowledgement says:
"That private banking institutions do
not afford adequate security to deposit
ors is most clearly demonstrated by the
statistics at the command of the govern
ment, showing the failure of private
banking firms and contrasting these
failures in their extent and effect with
the losses incurred through the insol-
yency of national banks. These statis-
tics are comparatively limited, but,
such as they are, they constitute such
strong proof of acknowledgement and
rcclllessness of concerns free from ade-
quate governmental or state restraint rs
to furnish the best evidence upon the
point desired in this discussion to be
emphasized.
From the beginning of the national
banking system until 1879, period Of
sixteen years. only eighty-one national
banks had become insOlvent and the
estimated losses all told were Sc, 24O,
1S9. 1t is stated in the publications on
the subject that tifty-iye banks, Operat-
ing under systems in vogue prior TO
the national banking system, failed in
the single year 1871, with an aggregate
capital of over S670OO0O0 And it is
also recorded that in nearly every in
stance the entire capital of the banks
which failed was lost. The losses Incl
dent to three or four failures Of private
banking firms prior to 1879 were equal
to the total losses which had up to that
time occurred under the national bank
ing system. During three years ending
January /, 1870, the failures Of state
and savings banks and private banks
in twenty three states numbered 30,
with losses amounting to So, G16,Gl.
THE average annual losses 10 credit
ors by the insolvency of national banks
during sixteen years prior to 1879 was
S39O,O12, while that occasioned by the
failure of banks other than national
was for three years prior to 1879 not
less than $1O,S7220O per annum. The
report of the comptroller Of the cur
rency for 1879 show that in the states
of Ohio and Illinois alone the losses IN
three years through the failure Of state
saving and private banks and bankers
aggregated over 100000, of which
about S2OOO,OOO were in Ohio ana about
100000 in Illinois, the total losses III
these two states being greater by 81
79S013 than the total losses to creditors
by all the national bank failures which
have ever occurred.
I'm eight years the losses to creditors
through the failure Of national banks
in the cities Of New York and Brooklyn
were sol, 600, while the losses by saw
ing banks in the same two cities for a
corresponding period were nearly ST.
100000"
In addition to the above, it may be
stated that according to a late report
Of the comptroller of the currency there
were during the year ending June 30,
1891, failures of III banks brokers,
trust companies and saving banks in
this country, having an aggregate Of
liabilities Of over S3S0O0OOO and assets
of but $2O,O0OOOO
These figures are not only Of import
ance to tinanciers, but they are Of vital
interest to every laboring man and
small capitalist The men of small
means are deeply concerned in having
sound money. There is nothing which
can more seriously threaten working
men aud those Of moderate means
than a revival of wildcat banking
Every thoughtful reader win carefully
consider the argument which the figures
given above present