The Penn's Grove record., 1893-12-08
MILLIONS CHANGE HANDS.
HUGE TRANSACTIONS OF TIL
NEW YORK CLEARING HOUSE.
Millions May BIO Exchanged and
Not One Cent Lett by Closing. Time
Bank Clerks and Detectives.


Bank Clerks and Detectives.
v"iSITOR5 to Washington going
NJ to the Uaitcd States Treasury
V hold thousands of dollars, even
hundreds of thousands of dol
lars, in their hands and then go home
and talk about it all the rest of then
lives. There is a glamour envelopine
large sums Of money.
Millions are always suggestive 81
"Arabian Nights" aud are referred tt
vaguely and reverently, somewhat a.
PEOPLE talk of the future state.
Every day thousands Of busy people
hurry down Nassau street aud past Pine.
They are unaware that every morning, In
a room over the Chase National Bank,
between $500, coo, 900 and $3.50, 000,.
900 changes hands in ten minutes. The
Chase National Bank is in the northwest
corner of Nassau and Pine streets, and,
over the bank, the rest of the building
Is occupied by the Clearing House Of the
Associated Banks Of New York.
Every workday morning representa-
tives of over sixty banks of the city oil
New York assemble III the Clearing
House with checks to be exchanged.
Precisely at ten O'Clock the representa-
tives exchange checks, receiving vouch.
ers and receipts in return. This takes
exactly ten minutes. The results OF the
interchange are then reported by each
financial em,ssary to William Slcarer,
Manager of the Clearing House, and bis
assistant, William |. Gilpiu. These two
gentlemen mount into a gallery at the
end OF the room and balance the results
upon a huge proof sheet. On the floor
below each bank representative has q
high desk, belonging to his bank. After
making their returns, they loll around
for half i'm hour until the result OF tde
days clearauces are read by Mr.. Gilpin
f.orc the gallery. Tnese arc copied
down by the men on the floor below
upon similar sizes and taken to their
banks, where they Iurlisl accurate daily
statements of the finlrcial standing and
daily business of kindreG houses.
The average sum which Changes hands
daily is about Sl35, 009, 900, but upon
Thursday last the enormous sum Of
$3.50, 900, 900 was involved.
Upon receiving their credit or debh
papers the M.l return to their institu.
lions. Il one bank sent down $500, 900
worth OF checks and received back only
500, 900 in their own checks, they are
entitled to tho $500, 600 Inference; and,
on the otter hand, if they pay over
81 W,0l0 worth of other banks cheeks,
tIey are required to make it good. This
is done at 1880 p. m. each day. Then
the clerks or messengers repair to the
Clearing House and pay in what ia
charged against them, and vice.versa.
This difference is paid in $1,000, 5000,
5000 and $lJ,U0J gold o; silver GER
tificate notes and payment is made back
by the institutution in Clearing House
certificates, which are yilue,ess except
when signed by the Clearing House.
As the interchange of so much money
is of considerable importance, the clerks
| or bank messengers, who carry hundreds
| Of thousands of dollars to or from Mas
| sau and Pine streets, never travel alone,
and generally com and 60 in cabs. The
banks detective, and sometimes two OF
them, follow the man with the money.
All 60 heavily armed, and there is no
instance upon record where one of these
| messengers has been robbed.
By the middle of the afternoon, aftei
the debts aud credits have been made
good, the Clearing House has not one
cent in its Golfers. 1t is all received and
dispensed in the settling room.
OF a necessity, the accounts upon the
proof sheets have to balance. If there
are any mistakes they are easily corrected
by referring to the system of mutual
vouchers and receipts, which each banks
representative takes and receives from
every other bank. Aside from this,
there is a system Of fines, averaging So
for each error made. This acts as 8
stimulus to accuracy and prevents errors,
which in reality are rare.
Through the medium Of the Clearing
House each Individual bank is saved
thousands of dollars and valuable time,
1t would keep five or six bank clerks
busy IRON morning until night to visit
other banks, return checks: exchange
the same and collect or pay the differ
ences, beside retarding the business ant
bookkeeping.
The Clearing House of the Associated
Banks of New York has been IN exist
cnce since 1858. During that time !
has been able to avert serious dnancia
panics by the intimate knowledge which
it furnished to each bank concerning thu
exact condition OF the others. The al
fairs Of the institution are controlled b.
an Executive Committee of Eve, ap
pointed at the annual meetings.
Each bank is based according to tn
amount Of business which it transact
through the medium. Banks outside o
the city are not admitted, but theJ cal
clear through the city banks by keeping
permanently, a large deposit IN tn
banks which they select, and sendin
their checks to them as agents.
In the Clearing House, in the uppe
room, everything runs like clockwork
Eacn maj knows his place, and the syi
TEN has been so simpllied as to be abst
lutcly accurate. It runs in such smoot
grooves, SO well oiled, that the institu
ton can clear or exchange with the sam
facility 5000, 600. 900 or s1o0, 600 ii
side Of the prescribed ten minutes.
There can be no mistakes involving
mixture Of the banks. Each concer
has a number Of its own, which is neve
given to another. II the bank fails tht
number is never used again. There
no opportunity to 'shoodoo," as 1t wer,
any other inancialh house. This is evince
in the proof sheet, which possess
eighty-nine numbers, while only sixt
odd banks are doing business. ~
others have failed or gone out Of exis
ence since the Clearing House w