The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-05-04
SCARCITY OF ENGRAVBRS
Officials ef the Treasury Depart
ment Embarrassed.
Millions o. Dollars Of Circulation
Held Up Result of the COn,li-
and Printing-National Banks Said
to he Suffering in Consequence.

Owing TO a scarcity of engTavers in the
| Bureau of Engraving and Printing. the
| Treasury Department is finding itself Sc
| riously embarrassed in attempting to pre-
vide national bank circulation as required
under the newly adopted Currency law.
| More than 800 banks are gradually having
their circulation decreased and suspended
through the inability of the Department 10
| furnish plates for the new notes called for
| by the act, and at the present time si6,-
| 600 of national bank circulation has
been held up by reason Of this conplica-
ton. There is no prospect Of an immedi-
ate improvement in the situation, and tie
Treasury officials are apprehensve us 10
the outcome.
Section IL of the Currency law provides
that no national banking association shall,
after the passage Of this act, re entitled
to recei:e from the Comptroller OF the Cur
rency or to issue or reissue or place in cir
culatiCn more than one-third of its cir
culatirg notes of the denomination OF ave
dollars The idea of limiting the issue
of five-dollar national bank notes was to
create a demand for the silver certificates
of enc and two-dollar denominations. At
the time the law went into effect. 926
banks out of total of $500 had their en-
tire outstanding circulation made Up of
ve-dollar notes, this being the most popu-
lar denomination.
This state of affairs was not confined TO
banks of small stock, but was true IN Ie-
gard to institutions that had as much as
$500, 900 and 100000 in circulation. AS
soon as the law became operative. all the
banks that had issued five-s!ollar notes
exclusively found that their circulation
was cut down to one-third of what it fo--
merly was, and that the balance must lie
made up in notes Of larger denomination.
A big rush was at once made on the
Treasury Department for authority to is
sue bills of ten-dollar, twenty dollar, and
other sizes. The Department has TO make
an engraved plate for each bank and for
each note, and in a few days there were
on hand orders for several hundred plates.
Under normal conditions the Bureau of
Engraving and Printing is able to get out
plate and begin printing from ii In forty
i've days. But the present conditions at
the Bureau are not normal. The work of
engraving plates for the new per cent
bonds is well under WY, and the small
force was taxed to its utmost before the
demand for national bank plates became
heavy. 1t was stated yesterday at the
treasury Department that there are more
than 500 applications on file for new ma
tional bank plates. The rate of progress
being made by the Bureau may be judge
from the fact that not a single plate that
was ordered after the President signed
the Currency bill, March IL has yet been
delivered. few long headed bank man
ayers, foreseeing the rush that was in
evitable. filed applications weeks before
the law became operative. and these men
have received their plates
The Department on Wednesday delivered
plates that were ordered March 5, and is
therefore nearly two months behind. The
bureau authorities are unable to give any
promise OF early relief. They say that
their force is working night and day. and
that unless additional engravers are Sc
cured it - IL be months before all orders
are executed. The city. and in fact, the
country, has been secured for competent
engravers. It is said that there are but
twelve men engaged to git out the eight
hundred odd plates that are needed
a Treasury Department official said yes
terday that there is enough engraving work
at the bureau now to keep the regular force
force busy for the next nineteen mon tbs
without considering new jobs that will
come in.
In the mean time loud complaints are
coming In from banks all over the country
Many OF them are having their circulation
cut down 10 the danger point, and are ap-
pealing to the Secretary for relief.
Treasury official, in explaining the sit
uation, said: Take the case of a bank
whose outstanding circulation before the
new law went into effect was $500. 900. Say
that all this was taken up in five-dollar
notes. which was a very common thing.
as our records show that nearly 600 out
of $500 banks were in this exact fix. Ac-
cording to the new law. the circulation OF
this bank in question was cut down to
100000 on March Is. that being one-t third
of the total amount of fve-dllar notes that
it had issued.
The balance OF $1,000 must be made
up of notes of higher denomination. OF
course. the bank can only issue new notes
of higher denomination as its old ones
are presented at the department for re-
demption. These are out in circulation in
all parts of the country. AS they become
worn out and mutilated they are brought
TO the Treasury to be exchanged for fresh
money. The bank must wait until its
surplus note are sent in this way before
they can be replaced with notes of larger
denomination. But on account of the alb
sence Of the plates necessary to print new
notes the Department is holding up mil
lions of money that has been redeemed in
this manner.
AT the present time we have between
$3.50 1000 and SIG. 900 900 to the credit of
various banks that are waiting to ex-
change this old money for the new notes
to be printed from the plates when ready. |
OF course. this reduces the circulation
of these banks to this extent. The amount |
of our holdings is increasing every day, |
and there is no telling what it may result |
in il the Bureau does not hurry and de-
liver the plates. The total amount of out |
standing national bank circulation is only |
something over $3.50 000. 900. so that the |
withdrawal of sl6,000,000 will naturally |
have some effect" --Ig
niscceLifnI L.