The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-04-15
Checks for Millions.
From Tit-Bits.

To the man who has rarely, if ever writ
ten a check for more than f10) ard 10
whom even a crisp 80 note stil posses ses
much of the fascination of novelty there
is something very impressive in the very
thought of checks which dispose of millions
with a few strokes of pen Oh a few
squares inches of paper.
Two of the largest checks Of this, Ct
probably of any century We're in raymert
of the Chinese war indemnify to japan.
and were drawn, as so many col os al
checks have been drawn, on the Bank of
England The check which paid the frs
instalment of this indemnity was for the
curious amount of Is, 900 Is 1Gj sum
five times as large as the average value
the coin in the banking department Of tde
Bank of England, and representing mo
than one-fourth Of the value of all the
bullion i'm the banks issue department on
Nov. q last.
But this check was small in comparison
with the check which finally pa d off TIE
war indemnity. This check, which won d
have made millionaires of eleven junior
bank clerks. was for the stupendous sum
of FL, 00S, 857 les Sd, or roughly, one-tenth OF
our entire national revenue for yeas.
To remove the gold necessary to cash this
single check would severely tax tie
strength of sixty strong horses. while IL
would outweigh a regiment and a quar-
ter of soldiers.
One of the largest checks ever issued in
the commercial world was drawn by he
De Beers Mining Company and was for
20, $50 5000 1t is curious TO reflect t1at
there are at least three men living to-day
who could write similar check every two
years out of their income a,one, ard still
retain balance of income sufficient to live
on in pr-incely style.
in America, which ought to b. the land
of big checks, there does not appear o BE-
INT
foregoing. When the United States han Re
over sum of 1900 600 10 Spain year or
80 ago the payment was made by four
separate checks on New York's suotreas-
ury; and while it is a common thing for
American business men to write checks
running into millions Of dollars, few of
them ever seem 10 approach even H,00),
eco sterling.
American checks, however, amply make
up in number what they lack in Individual
value. 1t is quite a common experen &c
for checks of the aggregate Of f5000O,000 to
pass through The New York clearing
house in the course of a single mo nine ,
and many of these checks run far in the
direction of a million dollars
In comparison with these checks reach
ing total OF $3.50 100000 in a few hours, II
is interesting 20 place on re ord a check
for ! cent paid by the United States
treasury to one of It's presidents. In the
payment of President Cleveland's salary
there was a discrepancy in his favor q
/ cent One equivalent of half penny,
and check for this overwhelming sum
was forthwith presented 70 him
The record bank note, for fi0)l 90 e r
ling is treasured az the Bank of Euglani,
and may be seen by any VS. tor. In The
vaults OF the Bank OF England are nearly
So con geo Cancelled notes Of au aggregate
value large enough 20 purchase every acre
of land iu the United Kingdom; while ~
they were placed end TO end il would be
possible TO walk on them more than half
way round The world at the equator.