The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1903-06-28

The subject or this address was ASST gnet
to me and take for granted was evolve,
from the fertile brain of your gifted sec
rotary. / have not yet recovered from
the shock / sustained when i got faIrl,
up against it." l hardly know whether
he expected to swamp me with the mag,
nItude of it, or gave me credit for
fecundity of thought and flow of Ian
guage that would like the brook run on
forever. The more / weighed aud con
sidered it, the more fully have l become
convinced that it would take gifts tar
beyond mine to do the subject Justice III
ell of the ramifications into which Ghe
pursuit OF it in thought and action would
lead one, and it would take more OF your
time to listen to it than you might con-
slider profitable or convenient, even were
l able to do it justice.
Having commenced my banking career
at eighteen years Of age, my training has
, been from a practical rather than an
academic point OF view, and | shall natur-
ally speak from that standpoint, and
knowing your human weakness for short
sermons will make this as brief as may
be, at the same time giving you, II posi-
bic, some thoughts to take home WITT
you into your counting rooms.
The individual banker dates from the
time when the memory OF man runneth
not to the contrary, and the first appre-
cIation OF the advantages OF organization
IN Lahklng found expression IN the char
terlng OF joint stock banks, the bringing
togeIaer Oh comparatively small sums from
individuals and by combining them into
a considerable volume OF capital, make
poSsIble the accomplishment oil what only
this large capital could compass. and
What none Of the individuals could have
done separately. Without attempting any
review OF ancient banking and its pro-
sress. let Us come down TO the times
thin our own recollection and The
tunes in which ne 1--we.
This l. 3 cay Of organization and We
have 10 pat behind us forever lie day
Esaen sFezy man II business Vas law unto
s.1ulsesf- IN the old civilization where IN
ds1uaIlzzn predomlnated, great enterprises
xere impossible That age produced
ssrsssz men there were giants IA those
days--kruly-bu Individual effort never
YET tanEeilea mountains, constructed rail
Ways. or carried out any of the great
schemes OF public improvements that nave
enriched the world 1t was a splendid
them to the horizon or their own efforts.
There Is a story told of the brilliant Bob
ioombs that he died iamenting the sub
stitution OF corporations for individual ef-
tort and private partnerships. His reason
ing best appears from story told OF
hun in connection with the organization
OF company to build a hotel in his
home town. He said: There is no need
Of a company TO build hotel, every man
OF character who comes here is my guest
no others are wanted He could not
bring himself to the changed conditions
that demanded the use of many ''mickle"
to make the "muckles, wherewith to
build upon a larger scale than the day
of indlvidualsrr could ever hope to reach.
Organization is the fulcrum of the
twentieth century, and upon it rests the
financial commercial and industrial pros
perity of the Republic The establish
n,ent OF the first bank in a village is the
practical exponent of the principle upon
which modern business Is conducted.
Frior thereto this man or that, who has
accumulated small capital. loans money
and. in an Intellectual and spasmodic way,
performs some of the functions of a bank
ing institution, but there is lacking the
concentration of capital to make their OPP
erations largely beneficial When, instead
of dozen small lenders. the money Is all
put into one fund to supply the legiti-
mate needs OF the community, the same
principle is in essence put into operation
hat later appears when banks organize
for mutual protection and the advantage
% the public
The modern clearing house is one of the
h., nd 1nGf RI
lrstrations of the advantages of organiza
ton among banks. These bodies, formed
az a rule without charters. are nothing
more than associations among the banks
OF a community for the interchange OF
business. and the mutual advantages to be
derived from concert of action among
the members. The object, primarily. is
ia facilitate the exchange and collection
~ checks in the most expeditions manner
possible. The simplicity of the operation
hardly needs any explanation. 1t is u
we'll known fact that the existence of
hanks and the modern use of checks as
tokens of money have made it possible Tor
nearly ninety-five per cent of the bust
ness of the country to be handled by
checks. actual money or currency being
used only for the small remaining per-
centage. Nothing has contributed more
To this much to be desired result than
the modern clearing house The entire
volume of the clearings of the country
runs to such enormous figures that 1t pro-
baby comes more within the scope of our
appreciation to use smaller figures. Take
the cicarings of my own city. Norfolk,
Virginia. one of the small cities OF our
country Our recent weekly clearings
were 81 ,51e,027, which represents the total
aggregate of all iten1s taken to the clear
ing house and the resulting balances paid
to settle this volume of exchanges was
only i92.O25, or less than thirteen per
cent OF the total volume of business This
exchange of business is accomplished IN
fifteen minutes each day by one clerk
from each OF the eight banks. If each
member undertook to collect its checks
from each other bank individually, it
would take each of the clerks all day.
with correspondingly increased difficulties
IN other directions, delaying the dispatch