The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1908-01-01
William B RIdgc|ty Says Amtri-
can People Have Been
Living Too Fast
BANKS ARE SOUADER
NOW THAN BEFORE
Comptroller of the Currency Says
Trouble Is Over But Caution Must
Be Observed Until Conditions
Are Absolutely Restored.

Washington, December 31.-William
b. Ridgely, comptroller of the currency
To-Day gave out a statement dealing
largely with financial conditions dur
ing the year 1907 in which he says
that the conditions which made this
Crisis possible are the accumulated
composite results of many years of
business. The whole world has been
oVertrading and expanding and no.
where has 1t been more rampant than
In the United States. The reaction
was inevitable and although it might
not have taken the form of a bank
panic had we been better prepared with
such a banking and currency system
as we should have, the time has come
when some or all must pay for our
over-indulgence
1T Is the duty of the banks" said
the comptroller ito restore business to
normal conditions by resuming their
functions as promptly and as fully as
possible. Fortunately there is not only
the strongest desire and disposition on
the part of the banks to do this but
conditions are such to make it COM
paratiYely easy and to lead us to expect
much more prompt recovery than has
followed other similar financial crises.
'rhe reports to the comptroller show
the reserves in the central reserve
cities were but 22.2 per cent against the
legal requirements of 25 per cent. The
forty reserve cities show 24.72 per cent
of legal reserve or almost the full legal
minimum, while their total cash means
are 26.55 per cent of their deposits.
"Of the forty cities 21 show legal
reserves above rs per cent, while ten
t--sfs-st atu .saoW over d ,ier cent Of legal
reserve and all but eight of them show
more than 25 per cent of total cash
means. The largest reserves are in
the Texas cities, Galveston and San An
tonic showing over 3S per cent of legal
reserve, and Galveston over As per- cent
of total cash means.
Reserves All Right.
"The returns as tabulated by states
are also significant and reassuring as
to the general condition. There is not
one state which does not show an ex-
cess of reserve above legal require
ments of Is per cent and an increase
in legal reserve and total cash means
August %.
'eIn the sub division by states, the
Pacific states show the largest legal
reserve of 22.28 per cent, while the
western states show the largest cash
means, 32.11 per cent. The most i'm
portant significance of the figures is
that the readjustment of bank reserves
has taken place with so few bank fail
ures Although the central reserve
cities have received through imports
of gold and otherwise certainly as
much as $3.50, 900, probably con-
siderably more, it has been paid and
their reserve paid down to 22.2 per
cent without the failure of a single
bank iii one of the central reserve
cities.
"From October 20 to December 30,
1ao7 there have been but sixteen sus-
pensions or failures of national banks.
Of these, two have resumed and sew
eral more should do SO in the very
near future
contrast this with the panic of 1898
when 100 national banks failed, anu OF
these 81 were never reopened. The
total number of national banks failed
for 1907 is 21, and this number has
aeen exceeded many times in years
when we have had nothing which
could be called a panic.
Banks Are Sound.
"rhe banks have therefore stood the
strain of the last few weeks better than
ever before and trey are in better con-
dition on January 1, 1908, than they ever
were in such a crisis. The reports of
condition of national hanks show that
from August % 10 December individual
deuosits decreased but $142, 1000 or
about 81 per cent, while the decrease in
cash on hand was but $4O,OOO,O00 and the
increase In bills payable and re-discounts
was about $42,0O0,000
'.Since December 3 the central reserves
have steadily increased and the disap-
pearance of any premium on currency
in the last few days shows that the
strain is relieved. Most of the reserve
cities are up to their legal requirements,
many of them far above il and the
country banks whole are in the
same condition. Considering what we
| have gone through with, this is a very
! satisfactory showing. We have had a
! very severe bank panic. 1t might, how
4 ever. have been worse, and would have
been much worse but for the aid given
nv the treasury department and some of
the leading financial men of the coun-
try.
s.It will probably never be known how
much credit Is due to few men who
furnished vast sums of money and sup
plied credit from their enormous re-
sources in the patrlotlc eHOrt TO stop
the panic and relieve situations which
might have led to far greater disasters
If they had not been so promptly met
and SO skillfully handled.
Trouble Is Over.
'FSpm these facts in regard to the
banking situation it would seem but a
fair conclusion that the acute bank
trouble Is past; that payments may be
and in fact are being resumed SO rap
ldly that normal conditions of payment
and remittances may be now assured.
This does not mean that business will
at once revive, or that we are yet over
the danger line The panic Is over and
the worst passed, but we have long
period of readjustment and recupera-
ton before us. Values of all kinds will
have to be rearranged We shall have
more Individual and commercial failures
and probably some more bank failures.
X Many people who have been impru-