The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1908-07-24
PUT PORTLAND
UP AGAINST It
Remarkable Story Of Last
Years Panic
SAID THAT SEATTLE DID IT
IN ONE DAY SEATTLE BANKERS
SAID TO HAVE TAKEN SEW
ERAL MILLION DOLLARS
OUT OF PORTLAND.

A story which seemingly puts
new phase on the financial disturbance
in the northwest last fall has just come
to town, being brought here by a well
known Portland financier That part Of
the story is true, there is no question;
how much, it would probably pe diff
cult to say.
money Was Tight"
| One thing is certain, the publication
Of such story during the strenuous
days Of last October would have Gre
ated such a sensation in financial cir
cles as this section of the country has
never known. Everyone knew last fall
that money was tight Walla Walla
banks, however, due to their great
strength, and to the sanity Of
their depositors, continued to keep
their doors open and pay out in good
coin of the realm.
Loyal to Banks.
| 1t was generally known that practi-
cally all of the local banks had heavy
balances due from Portland, San Fran
cisco and New York, particularly the
/! former place, and that due to the holi-
day system in vogue in Oregon and
4! the general cussedness'' of eastern
bankers, the local banks were unable
| to realize on these balances Local
| capitalists, business men and farm
ers, who carry large accounts at Wal
| la Walla banks, understood this situa-
| ton perfectly, and they simply slowed
! down until even bank check became
as rare as a five dollar gold piece in a
Methodist. contribution box.
| The story which comes from Port
| land processes to explain how it was
| that Portland was Caught short" and
compelled to request the governor of
| Oregon to inaugurate a long period Of
legal holidays"
Started Run.
Strange as it may seem, the first
act of this drama Of the dollars was
laid in Seattle. Some Seattle bank
ers, the story goes, became jealous of
the Scandinavian-Americ bank, one
of the leading financial institutions of
legged to have been started on that in
stitution
stick together, not only in politics but
in business as well, and up in Alaska
where they dig the raw gold from
mother EARTH there are Scandinavians
and Scandinavians, and they are all
making money. When they make
"clean up they ship their little bag of
gold to the Scandinavian American
bank at Seattle, and since up in Alas
ka 'the dust is just as good as 'the
COIN and heap more prevalent,
many of the Scandinavians are not
anxious that their gold dust be imme
diately converted into eagles and
double eagles. The dust is consequent
ly stored in the bank, being subject
largely to the discretion Of the man
ager of this institution. Thus, at times
the amount of raw gold dust in this
bank reaches many millions of dollars.
By the middle of last October, prac-
tically all of last years cleanup in
Alaska had reached Seattle and good
ly portion of it was in the Scandina-
vian-A American bank. So, when Man
ager Chilberg, Of that institution, be-
gan to notice that the daily withdraw
ais were largely in excess Of the daily
deposits, he "smelled a mouse" and
went forthwith to the managers of the
Seattle national banks which had been
designated as government repositories.
Had Some Gold Dust.
I knqW what you fellows are trying
to do" he is reported to have said,
"and if you want a fight here you can
have it. Let me tell you first, how
ever, that if this run is not stopped at
once will come here tomorrow with
$1,500,000 in dust and demand coin. If