The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1909-10-26

OF an the half baked stories when
have disturbed the business public
about the most u-advlsed is that 20
the eject that checks FOR less than one
dollar viii bee Illegal after the first
OF January. quite a few Americans
not belonging to the John ID. Rocke-
f.llcr class have been in the habit of
writing checks for less than a dollar
rather than for moro. And To have
a cold hearted government come along
and decree that they should do 50 no
longer stirred them nightly. IL
booked like another case Of the tri-
umph Of vested interests and some
body or other.
But IL you are one OF those who
write small checks be disturbed no
longer. You may continue writing
them until you and your grocer ana
candlestick maker are amply salts
fed. The much assaulted legislation
which has heralded as putting an end
TO small checks did nothing of the
sort. II only furnished excuse for
some person to get up scare on IN
sufficient investigation.
How Report Originated.
This person read through the cod
i6cation of the criminal code and
found section like this:
NO person shall make Issue. cir
culatc or pay out any note, check.
token or other obligation for less sum
Than ono dollar intended 10 circulate
as money or to be received or used N
lien Of lawful money of the United
states, and every person so offending
shall be fined not more than $500 or
imprisoned not more than six months
or both, at the discretion of the
court"
This paragraph was at the very end
Of the new code. Immediately preced-
ing the clause which said that the
code would take effect Jan. l, 1909.
without further Investigation and
without securing an Interpretation of
the clause. the responsible party forth
with sent forth the disturbing story.
Applied to Former Conditions.
Ine language 0l lUlS tihAHt ~ ~
new criminal code" Thomas p. Kane
deputy comptroller Of the currency. Is
quoted as saying, "is identical with
n statue enacted in 1862 which has
never been construed TO prohibit the
issuance of checks for less than dol
lar. The ole statue was enacted ut
a time when Uncle Sam. needing help
for tho treasury, was authorizing the
use of postage stamps as money.
"Then fractional currency was ex-
ceedingly rare, and merchants were
putting out due bills for instance,
stating that they were good for fifty
OF any other number OF cepts in trade
at such and such a store. Now If
postage stamps were to become the
fractional =, currency, to the govern
ments advantage, it was necessary
that due bills and everything of that
sort which was intended to be cir
culated as money should be retired
from circulation
That was the purpose Of the law
and II served its purpose very well n
the early days of the war. The work
which congress did with the criminal
statutes was simply too codify them.
It found this an old statue and adopt
ed IL verbatim as part of the new
criminal code.
"a bank check Is an order on 2
banker to pay a particular sum "
money. 1t is not designed to be put
in circulation as a substitute for mon
ey. There is no conflict with this an
cient law in issuing checks for any
amount however small. This has been
the construction placed from the pas
sage of this act in 1892 down to the
present moment"