The Morning examiner. [volume] (Ogden, Utah) 1904-1910, 1910-02-20
CREDIT PAPER
CONCLUSIONS
DR.. Davis Kinley Issues Mono.
graph Saying so Per Cent of
Retail Trade is on Paper.
MONETARY COMMISSION
GIVEN NEW FIGURES
Banks Of Wyoming Show the Highest
Percentage of Checks in
Udted States.

Washington, Feb. 19.-We are iusti
fed In concluding that so or 100 per
cent OF the retail trade OF the country
is settled by means of checks and
other credit instruments. Over 80 per
cent OF the wholesale trade Is done
with credit Instruments
Such are tho conclusions of Mr.
Davis Kinley of the University of Ill.
inois, expressed in a monograph which
the National monetary commission
Will iss6e In day or two under the
! title OF THE Use OF Credit Instr,i.
ments in Payments In the United
States"
In 1909 Mr.. Kinloy made an investi-
cation of this subject through the In.
strumentality OF the commission and
the comptroller OF the currency. In.
tcrrogatorles were sent to all kinds of
banks.
The aggregate retail deposits on
March 8, 1909. the day of which the
banks were requested TO report their
detail deposits, showed some interest
Ing facts. according TO Mr.. Kinley.
The larger amount OF deposits was
in the returns OF the national banks.
where the percentage of checks was
I4.7, tho highest shown by any ella. s
of banks. The loan and trust COM
panies were next. with 1877 per cent,
but their total deposits wore only
about one-eighth of those of the ma
uonal banks.
Inc third In order of percentage was
the state banks, and the percentage
oil credit paper in their deposits was
40, In deposits amounting to about
30 per cent of the national banks.
The private banks. with less than a
million dollars deposits showed 6S.4
per cent OF checks. while tho stock
savings, bonks with deposits OF less
than 100000. showed 641 per cent
In checks. The mutual savings banks
showed 123 per cent In checks In de-
posits of less than $4,000.
The highest percentage Of checks
employed in the retail deposits was In
banks OF Wyoming There the ratio
was S3.NO per cent New York came
next with SOC per cent. and Oregon
third with SOL per cent The only
TWO states that showed a percentage
Of checks less than 60 per cent wore
Maine. where the percentage was
SS.S of deposits reported. and Rhode
Island, where it was 56.5.
DR.. Knley says the use of checks
is promoted In r measure by the paw
ment OF wages In checks. or weekly
pay rolls reported by the banks, 70
ger cent were in checks.
The transaction OF so large a vol
ume OF business by checks Is an elo.
ment of danger in times of strln-
gency and crisis" says DR.. Kinley.
In such times the uncancclled hal.
ances of credit transactions create n
larger demand for money but the habit
OF settling by check has meant To take
the available amount Of money at q
minimum.
Consequently there ought to be
some means Of supplying additional
currency when credit as a means of
payment diminishes. This currency
ought to be as safe and as uniform
as the ordinary currency.
The volume Of credit transactions
very likely tends to increase as the
populations and business grow. II docs
not Increase uniformly. however. but
by movements-the rate of increase of
credit transactions, as compared with
the whole volume of business grows
os 1t were. by Jerks and at a de-
creaeing rate"