The Nashville globe. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1906-193?, 1910-02-18

There is dotted all over this beauti-
dred prosperous Negro banks and
banking concerns. These institutions,
while having sprung up rroverbially
speaking, like a mushroom over night,
have taken on the most substantial
growth. They represent much in
money accumulated by the Negroes
since 1865. In looking over the list Of
banks and in carefully studying the
situation it is surprising that out Of
the fifty odd now in operation, only
one has its location north Of what is
commonly known as the Mason and
Dixon line. Further than this, only
two have ever been operated in what
might be termed the North. The back
bone of the Negro banking enterprise
was not broken by the disastrous fail.
ure of the Freedman's Bank in Wash
ington, D. G. To the contrary, to that
one failure more than anything else
can be traced and attributed the splen-
did showing made by what the politi-
clans call the Solid South in the Ne
gros financial growth in the banking
world. The Negro banks have become
a potent factor in many of the large
cities. This can best be seen by a
glance at the cities in the South
where Negro banks are established.
One might recall the financial panic
of 1907 and the spring of 1908, when
in most Southern cities, where the
panic is supposed to have spent its
fury, the clearing houses composed OF
the financial organizations attempted
to handle the situation without call
ing into question the Negro banks,
but this was an ignominious failure.
In some of the cities where these
banks were not consulted they con-
tinued to pay dollar for dollar Some
of them never accepted the clearing
house certificates nor did they ever
pay out one. But on the other hand
when the Negro banks were finally
called in consultation a ready agree
ment was reached and hand in hand
they worked out the situation to the
advantage Of all on the brotherly love
idea. To be specific. there is one
city in the South, which now boasts
of three thriving banking concerns
where, it Is said, that disposition on
the part of white banks to ignore
them proved the undoing of several
and the permanent establishment of
these three institutions. Negroes
were drawn into them as depositors
and stockholders that heretofore had
never dreamed Of being identified
with bank being operated by men,
bers Of their race. To show to what
extent this is true, 1t was only
this month that In one Of the
annual stockholders meetings it
was noticed that the stockholders
ranged in age from twenty-eight
months to seventy-odd years, while In
another bank there were stockhold-
ers represented as only two months
old running to seventy. Thus the
outlook for the future growth of the
Negro bank institutions shows the
most decided improvement of any
other commercial enterprise. The
permanency of these concerns has
been tested. That test as was fore
stated, was demonstrated during the
panic. Out of the scores Of failures
reported by the press not one was
chalked up against the Negro bank.
Their annual statements, instead of
showing a decrease in clearance,
showed an increase.
It might be an injustice to the west
ern portion Of the United States to
designate them as beng in the Solid