The daily sentinel., 1910-10-14
THE HISTORY
Of BANKING
IN AMERICA
Associated Press.

Associated Press.
Washington, Oct. l4.-"Laws of
the United States Concerning Money.
Banking, and Loans, 177S-l9O9," is
the title of large volume Just issued
by the National Monetary Commits
sion. This compilation, which will
prove of great value to the student
of the banking and financial history
Of this country, is the work of A. T
Huntington. Chief of the Division of
Loans and Currency, United States
Treasury, and of Robert J. Mawhin-
ney, of the office of the solicitor of
the treasury. From the various laws
arranged in the order of their enact
ment one can follow the monetary,
banking, and financial legislation of
our country from the Confederation
to the present time. The use of
marginal summaries. of references,
and of explanatory notes much en-
hances the value of the work The
editors have selected for the com
pilation only those sections of the
statute dealing with the subject treat
ed. Its use for reference purposes is
facilitated by the addition of a very
complete index.
The volume is divided into four
parts. laws relating to finance, to
banking. to coinage, and to paper
money Under the subject of finance
will be found statutes relating to
loans and other interest-bearing OBJ
legations. the subtreasury system, the
status of foreign coins, and other
statutes not relating specifically to
banking, coinage, or paper money.
The early laws making provision for
the payment of the debt of the United
States. for the assumption of the
state debts, the sinking-fund provis
ions. and the statutes giving the pres
ident authority to borrow for various
purposes are given. Laws providing
for the issue of treasury notes record
the financial burdens imposed by the
war of 1872.
The act of August 6. 1S4S, AN act
to provide for the better organization
of the treasury, and for the collec-
ton, safe-keeping. transfer. and dis
bursement of the public revenue,
established the independent treasury
system, which, with its notifications.
exists to this day.
Civil-war financiering can be trac-
ed in the statutes authorizing the ne
gotiation of huge loans and the pro
visions for the issue of treasury notes.
seventies, and finally the acts auth
orizing the Spanish war loans and
loans for the Panama canal.
The second part of the compilation
is devoted to banking. Here will be
found the acts chartering the first
and second banks OF the United
States, the laws authorizing the pres
ident to borrow from these banks,
and later those regulating the de-
posits of public money among the
banks and it's distribution among the
states. The misunderstanding act or
June 3. 1864, which was revision
of the first act is given practically in
full. In a note the editors have Civ
en- the principal points of difference
between his and the earlier act. one
can follow down to the present all the
legislation concerning national banks,
the act of March 4, 1900, the act OF
March 4. 1907. which permitted the
secretary of the treasury to deposit
in the banks all public money re-
ceipts of customs included and fin
ally the act of May 80, 1908, which
provided for the issue of an emerS-
ency circulation.
Coinage is the subject dealt with in
the third part. Here will be found
the acts establishing the mint and
providing for our coinage, the laws
governing the rates at which, prev
ious to 1857, foreign coins should be
accepted as legal tender, and the laws
which have from time to time made
changes in the weight or denomina-
tion of our coins. Our interesting
law of the embargo" period is that
of April IA, 1912. which enacted:
That it shall not be lawful during
the continuance of the act entitled
An act laying an embargo on all the
ships and vessels in the ports and
harbors of the United States for a
limited time to export from the I'm
tied States or the Territories thereof,
in any manner whatever, any specie,
nor any goods, wares, or merchan-
disc of foreign or domestic growth or
manufacture.
Much legislation in this part is
concerned with the establishment of
the mints and assay offices and the
laying down of rules for their guild
ance The silver-purchase acts, the
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