Evening star., 1914-10-11
SHOWING
BANK RESERVES
Statement of Business on Date
of Call, With Exhibit of
Percentages.
MAJORITY OF THE CITIES
NOT UP TO REQUIREMENT
Reports Filed Include Washington
the Reserves Being Given as
$3.50 Per Cent.

E0.0S FER Gent.
Given significance by the scolding ad-
ministered by the Secretary of the
Treasury to national banks for hoard
ing money. piling up reserves, refus-
ing loans and charging excessive In
| terest. the percentages of reserves to
lawful money deposits shown by the
| national banks on the date of call for
statement Of business has considerable
interest. Analysis of the percentages
shown is regarded as difficult. especial
ly as all states and reserve cities have
not yet reported. However. 1t Is de-
clared. there are some evident lessons.
In the showing of national bank re-
serves by the total banks Of reserve
cities the majority Of cities show re-
serves under the 25 per cent legal re-
quirement. and in the showing Of ma
tional bank reserves by the total banks
! of states, exclusive of reserve cities.
while all but one state show reserves
in excess of Is per cent legal require-
ment for national banks not located In
reserve cities, in none Of them is the
reserve up to 19 per cent.
| 16TCSuLd&s0S O4 .CkSSSSv vC5s
Galveston, a reserve city. appears
with the largest reserve of any reserve
city. The reporton call shows reserves
of 36.99 for the national banks of that
city. Topeka, Kan. banks, with re-
serves of 2s.25 per cent; banks Of Ok
lahoma City, Okla. PITS per cent;
| banks of Seattle, Wash, 27.66 per cent;
Waco. Tex, with 1854. and Dubuque.
the only other reserve cities whose
banks have more than rs per cent.
The reserves of the banks of New
York city are down to 21.S0 per cent.
Reserves of the banks of Cedar
Rapids. Iowa. are lowest of any city.
per cent, and Richmond reserves 1852
per cent
OF fifty reserve cities whose banks
have reported. thirty-seven have re-
25 per cent. Only thirteen banks have
reserves in excess.
Under normal conditions banks are
anxious to show their reserves to be up
they are not permitted to make loans
while their reserves are below the legal
amount. After notice by the controller
OF the currency. q bank must restore
ject to receivership, at the discretion Of
the controller.
Call in Loans When Necessary.
So, while banks in their anxiety to do
good business and make money may loan
in excess and reduce their reserves, on
call they are prone to call in loans to
show their reserves intact AS a result,
In normal times the reserve percentages
Of national banks in reserve cities usual
ly range from a fraction under to
frra aott ~
per cent. In some localities, however.
big reserves have become accepted as an
index of good finances. rightfully or
wrongfully.
Banks not In reserve cities show a
slightly greater variation in normal
times in the amount Of reserves. but
not departing far from the legal re-
Quirement in either direction except in
turns are always high.
The lesson from the showing Of re-
serve cities seems to be that the banks
of those communities where reserves
are short have been loaning extensively
to their correspondents. 1t is also indi-
Gated that despite the natural desire to
make proper showing Of reserves, they
have been unable to call in loans to
meet the call report. To some minds this
might indicate that banks OF the big
cities have generally borne their share
of the national difficulties and burden
and have not boarded money. There is
no specific explanation Of the excessive
reserves Of banks at Galveston.
Conditions Elsewhere.
Louisville, KY, with reserves at 20.71
per cent, is known to have made extern
sive loans to distillers, to enable with
drawals Of spirits in bond so that the
prospective war tax on spirits may be
evaded. st. Louis. Mo-. with reserves
down to 1886, has been loaning freely
%
west. of which st. Louis is the financial
center.
While Seattle has reserves we'll in ex-
cess Of requirement, Spokane has been
has reduced reserves to 24.30 per cent.
Portland, ores banks have, their re-
serves at 1883 per cent under similar
conditions of loaning freely.
Washington. D. c., reserve city
with twelve national banks. shows re-
serves Of $3.50 per cent. The Farmers
and Mechanics National Bank of
Georgetown Is not included in this
showing. and comes under the require
ments Of banks not in reserve cities.
Figures Given in Reports.
Other reserve cities and reserve per-
centages Of the national banks of each
of them, SO far as reported, are as
follows: Salt Lake City, 1854; San
Francisco. 22.09; Los Angeles, 1885;
Atlanta. 2o.so; Columbus, Ohio. 1850;
Kansas City. Kan. 21.45; Wichita,
Kan. 1886: Takoma. WASH, 2s.6s; spo-
kane. 24.so; Cincinnati. 2451: Portland,
Ore, 1859: Minneapolis, 2o.61: Dallas,
1921; Fort Worth. 24.os; Cleveland,
22.96; Houston. 23.44. San Antonio,
$3.50; Pueblo. Col. 24.59; Denver, 1852;
New Orleans. 1929; Muskogee 22.11;
Indianapolis. 25.92; Albany, 22.77.
Louisville. KY, 20.71; Kansas City, Mo-,
21.07; st. Joseph. 249S; Savannah. Ga,
24.9S; Brooklyn, 2517; st. Paul, MINI,
1887; Lincoln. Neb., 2316; Chicago.
25.13; ST Louis, 1896: Milwaukee, 1888:
South Omaha. Neb. 21.37; Boston, 22.70;
Sioux City. Iowa. 21:06; Omaha, Neb..
2404; Des Moines, 1852; Pittsburgh.
22.S1; Philadelphia, 25.15.
Completed Returns.
Returns from only twenty states, the
| territory Of Hawaii and the bank at
Georgetown, D. c., are SO far COM
piled and made public Hawaii. with
33.03 per cent reserves. shows the great
est excess over the legal 15 per cent,
but Hawaiian reserves are always
| high. The national bank at George
town. D. c., shows reserves of 1853
1