580 



NEW YOEK. 



the number of National Banks in operation in 

 the State was 102 ; of these seventy-seven were 

 organized subsequent to Jan. 1st, 1864. Their 

 aggregate capital was $21,113,800, and circula- 

 tion $13,134,200. The number of these banks 

 which had changed from the State bank sys- 

 tem was 24. 



A bill was brought before the Assembly of 

 the State Legislature to authorize the State 

 banks to become banking associations under 

 the laws of the United States. The majority 

 of the Committee on Banks, in that body, re- 

 ported against the measure. Their dissent was 

 founded on several objections, both political 

 and financial, against the entire system. They 

 close their report by saying : 



la the mean time, your committee can see no 

 desirable end to be attained in furnishing facilities 

 to the banking institutions of the State to withdraw 

 themselves from legislative jurisdiction and State 

 control. Their obligations to the public and from 

 the public to them, have all been incurred under 

 State sanction, and should be so continued until 

 they are extinguished. Under existing law, every 

 bank has the option to wind up its business and dis- 

 tribute its assets by the consent of its stockholders, 

 and no present necessity would seem to demand a 

 more rapid process of liquidation. Without assum- 

 ing to judge for others in matters of business, your 

 committee would yet express unhesitatingly the 

 opinion, that when some of the madness of the pres- 

 ent hour shall have been dissipated in the sober 

 experience of coming events, there will be no cause 

 for regret on the part of those who trusted their 

 interests to the aegis of State protection. 



The agriculture of the State continued in a 

 flourishing condition. The recruiting of the 

 armies did not seriously diminish its produc- 

 tions^ as the labor-saving machinery which had 

 been introduced compensated in a great degree 

 for the lack of men engaged in manual labor. 



The immigration at the port of New York 

 was 182,766 persons during the year, being an 

 increase of 25,000 over the previous year. 



The number of children in the State between 

 the ages of five and twenty years, is 1,307,822, 

 and the number who attended school some por- 

 tion of the year, is 881,144. The amount of 

 money to be apportioned for the support of 

 common schools for the ensuing year, is 

 $1,445,749. 



The Legislature, at its session early in the 

 year, adopted a resolution declaring that no 

 distinction should be made between the foreign 

 and domestic creditor in the payment of inter- 

 est on the State debt. This action of that 

 body led the Governor to address them in the 

 following message : 



EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT, ALBANY, April 22, 1864. 

 To the Legislature : 



My attention has been called to a concurrent reso- 

 lution which has passed both branches of the Legis- 

 lature, in the following words : 



Whereas, All the stocks issued by this State were made 

 payable and negotiable in this State ; therefore, 



Resolved, That no distinction should be made between the 

 foreign and domestic holders of such bonds as to the cur- 

 rency in which the principal and interest thereon should be 

 paid. 



To the principle laid down in this resolution, in 

 terms, there can be no objection offered. All the 



creditors of the State, whether they be of our own 

 people or foreign, should be alike paid ; paid promrt 

 ly and in full all that was promised them. 



The Legislature, last year, adopted a concurred 

 resolution on this subject, in the following words : 



Resolved, That the interest accruing on so much of th 

 State debt on the-first day of April as was, on the first day ot 

 March, eighteen hundred and sixty-three, held by persons 

 residing out of the United States, and is still held by them, 

 be paid in gold or its equivalent. 



And an appropriation was made for the purchase 

 of coin to an extent sufficient to enable the comp- 

 troller to pay in gold the interest on the stocks of 

 New York held by persons residing abroad ; and 

 only to that extent. Although the resolution of last 

 year did not in terms forbid the payment of tha 

 interest due to our creditors residing in this country, 

 in coin, yet the absence of any appropriation for the 

 purpose obliged the comptroller to forego such pay- 

 ment. 



In practice, a distinction was thus made between 

 the non-resident creditor and the resident creditor. 

 We kept faith with the stranger who had trusted us : 

 we broke faith only with those of our own house- 

 hold. 



The effect of the resolution of this year, in the 

 absence of any appropriation, will be, that no part 

 of the interest will be paid, as it was promised to be 

 paid, to wit, in coin or its equivalent. 



When we sought the markets of the world with 

 our securities, we pledged ourselves to redeem them 

 in the currency of the world. The partial neglect 

 of plighted faith faith last year is now to be followed 

 by an open refusal to pay anv of our promises 

 according to their plain sense. The disgrace of last 

 year was limited ; it was kept within ourselves ; now 

 our shame and dishonor are to be borne in the face 

 of the world. 



I look upon this matter as of so much moment to 

 the welfare and to the character of New York and 

 of its people that I feel constrained to ask you to 

 give the subject a reconsideration ; and to urge you 

 to pass a concurrent resolution that shall enable the 

 comptroller to pay all the interest which may fall due 

 before the next session of the Legislature, in coin. 

 In this way your resolution of this year can be car- 

 ried into effect consistently with the good credit of 

 the State, and "no distinction" will "be made be- 

 tween foreign and domestic holders" of the bonds. 

 If you do not do this, let me urge you to provide, at 

 least, for the interest that is due residents of other 

 countries being paid in coin. 



The refusal to pay in coin to our own citizens may 

 justify itself to some minds, although not to mine, aa 

 a measure of quasi taxation ; special, discriminating, 

 and unfair, but excused by our present extraordinary 

 condition. In dealing with our creditors in othe'r 

 countries no such considerations can come in. We 

 have over them no legitimate power of taxation ; 

 these creditors of ours have no voice nor part in our 

 political action ; we have no claim upon them that 

 they should take a share in the misfortunes that be- 

 fall us in our career. They are not of our household, 

 nor bound to take part of our domestic calamities 

 upon themselves. The burdens and the misfortunes 

 of this war belong to us ; it is ungenerous to shift 

 any portion of them upon others who are not a part 

 of us. These foreign creditors of ours are strangers 

 who lent us their money when we wanted it ; upon 

 no security but our word of honor. If we do not 



Eay them back their money to the strict letter of our 

 argain we incur a shame that can never be removed 

 from us. We deprive New York of an element of 

 strength which heretofore has been wisely used, and 

 which its people have found profitable, to wit, its 

 unquestioned credit. 



Principle and policy unite to urge the action I 

 recommend to you. It is the only way in which the 

 State can, in truth, fulfil its contracts. It is the only 

 way in which the State can keep itself in a position 



