BANKS, U. S. 



67 



Total stocks.. .. m933,170 $5.080,750 $1.397.151 $20.366,131 

 - circulation 11,010,837 4,550,632 1,160,851 j 16,752,320 



to Fort Sumter, by making war inevitable, 

 ruiaed the value of the securities, and prices 

 fell heavily : Missouri, from 70 to 36 ; Tennes- 

 see, 78 to 34; Virginia, 78 to 40; Louisiana, 

 80 to 51 ; N. Carolina, 80 to 44; Georgia, 100 

 to 53 ; and other stocks to a greater or less ex- 

 tent. It is no doubt the case that a large por- 

 tion of the decline -was due to the forced sales 

 of the stocks, since it was the duty of the State 

 officers to seU the stocks and redeem the circu- 

 lation as far as the proceeds would do it. It is 

 a vice of the free banking system that it re- 

 quires the sales of stock at the moment when 

 the market is the least able to bear them. 

 Hence, unless the margin is very large, the cir- 

 culation cannot be paid in full At the close 

 of the year the banks stood as follows : 



In Illinois the circulation of 3 of the closed 

 banks was redeemed at par, and that of 57 at 

 from 50 to 80 cents on the dollar. In Wiscon- 

 sin 23 were redeemed at par, and others at 46 

 to 80 cents on the dollar. The result has been 

 sales of $16,251,090 of State stocks upon the 

 Eastern market throughout a year, during 

 which the Government and the several States 

 were also sellers of stocks for war purposes. 

 This operation, originating in the war panic, 

 inflicted a loss of nearly $5,000,000 upon the 

 holders of notes in those three States, 



The State Bank of Indiana, an old chartered 

 institution, did not suspend its payments. 



Most of the Southern banks had suspended 

 soon after the election of Nov., 1860, and re- 

 liable returns of their movements have not 

 been received. 



New Yorlc. March 15, a meeting of bank 

 officers was held, and the resolution of non-in- 

 tercourse adopted in Nov. against the Chemical 

 Bank was rescinded. 



March 19, James M. Cook resigned as su- 



perintendent of the Banking Department at 

 Albany. 



April 25, the banks of the city renewed the 

 measure of making the specie a common fund. 



On the llth of May the Bank of Albany, hav- 

 ing lost a large portion of its capital in unau- 

 thorized loans, suspended ; it was followed on 

 the 18th by the Bank of the Capital and the 

 Bank of the Interior ; and on the 23d the Na- 

 tional Bank suspended. In Nov. Mr. Van 

 Alen, receiver of the Bank of Albany, paid a 

 dividend of 46$ per cent, on the liabilities of 

 the bank. 



The bankers of Albany addressed a circular 

 to the various banks in the State, to organize 

 an association for the detection of counterfeit- 

 ing ; one means proposed was to offer a stand- 

 ing reward of $250 for instrumentality in bring- 

 ing counterfeiters to punishment. 



Vermont. There were many applications 

 for re-charters before the Legislature. 



Pennsylvania. The banks of Pennsylvania 

 had suspended Nov. 19, 1860, and in Jan., 1861, 

 a bill was introduced into the Legislature to 

 relieve the banks from the penalties incurred 

 by that act. 



The auditor-general reported that the exact 

 amount of relief notes issued at the general 

 suspension in 1837 was $2,243,015 ; of these 

 there were still outstanding $102,336. 



The Legislature discussed a bill requiring the 

 banks west of the Alleghany Mountains to re- 

 deem in Pittsburg, and those east, in Philadel- 

 phia, 



May 16, a bill was passed supplementary to 

 the act for equalizing the currency of the State. 

 It required all banks to receive the notes of all 

 other banks that had paid specie Nov. 19, and 

 to pay theirs out. The resumption of specie 

 payments was fixed for Feb., 1862 ; the bank 

 notes to be taken for taxes and tolls ; the banks 

 were required to redeem in specie as much of 

 their circulation as is required to meet the 

 August interest of the State debt. 



Minnesota. March 8, an act was passed al- 

 lowing United States stocks, bearing not less 

 than 5 per cent, to be taken as security for bank 

 circulation. 



Xnc Jersey. The Legislature, which was in 

 session in Jan., 1861, had bills before it for the 

 creation of new banks. 



Wisconsin. By the law the banks were ex- 

 empted from paying specie until after Dec. In 

 Sept. the bankers held a convention at Mill- 

 waukie, and resolved to commence the redemp- 

 tion of "Wisconsin currency at that city and 

 Madison, Oct. 15, thus anticipating the action 

 of the Legislature. Some of the banks failed 

 to comply with these resolutions, and in Nov. 

 the convention again assembled and resolved 

 that such banks as failed to resume, according 

 to law, December 1, should be wound up. If 

 it was found necessary to make a temporary 

 reduction in the currency of the State, the 

 bankers' committee were authorized to make 

 a requisition on the banks for the purpose. 



