450 



THE CENTURY BOOK OF FACTS. 



charge is made for their safe keeping. It ad- 

 vances money on jewels up to three fourths of 

 their value. The city is responsible for all 

 deposits, which maybe sold at auction if they 

 remain eighteen months without payment of 

 charges. If the value is not claimed within 

 three years, the property in the deposits is lost, 

 and passes to the poor fund of the city. 



Next in point of date among these establish- 

 ments is the Bank of England, which was 

 opened in 1694. It was originally chartered 

 for ten years, and the charter has since been 

 prolonged, by various renewals, till August 1, 

 1879, and, from that date, subject to a year's 

 notice. The Bank of England is, and always 

 has been, the government bank, transacting 

 for it all the banking business of the nation, 

 receiving the produce of the taxes, loans, etc., 

 and paying the interest of the public debt, the 

 drafts of the Treasury, and other public de- 

 partments, transferring stock, etc. For this 

 service the bank receives, exclusive of the use 

 of the balances of the public money in its 

 hands, about 95,000 a year. 



Down to 1797 the bank always had paid its 

 notes on demand. But in 1796 and the early 

 part of 1797, owing to rumors of a French in- 

 vasion, there was a run made on the bank, 

 and it was feared that a suspension was inevi- 

 table. In February, 1797, Mr. Pitt, appre- 

 hensive that he might not be able to obtain 

 sufficient specie for foreign payments, in con- 

 sequence of the low state of the bank reserve, 

 procured the issue of an order in council, re- 

 quiring the bank to suspend specie payments. 

 The suspension lasted till 1819, and is known 

 to writers on finance as "the period of the 

 bank restriction." The bank's notes, how- 

 ever, continued to circulate, and a committee 

 of the House of Commons reported soon after 

 the suspension that the bank was not merely 

 possessed of the most ample funds to meet all 

 its engagements, but that it had a surplus 

 stock, after the deduction of all demands, of 

 no less than 15,513,000. 



The Bank of England is the custodian of the 

 reserves of the several London banks and pri- 

 vate bankers. These deposited reserves are, 

 for the most part, loaned out by the bank. 

 Then, again, the reserves of the country banks, 

 and of the Scotch and Irish bankers as well, 

 are deposited with the great English banks, 

 which, in their turn, keep their reserves at the 

 Bank of England. Therefore the reserve in 

 the banking department of the Bank of Eng- 

 land is the banking reserve not only of the 

 Bank of England but of all London, and not 

 only of all London, but of all England, Ire- 

 land, and Scotland. The credit system of Great 

 Britain depends upon the security of the Bank 

 of England. 



The Bank of Vienna, established in 1703 

 as a bank of deposit and circulation, became a 

 bank of issue in 1793. This institution now 

 does comparatively little commercial business, 

 being recognized as a means of the govern- 

 ment for managing the public debt and fi- 

 nances. 



The Banks of Berlin and Breslau were 

 founded in 1765 under the direct authority of 

 the government. They are banks of deposit 

 and issue, and also discount bills of exchange. 

 In some important particulars the banking 

 system of Germany resembles that of the 

 United States, the Imperial Bank and its 

 branches in nearly every town corresponding 

 to the American chain of National Banks. 

 The Imperial Bank enjoys an enormous monop- 

 oly of immunities and powers. 



Russian Banks. During the reign of the 

 Empress Catharine, three different banks were 

 established in St. Petersburg: the Loan Bank, 

 the Assignation Bank, and the Loan Bank 

 for the nobility and towns. The first, opened 

 in 1772, made advances upon deposits of bul- 

 lion and jewels, and allowed interest upon all 

 sums remaining for one year and over. At 

 present the operations of this bank are carried 

 on for the benefit of the Foundling Hospital in 

 St. Petersburg. The Assignation Bank was 

 opened in St. Petersburg in 1768, and in Mos- 

 cow in 1770. It issues paper money, and is 

 really an imperial institution. The Loan Bank, 

 for the nobility and towns, advances money on 

 real security, discounts commercial paper, and 

 carries on an insurance business. In 1797 the 

 Aid Bank was established for the purpose of 

 advancing money to relieve estates from mort- 

 gages, and to provide for their improvement. 

 There is also the Commercial Bank of Russia, 

 whose capital is declared to be sacred by the 

 government, and free from all taxes, attach- 

 ments, and calls from the State. It has 

 numerous branches throughout the empire, re- 

 ceives deposits of coin and bullion, discounts 

 paper, and makes advances upon merchandise 

 of domestic production. 



The Bank of Stockholm was founded in 

 1688, when its direction was assumed by the 

 Assembly of the States of the Kingdom of 

 Sweden, and it became a bank of deposit, dis- 

 count, and circulation. Since 1766, when the 

 affairs of the bank fell to a very low state, and 

 the Assembly assisted it with a large loan, a 

 committee, composed of members of each of 

 the three States, nobles, clergy, and burghers, 

 is appointed triennially to inspect its condition, 

 securities, and prospects. 



The Bank of France, originally formed 

 in 1800, was placed on a solid basis in 1806, 

 when its capital was raided to 80,000,000 



