FINANCES OF THE UNITED STATES. 



295 



liquidation of the bank's affairs, and to a pro rata dis- 

 tribution of all its assets, including its surplus fund. 

 In many instances executors and administrators of 

 estates hold national-bank stock in trust ; and while 

 they might prefer to retain their interests in the asso- 

 ciations which issued the stock, they would perhaps 

 have no authority to subscribe for stock in the new 

 organizations. While, therefore, the legislation asked 

 for is not absolutely essential, yet its passage at an 

 early day would be a great convenience to many of the 

 national banks, and especially so to the class last 

 referred to. 



During the year 1879, on $456,968,504 of 

 capital, the national banks have paid in taxes 

 to the United States $7,016,131 ; to the several 

 States, $7,603,232 a total of $14,619,363, or 

 $3.20 on each $100 of capital. During the 

 same period the banks declared dividends on 

 their capital stock of 5'5 per cent, and in and 

 for the year ending September 1, 1881, divi- 

 dends of 9-2 per cent. 



For the six months ending May 31, 1881, the 

 State banks, savings-banks, and private bankers 

 report a capital of $24,502,719, deposits in the 

 amount of $96,360,426, on both of which a 

 tax was paid of $202,844.80, or at a rate per 

 annum of only about 3-2 cents per hundred dol- 

 lars on both capital and deposits. The earn- 

 ings of these banks are of course not known. 



On October 1, 1881, the national banks, ex- 

 cepting those in the reserve cities, held against 

 deposits of $507,247,143, a reserve of $158,- 

 299,042, or 31-21 per cent, although the law 

 required a reserve of only 15 per cent. In the 

 reserve cities, exclusive of New York, against 

 deposits of $325,669,226, the banks held re- 

 serves amounting to $109,805,507, or 30'03 per 

 cent. In New York city the deposits were 

 $268,769,373, against which there was a re- 

 serve of only $62,542,546, or 23'27 per cent. 

 In these cities the law requires a reserve of 

 25 per cent of the amount of the deposits, and 

 though, at the date mentioned, unusually heavy 

 demands are made upon the banks for money 

 to be used in payment for cotton, grain, and 

 provisions, among the producers in the West 

 and South, the banks kept their reserve largely 

 in excess of the amount required by law, ex- 

 cept in New York city, where it was tempo- 

 rarily reduced below the limit, but not enough 

 to create any distrust in monetary circles. 



During the last fiscal year the value of onr 

 foreign commerce has largely increased, both 

 in exports and of merchandise and specie, the 

 exports of merchandise reaching the unpre- 

 cedented amount of $902,377,346, an increase 

 over that of the previous year of $66,738,688, 

 and considerably in excess of that of any pre- 

 vious year. The value of the imports of mer- 

 chandise during the same period amounted to 

 $642,664,628. 



The specie value of the exports of the coun- 

 try has increased within the last ten years 

 about $455,000,000, made up largely from the 

 increase in certain products and manufactures, 

 as will be seen by the following table, compar- 

 ing the value of exports on those articles for 

 1871 and 1881 : 



The following table will show the value of 

 imports and exports of merchandise with each 

 of the principal foreign countries and their 

 dependencies, over the year ended June 30, 

 1881: 



Exports. ImporU. 



