170 AUTHENTIC HISTORY OF LANCASTER COUNTY, 



the National^ which is to be purely Mutual, although not yet gone into 

 active operation. 



In the City we have Agencies for many Companies, viz: The '■^Insur- 

 ance Comjyamj of North America^'' Philadelphia, (the oldest Stock Com- 

 pany in the United States;) " Phoenix^'' Philadelphia; " Lycoming County 

 Mutual^'' of Muncy; " Yonhers and Lorrillard^^^ of New York; " Girard 

 and Enter -prise ^"^ Philadelphia; " Continental and Home^'' of New York; 

 '■'•Home^'' of New Haven; ^'^ jEtna^^'' " Hartford^'' and other Companies of 

 Connecticut; ^'■Franklin,'''' Philadelphia, and "i)eZat^'arei/i/.^MaZ." These 

 Companies have efficient Agents in Hugh S. Gara, A. B. Kauftman, 

 Herr & Kife, Edw. Brown, H. Baumgardner and John Zimmerman. 



LIFE INSUBANCE. 



Has no local Home Company in our City or County, but is well repre- 

 sented by the ^''American and Penn MutuaV^ of Philadelphia; " Connec- 

 ticut Mutual,^^ of Hartford; '•'• Mutual Life^'' " Continental^'' '■'■ North Amer- 

 ica'''' and '■'' Brooklyn^'' of New York; and appears to be doing a large and 

 profitable business in our midst. We cannot therefore, give any special 

 history of Life Insurance as applicable to our County, but its already 

 extensive and rapidly increasing "literature," the number of books and 

 periodicals being continually put forth in its interest, explaining it and 

 advocating it, and advertising it hy explaining it, plainly indicate the great 

 strides that this branch of enterprise is now making in the favor of our 

 people. 



No. 15. 



BANKS AND BANKING.i 



Banking is a system established for the convenience of the business 

 community. It is a recognized agent between borrower and lender; a 

 general agent to make collections throughout the commercial world ; and 

 the medium through which the Government authorizes the circulation 

 of paper money, based on the security of the National debt, or the credit 

 of the Government. The sixteen hundred National Banks in the United 

 States are so well distributed, that it is an easy matter to make collec- 

 tions in any part of the country ; or, through their correspondence with 

 foreign institutions, with any commercial country on the globe. The 

 utility of the system has been constantly growing in favor, and more 

 extended usefulness. The Jew, who stood at his Banco^ or bench, in the 

 streets of Italy or Germany, to change coins, or make small loans, little 



1 Contributed by D. Q. Swartz, Esq. 



