[Volume XXVII
THE CHICAGO BANKER
6
1 AQ YP ADC	AI n I]V	1 Q 1 0 Tllls is the °lclest tjank in tlle United States west of the: Alleghany Mountains. In February, 1910, it will be 100 years
1 LirtlXlJ	KSM-tiS 111	l X \J	old, having been in continuous existence since 1810. It has passed through four wars and the many severe financial panics
of this country, and has never failed to protect its depositors. It conducts a general banking business ; makes loans and receives deposits, issues letters of credit and makes collections on all parts of the world, fj It desires to extend its connections with banks in all parts of the United States, and invites propositions for the collection of its business. It offers its services to banks and bankers as a collection Agent and Reserve Depositary.
Capital and Surplus $5,400,000.00
OFFICERS
J. M. RUSSELL, Assistant Cashier	J. D. AYRES, Assistant Cashier
GEO• F• WRIGHT, Auditor
W. F. BICKEL, Cashier
Rank of Pittsburgh
mJr N a t i al JLAsS>sociatioi\ w
WILSON A. SHAW, President HARRISON NESBIT, Vice-Pres.
eludes some of the ablest and most experienced members of both houses and of the two great political parties, thus forming a body of very capable and strong men. They are charged with the duty of studying the whole question and the formulating of a plan to be embodied in a bill to be presented to congress for ils consideration and possible enactment into a law.
The commission, as a body and individually, are making a most exhaustive study of the whole subject and are accumulating for their use information and statistics of every character which can seem to have any bearing on the subject. The executive committee of this commission, consisting of nine of its members, went abroad during the summer of 1908 for the purpose of making a careful study of the systems of currency in operation in England. France, and Germany. In addition to securing such information as could be obtained through personal interviews with the managers of the principal banks of Europe, the commission arranged to have written, by the foremost students of political economy in the various countries, a history of the finances of those countries for one hundred years. They also arranged to have prepared for their use, by experts in that line, statistics on all subjects which could have any bearing on the currency question in those countries.
The report that the commission will make to congress will be a complete financial history of the principal countries of the world, for the past one hundred years. It will form a text-book upon currency and will be given general distribution among our people.
In view of the magnitude of the work the commission is doing, its report when rendered will certainly be worthy of our most careful consideration ; and, knowing as I do the earnest desire of the members of the commission to frame a bill which will, if enacted into a law, meet our real needs for a currency system, I hope you will all receive the report with open minds and give it the most careful consideration. In the meantime, we should be in a receptive mood, and by open-minded discussion acquire a better understanding of the subject.
As the result of a study of the financial systems of the various countries of the world and the knowledge gained from actual experience in business of some of the changes necessary in
the cause for our last panic is properly chargeable to our currency system, since under it the banks of the country were unable to expand their notes rapidly enough or to the extent necessary to meet the requirements of the situation.
The fact that we had to go into the world’s marts and buy gold in such large quantities for immediate delivery, in order to secure the means by which we could restore confidence and assist our industries, depleted the reserves of the banks of the principal countries of Europe to such an extent that confidence was shaken abroad and their business was seriously affected.
The business of the United States has become so international in character that anything which affects us either favorably or otherwise has a like effect abroad. This interdependence between the principal countries of the world has, in a measure, retarded our return to more active conditions in business, for we cannot hope for normal conditions here until a larger measure of business prosperity is enjoyed by Europe.
The United States being the greatest producing country in the world, we are ambitious to extend as far as possible the sale of our products to other countries, thus securing a large share of the world’s trade and increasing our international business.
But how can we hope to do this so long as we do not have a system of currency which will command international respect and international confidence ?
I do not claim there is nothing of good in our present financial system, for until our volume of business increased to a point where it was so entirely out of proportion to the increase in our circulating medium it served its purpose fairly well, and, considering its good features and with a view of disturbing existing conditions as little as possible, it should, for the present at least, be continued, with such additions as would meet our needs.
While there has been much agitation of the currency question for many years, it is only within the past eighteen months that the government has taken any action in the premises.
The result of the initial effort by congress to provide us with laws under which we would have the means, through our currency system, to protect the business interests of the country was the passage of what is known as the “Emergency Circulation” or the “Aldrich-Vreeland bill.” This
was not intended to be more than a makeshift, which it was hoped would meet our needs in an emergency, pending consideration by congress of the whole subject, and is not, therefore, given serious consideration in any discussion of the subject at this time.
GEORGE M. REYNOLDS Chicago
The appointment by congress of the national monetary commission was the first step taken by the government with a view of enacting such legislation as would provide for us an adequate system of currency.
The National Monetary Commission comprises eighteen members, nine of whom were selected from the senate and nine from the house; it in-