Presidents -- United States -- Messages; United States -- Politics and government -- Sources
Experience continues to realize the expectations entertained as to the
capacity of the State banks to perform the duties of fiscal agents for
the Government at the time of the removal of the deposits. It was
alleged by the advocates of the Bank of the United States that the
State banks, what ever might be the regulations of the Treasury
Department, could not make the transfers required by the Government or
negotiate the domestic exchanges of the country. It is now well
ascertained that the real domestic exchanges performed through
discounts by the United States Bank and its 25 branches were at least
one third less than those of the deposit banks for an equal period of
time; and if a comparison be instituted between the amounts of service
rendered by these institutions on the broader basis which has been used
by the advocates of the United States Bank in estimating what they
consider the domestic exchanges transacted by it, the result will be
still more favorable to the deposit banks.
The whole amount of public money transferred by the Bank of the United
States in 1832 was $16,000,000. The amount transferred and actually
paid by the deposit banks in the year ending the first of October last
was $39,319,899; the amount transferred and paid between that period
and the 6th of November was $5,399,000, and the amount of transfer
warrants outstanding on that day was $14,450,000, making an aggregate
of $59,168,894. These enormous sums of money first mentioned have been
transferred with the greatest promptitude and regularity, and the rates
at which the exchanges have been negotiated previously to the passage
of the deposit act were generally below those charged by the Bank of
the United States. Independently of these services, which are far
greater than those rendered by the United States Bank and its 25
branches, a number of the deposit banks have, with a commendable zeal
to aid in the improvement of the currency, imported from abroad, at
their own expense, large sums of the precious metals for coinage and
circulation.
In the same manner have nearly all the predictions turned out in
respect to the effect of the removal of the deposits--a step
unquestionably necessary to prevent the evils which it was foreseen the
bank itself would endeavor to create in a final struggle to procure a
renewal of its charter. It may be thus, too, in some degree with the
further steps which may be taken to prevent the excessive issue of
other bank paper, but it is to be hoped that nothing will now deter the
Federal and State authorities from the firm and vigorous performance of
their duties to themselves and to the people in this respect.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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