The Value of MoneyAnderson, Benjamin M. (Benjamin McAlester)
General
The Value of Money
Anderson, Benjamin M. (Benjamin McAlester)
Money
How, then, do we stand? On Professor Fisher's showing, the overwhelming
bulk of checks deposited were in the country outside New York--271
billions for the year, outside, as against 93 billions in New York City.
If the ratio (50%) for outside clearings to deposits was the same for
1909 that it was in 1913-14 for the outside banks, we shall have to
revise this radically. We have 62 billions of country clearings in 1909;
we would have, then, 124 billions[402] of country check deposits! If
Fisher's total figure for the country is correct, 353 billions as
"finally adjusted," the balance, or 229 billions, would belong to New
York! New York clearings, 104 billions, would thus be less than half of
New York deposits! If we count outside clearings for 1909 as only 40% of
outside check deposits, outside deposits would be, for 1909, only 155
billions, as against Professor Fisher's 271 billions, _a difference of
116 billions_! I am sure that his error in estimating outside check
deposits is at least as great as that, and that we cannot assign to New
York City less than a major part of the total check deposits of the
whole country.
This result fits in with the figures actually reported to Dean Kinley,
corrected to fit the known facts about March 17 clearings, better than
Professor Fisher's estimate, by a good margin. According to Professor
Fisher's estimate, New York City checks deposited are only 25.5% of the
total. Kinley's actual figures give 239 millions to New York City, and
408 millions to the country outside. But New York clearings were 28%
below normal on March 17, while country clearings were only 2.45% below
normal. Adding 28% to the figure for New York checks, we get 306
millions. Adding 2.45% to the outside checks, we get 418 millions. Of
the total, 724 millions, New York checks would be, then, 42.3%. We have
shown reasons for considering New York deposits to be very incomplete
for March 16, particularly as regards the private banks and trust
companies. Comparison of the New York figures with the results indicated
by the ratio of country clearings to country deposits would thus
indicate that New York was much less complete than the country as a
whole. Even so, I need to add but 7.3% of the total to Kinley's actual
figures for New York, corrected in the light of next day clearings, to
give New York half of the check deposits. Professor Fisher must subtract
16.8% of the total from the actual figures for New York, as corrected in
the light of next day's clearings, in order to get his figure of 25.5%.
To vary as widely from the actually reported figures as Professor Fisher
does, I should have to assign 59.1% of total check deposits to New York
City. I refrain from making an exact estimate. I am content with the
conclusion that something more than half of the checks deposited in 1909
were in New York. This seems to be too clear for serious controversy.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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