4565. Merchants Farmers & Mechanics Savings Bank (Chicago, IL)

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THE PANIC are THE WEST. PRODUCE SPECULATORS HARD PRESSED. THE RUN ON THE BANKS, ds. &s., &c., Chicago. (From the Chicago Tribune. Oct.4 The money market on Monday was again convuised and panic stricken. As soon as the banks opened a deter. mined and persistent rua upon some of them was kept up a!l the forepoon, but towards the afternoon it bad evi. dently spent its force, and there was increased confidence. Oo of the savings banks had 8 very large crewd of depositors at its door all day, but as the sums asked for were nearly a'l small, the bank was able to meet the run." Several of the beavier business institutions were short of currency, and they were obliged to pay checks for large amounts in Eastern exchange, or defer their payment for a day or two, but most of the banks paid every check as promptly as it was presented. were DO the There signs of weakness exhibited by any of banks. Even those who were short of 'greenbacks' could above enough Eastern exchange five-twenty States sufficient other United bonds, to pay every and de positor two or three times over: but the truth is this "run" has come on them so suddenly and unexpectedly that they have not had time 10 get on funds from the Eas: and as 'greenbacks' cannot be manu actured here, they have to wait Lill the express companies bring them on. On Change the effect of the monetary panic were more observable than anywhere else. 1bere was actually no demand for produce of any kind, and prices were entirely nominal. Money could not be had at any price by those who wanted it. and the busk of the merchants who had large balances at the banks magnamiously refused to draw a single check or fill an order for grain although by 80 doing they could have made thousands of dollars Towards the close of Change the Board of Trade passed the following resolutions Resolved That, for the present. me will receive banks for all checks of solvent transactions of tais certifie ! board and that the leading banks and bankers be requested to designate such certified checks as they will receive on ce posit. Resolved That it is the !seuse of this board that is case of p.n e. savin rs institutions n solvent condition should avail themselves of their charlered rights by equiring no. tice of the withdrawal of deposits An e fort was made by several institutions to sell Fast. era exchange, and freely offered on the street at two per cent discount at this discount little or rose could be disposed of, and it ubtfuli much could have been sold at even five per cent discount. This is a feature in money panics a together subparalleled in the West. Never before was a found to be Impossible to sell exchange on New York at a reasonable rate. Another Biozular feature of this money panic is the fact that bitherto the main difficulty has been with the our rency, and the effort made by the public was to get rid of it. Now it is the very opposite the great rush to get the currency. Every success in the field strengthens the faith of the people in greenbacks. There was large attendance on Change on Monday, but, owing to the continuation of the panic in monetary affairs. very little business was transacted. There was a strong effort on the Dart of holders through brokers, to realize but as all checks were refused, and currency a very scarce, the transactions in produce were of triling charac'er. Those of our shippers and graia deal. ers who had orders to buy, and who had large balance in bank very genereusiy refused to check them out, and telegraphed their correspondents that in the present state o affairs they could not fill their or ders. A for the speculatore. (bey were entirely out of the market Not a dollar could be had at any of the dis count houses, and even the "shent per-sbent gestlemen who generally reap a rich harvest 10 times like these, were completely run out. They had DO money, and their checks were not worth more than the paper which they were written on to buy provisions with -day Taking it altogether. it was the most remarkable day ever seen in the commercial history of our city. In no previous panic has money been so scarce that it could not be had at some price but to day neither bankers uer money brokers and "shavers" had a dollar to lead. Eastern exchange was offered at a large discount. United States bonds, Illinois bonds, city boads, all were offered at a beavy discount for "greenbacks," but all to no purpose. or course in such a state of affairs, the markets were almost completely at a stand still, and the quotations named can scarcely be said to give a fair criterion of values Tobody sold except those wbo, to use a homely expression, "bad their noses under the grindstone. [From the Chicago Times, Oct. 4.1 Any further run upon the banks of the city will be as Benseleas in itself as injurious to the public. The rotten conceros have gone down. as they should have done, and the determination of all others to meet their obligations ought to satisfy their depositors of their ability to do 80. ariaen chiefly from the failure Insurance Company, and the The ble ern conduct Marine paule has and of Fire of the Culpa- West. its officers in coneection therewith, and should not have survived the Sunday following that affair. We confidently trust that the renewed excitement of yesterday will not be continued day. subsided towards save at the Illinois Savings Ington terday, The excitement street. largely Institution. evening on Wash yes Early in the morning the Merchants'. Farmera' and Mechanics Savings Bank, on role of requiring savings notice of their intention to Bikty enforced days' its depositors withdraw Clark to street, their give operated like a charm. should have done the same Savings deposits. Institution which The thing. Illinois and thereby added to allay the popular excitement. Both institutions are notoriously sound, and the ent rement of the rule could not have been construed in any quarter to their prejudice. We observe that It is announced that parties connected with the Western Marine and Fire Insurance Company propose to organize a new back upon the ruins of the avowed object of to such as desire upon their funct concern, one, tions with the "granting deposits with accommoda. the' old de. This is a singular proposition. of the defunct concern all once pay the depositors their not the owners rich-at the duea? of whom Why We sup. are do pose real object of the proposed movement is serve charter of the Western Marine for future opinion surance the the Company swindling uses. and Fire In to pre- our In public should put its beel movement There is no appearance of which the President of the A statement the upon defunct honesty the concern neck in it. of has published of the alleged Causes or the failure nosatisfactory. and ought not to We repeat, why do not the concern. all of whom the defunct gether public. owners be once accepted pay is or their alto. the by depositors, instead of fatterics with them in the manner proposed? This done, they might, perhaps with some decency, ask the public confidence in some new direction.