Chinese, Indian, and other goods reach fancy prices because of the
depreciation of the circulating medium. All these influences produced a
demand for specie payment which the Bank as a public one was obliged to
meet, under penalty of 12 per cent. interest, and without power to avail
itself of the same accounts as the State banks.

From this moment it thought fixedly of its safety and of how to reduce
its notes; this reduction obliged the other banks to imitate it, and a
new crisis shook trade in the end of October, 1818. During one year the
National Bank furnished from its cash boxes more than $7,000,000, and
the others more than $3,000,000.

The State banks naturally followed the same policy in their connection,
and their circulation became reduced as follows:

On November 1, 1816, to ............ $4,756,000
" " " 1817, " ............ 3,782,000
" " " 1818, " ............ 3,011,000
" " " 1819, " ............ 1,318,000


It will give a faint idea of the excessive issue to state that the only
difficulty was the impossibility of examination by the President and
Cashier, and of their jointly signing the notes, which was made
obligatory by the regulations; hence they asked power from Congress to
grant this right to the Presidents and Cashiers of the Branch Banks.
This facility was refused, but Congress granted a Vice-President and a
Vice-Cashier to sign. With these issues and a simple capital of
$2,000,000, the Bank discounted as much as $43,000,000, during one year,
in addition to $11,000,000, to $12,000,000, loaned upon public