Mr. HOOPER, of Massachusetts. The object of the 1st amendment proposed by this bill to the 18th section of the bank law is to give additional power to the Comptroller of the Currency to examine the character of any a lication to organize a bank. to satisfy himselifJthnt it is for the purpose of establish inga legitimate bank, and togive him the power after the bank is organized to wind it up if he has reason to believe it. to be fraudulently or illegall conducted. The existing law makes it the duty of the Comptroller to give the required certificate to any association if the prescribed formula of the law has been observed. The bank may violate every provision of the law, in defiance of any power possessed by the Comptroller, until some of its notes have can protested; that being the only circumstance under which the Comptroller can interfere with the conduct of the bank. The next amendment is in the 29th section of the law, limiting the liability of any person, firm, compan or corporation to one 10th of the capital of the bank. The existin law has no provision to prevent loans beyon that proportion of the capital. Many small banks organized in different parts of the coun' try are owned and managed for the benefit of individuals and firms in the cit of NewYork and other places, who use near y all the assets of the bank. The Comptroller may know this, as was the case with the bank at Venango, with Culver, Penn & Co., and the Merchants' Bank at Washington, with Bayiie & Co., but he cannot interfere until the notes of such a bank are protested. It is easy for anyone to organize a bank by furnishing the bonds require to be deposited as security for the 90%. of circulating notes, and the part organizing the bank may then take the circu ating notes for his own use. These notes are equal in value to the same amount of greenbacks, for when put into circulation they never go back to the bank for redemption, in the present condition of the currency; it is true a debt to the bank is created amountin to more than one 10th of the capital, but the Comptroller has no power to interfere, and the bank claims it to be “ a balance" due them and not a loan. The amendment to section 30 forfeits the whole debt whenever interest is taken beyond the amount allowed by law, instead of forfeiting only the interest, as provided by the law now. Section 32 relates to the redemption of circulating notes, and changes the present law so far as to require the banks in certain cities named in the bill to redeem their own circulation and the circulation of those banks for which they are redeeming agent in the cities of NewYork, Philadelphia, and Boston. It provides for the redemption of all national bank notes in one of the 17 great commercial centers of the country, and requires the banks in those commercial centers to redeem their own notes and the notes of the banks they redeem, either at NewYork, Philadelphia, or Boston. It also makes satisfactory compensation to all these banks for this work of redemption by allowing balances in other banks to be counted as part of the required reserve. The banks in places outside the 17 commercial centers are required to have a reserve of 15%. of their liabilities for circulation and deposit to meet demands against them, but may count balances due them from banks employed as their redeeming eat to the extent of 3/5th s of the required reserve. Banks in the 17 commercial centers are required to have a reserve equal to 25%. of their liabilities but may count balances dues them from theirredecming agents in NewYork. Philadelphia, or Boston, to the extent of 1/2 the required reserve; while the banks in NewYork, Philadelphia, and Boston must have the full amount of 25%. reserve. A bank in any part of Illinois, Ohio, or any other State may redeem in NewYork, Philadelphia, or Boston; otherwise it must redeem in Cincinnati, Chi cago, or some other commercial center; and in the latter case, the bank redeeming the notes must also redeem them at some bank in NewYork, Philadel hia, or Boston. When the c act of the national banking law isfully understood and appreciated the national banks will discover that their circulating notes are required at home for their own use, and that it is not for their interest to send them to distant places for circulation. The great difficulty in the banks now throughout the interior of the country is to find curren; and they generally give a draft on NewYork or some one of the large centers of commerce rather than pay out currency. Under the old system, the State banks issued as many notes as they could circulate, and preferred always to pay in their notes; but the amount of notes that any national bank can issue being limited by law, the difficulty with the banks is to procure a snflicient amount of currency for the daily transaction of their business; after sending away their own notes they often find it necessary to send to NewYork and pay a premium for other notes for their daily use. The amendments of section 34 relate to the returns of the banks, the object of it being to make the returns more complete and intelligible, and to provide eualties for neglect or for deceptiva or fraudu ent returns. Section 41 relates to the tax on banks, and changes the existing law by striking out the annual tax of one half%. on the amount of capital in excess of the amount invested in bonds of the U.S., and diminishes the annual tax on circulation from 1%. to one half%. The provisions in regard to State taxation are left precisely as in the existing law. This amendment provides also for the return of the amount of notes of State banks which have been paid out by any association, on which after the 1st of August a tax of ten% is levied; any bank may receive such notes at 100 cents for a dollar, but with the tax of ten%. on the amount aid out only 90 cents for a dollar would be realized for them. The effect of this will doubtless be to exclude the notes of State banks from circulation, leaving greeiibacks and national currency the only paper money in cir culation. The amendment to section 45 requires security to the full amount of public money deposited in any national bank designated as a public depository, and weekly returns to be made of the amount of public money deposited to the credit of the Treasurer or any disbursing officer or agent of the U.S. It also makes it the duty of the Treasurer to transfer to the Treasury any excess of deposit beyond the amount ofsccurity. A proviso is added to this section, prohibiting the selection of any national bank as a depository of public money at Washington or in the cities where a subTreasury is located; requiring all public money in those places to be deposited in the Treasury or sub Treasuries. I am opposed to the use of the public money by banks, and wish to restrictit; yet I believe this provision applied only to a few of the large cities will operate to in commode the Government and the public. In NewYork, for example, collectors of internalrevenue being obliged to deposit their collections every day, would be at a great inconven ience, and I think they would find it impossible to make all their deposits each day in the subTreasury. The objects of the amendments to section 56 are mainly to give the power to any receiver appointed under the law to bring suits, and to meet other difficulties which have been found by recent experience to exist in discharging the duties which the law devolves upon him., The amendments of the 21st section are, in some respects, the most important in this bill; their 0 ject was to furnish currency for new banks and for the conversion of the remaining State banks, by withdrawing from each bank now establishe ten%. of the amount of currency they are entitled to under the existing law. This if carried out fully would give 30 millions for the purpose, and be sufficient to supply what is now wanted. A majority of the committee were unwilling to reduce the prorata of circulation of any bank with a capital not exceeding $300,000; making up for it, in part, by taking an increased proportion from a few large banks by limiting the amount of currency to anyone bank, not to exceed $1,000,000. The National Bank of Commerce of NewYork with a capital of ten millions, and 4 millions of currency now in circulation, would by this amendment be entitled to ten%. on] of currency; although 1/3rd of the capita of that bank must be “invested in Government bonds to be deposited in the Treasury of the U.S. I cannot perceive the justice of taking away all but ten%. of the amount of currency to which a bank of ten millions is entitled, and allowing other banks to invest the whole of their capital, when not exceeding $300,000, in bonds to be pledged as security, and receive 90%. of that amount in notes for circulation. The abuses of the national currency act will be found to be generally in banks of small capital, which can be controlled and managed by individuals for their own benefit. It has always seemed to me that the system of a national currency would have been better for the community if the ratio of circulation to capital had been made uniform, and in no case to exceed 50%. of the capital of any bank; so that while 1/2 of tecapital was in bonds deEOSIiECl in the Treasury, the other half would e employed in the regular business of the bank. As this amendment now reads, exempt inv the banks of not more than $300,000 capi tailIfrom any reduction, there will be a margin of about 24 millions to organize new national banks. The Comptroller of the Currency, in his an nual re‘port, recommended the issue of 100 millions ofsix%. bonds in place of: 100 millions of greenbacks to be Withdrawn from circulation, and to give the bunks 90 millions more of circulating note upon the pledge of those bonds as security. The committee could neither see the wisdom nor justice of the Government assuming the payment of 6 millions annually for interest, only for the purpose of increasing the bank cir culation. So longas there is no redemption of the notes of national banks, they circulate, in every respect, equally as well as greenbacks. The nationa currency now in circulation is so much addition to the currency of the country. The Government might as well loan greenbacks to the banks without interest as to authorize the issue of more national currency. If the $300,000,000 of national currency had been issued by the Government in greenbacks it would have saved annually at least 18 millions, which is now paid for interest on the bonds pledged to secure that 300 millions of national bank notes. The Government should have the benefit of the issue if more paper money is necessary. his to be hoped that the national bank notes Will never be allowed by Congress to exceed the present amount of 300 millions; and when more bank notes are required, that the ratio of circulation to each bank be reduced to furnish the currency required for the new banks. I have stated the eading features of the amendment proposed by this bill, and now leave it for the action of the House.