Between September 30, 1892 and
October 31, 1893, the amount of deposits in the national banks
shrank over $496,000,000. Trade was reduced to making use of the
methods of primitive barter, though the emergency was met to some
extent by the use of checks and clearinghouse certificates. In
many New England manufacturing towns, for example, checks for use
in trade were drawn in denominations from one dollar up to
twenty. In some cases, corporations paid off their employees in
checks drawn on their own treasurers which served as local
currency. In some Southern cities, clearing-house certificates in
small denominations were issued for general circulation--in
Birmingham, Alabama, for sums as small as twenty-five cents. It
is worth noting that a premium was paid as readily for notes as
for gold; indeed, the New York "Financial Chronicle" reported
that the premium on currency was from two to three per cent,
while the premium on gold was only one and one half per cent.
Before the panic had ended, the extraordinary spectacle was
presented of gold coins serving as a medium of trade because
treasury notes and bank notes were still hoarded. These
peculiarities of the situation had a deep effect upon the popular
attitude towards the measures recommended by the Administration.
While this devastating panic was raging over all the country,
President Cleveland was beset by troubles that were both public
and personal.
Pages:
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163