the same value; for they draw the same rate of interest, mature at the same time, and the coupon bonds may be converted into the registered bonds at the will of the owner, who has only to take the trouble of sending them to Washington for that purpose. There are several points suggested by this anomaly which merit examination. As to the immediate cause of it there is no doubt at all. The bouds in which it exists are known as the old Five-twenties of 1862, which are so exclusively dealt in in Europe that no other species are good delivery in fulfillments of con. tracts. The bonds of 1865, which are really more valuable, as they have three years longer to run, are not as yet known in the European market, though an effort is making to get them introduced there. Hence it is that the orders from abroad run exclusively on the old Five twenties, and, of course, registered bonds are useless for exportation, coupon bonds being alone negotiable abroad. Now, it is easy to see that when from any circumstance a very lively foreign demand springs up for our bonds, the coupon old Five-twenties will exclusively be called for, and. the supply in market being limited, their price will go up, while that of the other bonds may be either stationary or will at least be less lively in their upward movement. The old bonds have sold as high as 114 daring the recent excitement, while the highest price of the more valuable bouds of 1865 was about 110. This, however, is not quite the whole of the case. We have explained why the bonds of 1862 seil higher just now than those of 1865; but why should the coupon bonds of 1862 sell higher than the registered? Are not the registered bonds available for export purposes by being sent to Washington to be exchanged for coupon bonds? The answer is that they are not so available. The law allows you to convert your coupon bonds into registered bonds, but it makes no provision for the reverse process of converting registered bonds into coupon. This unnecessary disability is much complained of, and not unjustly. An effort will be made at the next session of Congress to get a new enactment passed removing these incongruities of the existing statutes regulating this important question of the reciprocal conversion of coupon and registered bonds into each other. There are other reasons for a change in the law besides those we have referred to. And of these, one of the chief is the safe-keeping of bonds. The recent heavy robberies of securities show how necessary it is to prevent the thief from negotiating stolen securities. But this is impossible with the ordinary coupon bonds, which are payable to bearer; for the courts hold that such a bond passes from one holder to another just as freely as a bank note or gold eagle. A bona fide purchaser, in good faith and in the ordinary course of business, has a clear title to a bond which may have been formerly stolen, even against the man from whom it was stolen. In the case of a horse, the owner may seize it wherever found, but not so with a bond payable to bearer. This, if lost, is irrecoverable by so summary a process. The only absolute security for the owner of a coupon bond is to have it exchanged for a registered bond. If he loses it, nobody but himself can draw the interest when due, nobody but himself can claim the principal at maturity. The safety is thus as comple as, in the nature of things, human care and legislative arrangements can make it. But there is another difficulty. Suppose the owner of a registerd bond wants to convert it back again. He cannot do it, and this very circumstance prevents many persons from converting their coupon bonds, for the latter are more easily bought and sold. If you wish to sell a coupon bond, all you have to do is to deliver it to the buyer, to get your money on the spot, and the transaction is closed. With a registered bond, there is the delay of sending it to Washington for transfer, and, for two months of every year, you cannot even do this, for the books close during the months of April and October, preparatory to the May and November payment of interest, and in the interval you cannot transfer your bonds to a purchaser on the Government books. This difficulty has been met by an assignment in blank, as it is termed, which really takes away for the time being the special security of the registered bond, as a fraudulent holder might avail himself in the blank assignment which you have signed, and might thus be enabled probably to sell the bond. Rather than submit to these inconveniencies, most persons prefer to hold the coupon bonds. Now it has been suggested that these and other inconveniences attaching to the ownership of registered bonds might be obviated by having the transfer books kept in New York. Nine-tenths of the business in Government securities is done in this city, and it is obviously for the convenience of the people, for the interest of bond-holders, and, therefore, for the interest of the Government, that the transfers should be made here, instead of at a place so far removed as Washington from the great metropolitan centre of trade, finance and commerce. As to the foreign purchaser of United States securieties, we can do nothing to protect him from the losses and incertitude incident to the possession of coupon bonds; but in the case of our own citizens we must, for we can, protect them. And it seems to us that one of the best means of doing this is to induce them to prefer registered to coupon bonds by some such expedient as we have sug. gested. The total amount of Government bonds sold at the the Stock Exchange during August amouts to $10 987.850, and of Treasury notes $2,577,000; which, though not varying materially from the transactions in July, is yet very largely in excess of the average monty transactions. The course of exchange during the month has tended steadily downward, under the large exports of bonds, which have kept the supply of bills steadily in advance of the demand. The imports for the month bave materially exceeded the exports, even including the shipments of securities; from which it is occasionally argued that, the balance of trade being against us, exchange should rule higher. It is, however, overlooked that our exports to Great Britain are usually paid for promptly, while our imports are upon four to eight months' credit. At the close of the month bills on London and Paris range 3@3 per cent. below par of exchange. The following table shows the daily fluctuations in bankers bills (long) on London, Paris, Amsterdam, Bremen, Hamburg, and Berlin at New York for August: 530 @522 40 @40% 77 @78 54 pence. 107@108 107108 for dollar. cents for Bremen, cents for rix daler. @40% 77 @79 @40% 77 @79 @404 77 @79 107%@108 525 @517% 40 @40% 77 @79 525 @519% 40 @40% 77 @78% 36 @36% 72 @72% 525 @518% 40 @40% 77 @78% 86 @36% 72 @72% 525 @518% 40 @40% 77 @78% 36 @36% 72 @72X 525 @520 40 41 77 @78% 36 @36% 72 @72% 530 @525 40 @40% 76%@78% 85%@36% 71%@ 72% 530 @525 40 @40 76x@78% 35%@86% 71%@72X 85%@36 71 @72 35@36 71 @72 85%@36% 71 @72 76%@78 76%@78 76%@78 25% @36% 71 72 17. 18. 107 @107% 535 @522 @522 89%@40 76 @78 35 @36 70%@71% 76% @78 35 @36 70%@71% 39%@40% 766@78 535 @528% 39%@40 75 @76% 35 @36 105%@108 545 @517 39 @41 75 @79 34%@37 68 @73 77 @79 36 @37% 72 @75% 77 @90% 35% @37% 73 @75 78%@80 36 @37 71 @74 76%4@784 35 @6% 69%4@71% 77 @78% 35%@36% 70%@71% 77 @79 35% @36% 70%@71% 78 @79% 36 @36% 71 @71% 106% @109% 545 @507% 39 @42% 75 @80% 34%@37% 68%@75% The gold market has been subject to violent fluctuations, owing to a specula. tive combination for making gold scarce and forcing up the premium. The prospect of an importation of gold from abroad and the maturing of interest upon Ten-forty bonds on the 1st of September have induced the clique holders to realise upon their coin, and the market closes easier. are the daily quotations for gold for the month of August: Feb. 3. 10. 1,449,074 "24. 1,209,048 Mar. 3.. 75,453 10. 1,469,286 556,284 17.. 1,425,353 236,671 24.. 389,837 170,297 31.. 673,615 3,500 The Treasure Movement at New York weekly, and the amount in Banks at the close of each week since January 1, has been as follows: 1866. week ending Jan. 6.. 13.. **20. *. 27. 17. TREASURE MOVEMENT FOR 1866. Receipts. Exports. Sub-Treasury In banke at close issued. returned. of week. from to foreign Customs Interest Gold Certificates California. countries. receipts. payments. 944,878 $552,027 $2,107,341 $3,597,240 $3,122,440 $1,34,8832 $15,778,741 $685,610 640,503 2.334.694 1,130,789 3,206,180 1,578,194 16.852,568 799,706 685,894 2,754,369 574,162 2,706,400 1,928,641 15,25,32 656,812 3,226,040 279,842 2,598,400 2,137,048 13,106,759 292,568 3'347,422 115,204 2,081,280 2,221,423 10,937.474 4.3.409 3,251,734 120.179 1,916,700 2,376,735 10,129,806 445,489 2,893,008 94,828 2992.900 2,158,009 10,308,758 560,198 2,608,796 119,-79 5,893,280 1,995,796 14,213,351 3,386,934 1,183,343 2,125,000 2,664,934 17,181,130 2,297,836 882,712 2,101,000 1,706,835 16,563 237 2,464,482 328,593 1,498,400 1,919,483 15,015,242 361,280 1,886,419 13,945,651 1,895,334 11,930, 202 1,376,000 11.436,295 225,414 63.140 21... 809,459 23.. 73,880 2,246,207 40,506 8,763.295 2,542,814 1,702,000 4,500,000 1,971,568 9,495,463 4,137,140 1,760,307 8.243.937 4,659,000 2,227,181 10.914,997 3,110,000 1,943,391 13,970,402 2.842.000 2,069,814 13,595.465 1,276,505 9,421,766 324,562 6,870,997 2,182.395 21. "28.. 2,209,676 106,134 2.002,265 298.748 2,47,626 3,964,634 2,486,296 1,267,600 2,480,149 324,100 2,926,884 277.044 2.794,658 1.5,500 2,676,332 61.400 2,461,877 50,300 2,793.000 1,788,621 11,217.305 8,504.096 Ang. 4.. 11.. 18. 25. 3,091,601 787,312 3,069,893 6,987 6,884, 77 Since Jan 1............ $26,266,616 52,882,448 89,040,608 29,136,479 10,327,140 79,221,868 $.. The following table, compiled from the records for the past eight months of the current year, and for the same months of the previous seven years, shows the general results of the import and export of treasure at this port : The receipts of gold from California for the month amount to $4,427,659, and from foreign ports to $161,316, making a total new supply of $4,588,978 against a foreign export of $1,587,851; so that there has been a gain at this port of $3,001,127 for the month. According to cable advices, there is now in transit about $1,500,000 of gold from London for New York, indicating a course of exchanges which may add materially to the supply of coin upon the market. JOURNAL OF BANKING, CURRENCY, AND FINANCE. New York City Bank returns-Returns of the Boston and Philadelphia Banks. We give below the bank returns of the three cities. It will be seen that the specie in New York is at a lower point than ever before: The returns of the Philadelphia Banks have been as follows: |