Volume 2 - ElectricCanadian.com

218 HISTORY OF THE BANKrule was promulgated that after marking a savings bankreceipt, the ledger-keeper must hand it to the paying teller,instead of back to the customer. Some years later the weaknessof this method was revealed, when on a busy morning, ateller paid the wrong person, who happened to be dishonest,and the bank was obliged to pay the money twice. Theincident illustrates the extreme difficulty of making any ruleor devising any system which will be proof against dishonestyand error.In 1901, the bank began to experience a demand for notecirculation greater than its statutory powers under the BankAct enabled it to fill. In September, during the annual cropmovement, the branches were advised that the note circulationof the bank had reached a point which rendered itnecessaryto cease furnishing notes to other banks or to anyone exceptthe bank's regular customers, and then only for their ownlegitimate requirements. One method adopted to meet thestringency temporarily was, at places where facilities for theprompt redemption of the notes of other banks did not exist,to pay out again all such notes taken over the counter in theordinary course of business. These conditions affected to agreater or less degree all the banks in Canada, but it was notuntil 1908 that the Act was amended so as to authorize anybank during the usual season of moving the crops to issuenotes to a certain extent in excess of its paid-up capital, subjectof interest to the Government.to the paymentIn November, 1901, the management advised the branchesas to the bank's policy with regard to public offerings of stocksand bonds by the bank. From time to time subscriptions forvarious issues had been accepted at its branches, and it waspointed out that in London, New York and other large financialcentres the banker who received subscriptions was not con-for the soundness of thesidered in any sense responsiblesecurities offered. In fact, bankers in such centres do littlemore than assure themselves of the respectability of anyenterprise on behalf of which they are requested to act in this