Volume 2 - ElectricCanadian.com

THE BANK DURING THE WAR 351March. Thereafter drafts had to be drawn in gold dollarsand to be crossed, "Payable in Mexican currency at thebank's buying rate for demand drafts on New York." InJuly, a warning was issued not to send any collections ormake any transfers of money, either by telegram or letter,to the Mexico City branch. The issue of drafts was stillpermitted, but any other transaction had first to receive theapproval of the head office or of the New York agents. InOctober there was some improvement in the situation, andpermission was given to resume business with Mexico on alimited scale.The business of the head office had now reached suchproportions that it was found necessary to remodel for thebank's own occupation some of the adjoining buildings, whichhad been acquired some years before. This enabled the bankto bring back under one roof certain departments which hadfor some time, for lack of room, been forced to find quartersoutside the head office building. The outbreak of the warnecessitated a postponement of the plans for erecting a newand larger head office, and since then there has not been asufficient adjustment of the great increase in the cost ofbuilding which occurred during the war to warrant going onwith the plans. By degrees almost the whole of the buildingson the site owned by the bank have been remodeled andoccupied.In 1916 the staff problem reached an acute stage. Bythe beginning of the year over 750 officers, or nearly thirtyfiveper cent, of the members of the bank's staff betweenthe ages of 18 and 45, had taken up military duty. Theannouncement was made that the bank was prepared toaugment its staff of stenographers and of women clerks, andthat the latter had already been used to fill senior posts insome offices. The managers were asked to give careful considerationto the question of substituting women for menwherever possible. Enlistment was at this time in full flood;a month later, the number of the bank's officers who had