(ACT of April 10th, 1816.)

ration, from time to time, to employ any other bank or banks, to be first approved by the secretary of the treasury, at any place or places that they may deem safe and proper, to manage and transact the business proposed as aforesaid, other than for the purposes of discount, to be managed and transacted by such offices, under such agreements, and subject to such regulations, as they shall deem just and proper. Not more than thirteen, nor less than seven managers or directors, of every office established as aforesaid, shall be annually appointed by the directors of the bank, to serve one year; they shall choose a president from their own number; each of them shall be a citizen of the United States, and a resident of the state, territory or district, wherein such office is established; and not more than three-fourths of the said managers or directors, in office at the time of an annual appointment, shall be re-appointed for the next succeeding year; and no director shall hold his office more than three years out of four, in succession; but the president may be always re-appointed.

Fifteenth. The officer at the head of the treasury department of the United States shall be furnished, from time to time, as often as he may require, not exceeding once a week, with statements of the amount of the capital stock of the said corporation and of the debts due to the same; of the moneys deposited therein; of the notes in circulation, and of the specie in hand; and shall have a right to inspect such general accounts in the books of the bank as shall relate to the said statement: Provided, that this shall not be construed to imply a right of inspecting the account of any private individual or individuals with the bank.

Sixteenth. No stockholder, unless he be a citizen of the United States, shall vote in the choice of directors.

Seventeenth. No note shall be issued of less amount than five dollars.

12. SEC. XII. If the said corporation, or any person or persons, for or to the use of the same, shall deal or trade in buying or selling goods, wares, merchandize or commodities whatsoever, contrary to the provisions of this act, all and every person and persons by whom any order or direction for so dealing or trading shall have been given; and all and every person and persons who shall have been concerned as parties or agents therein, shall forfeit and lose treble the value of the goods, wares, merchandize and commodities in which such dealing and trade shall have been, one half thereof to the use of the informer, and the other half thereof, to the United States, to be recovered in any action of law with costs of suit.

13. SEC. xm. If the said corporation shall advance or lend any sum of money for the use or on account of the government of the United States, to an amount exceeding five hundred thousand dollars; or of any particular state, to an amount exceeding fifty thousand dollars; or of any foreign prince or state, (unless previously

(ACT of April 10th, 1816.

authorized thereto by a law of the United States,) all and every person and persons, by and with whose order, agreement, consent, approbation and connivance, such unlawful advance or loan shall have been made, upon conviction thereof shall forfeit and pay, for every such offence, treble the value or amount of the sum or sums which have been so unlawfully advanced or lent; one fifth thereof to the use of the informer, and the residue thereof to the use of the United States.

14. SEC. XIV. The bills or notes of the said corporation originally made payable, or which shall have become payable on demand, shall be receivable in all payments to the United States, unless otherwise directed by act of Congress.

15. SEC. xv. During the continuance of this act, and whenever required by the secretary of the treasury, the said corporation shall give the necessary facilities for transferring the public funds from place to place, within the United States, or the territories thereof, and for distributing the same in payment of the public creditors, without charging commissions or claiming allowance on account of difference of exchange, and shall also do and perform the several and respective duties of the commissioners of loans for the several states, or of any one or more of them, whenever required by law.

16. SEC. XVI. The deposits of the money of the United States, in places in which the said bank and branches thereof may be established, shall be made in said bank or branches thereof, unless the secretary of the treasury shall at any time otherwise order and direct; in which case the secretary of the treasury shall immediately lay before congress, if in session, and if not, immediately after the commencement of the next session, the reasons of such order or direction.

17. SEC. XVII. The said corporation shall not at any time suspend or refuse payment in gold and silver, of any of its notes, bills or obligations; nor of any moneys received upon deposit in said bank, or in any of its offices of discount and deposit. And if the said corporation shall at any time refuse or neglect to pay on demand any bill, note or obligation issued by the corporation, according to the contract, promise or undertaking therein expressed; or shall neglect or refuse to pay on demand any monies received in said bank, or in any of its offices aforesaid, on deposit, to the person or persons entitled to receive the same, then, and in every such case, the holder of any such note, bill, or obligation, or the person or persons entitled to demand and receive such monies as aforesaid, shall respectively be entitled to receive and recover interest on the said bills, notes, obligations or moneys, until the same shall be fully paid and satisfied, at the rate of twelve per centum per annum from the time of such demand as aforesaid; Provided, That congress may at any time hereafter enact laws enforcing and regulating the recovery of the amount of the notes,

(ACT of April 10th, 1816.)

bills, obligations or other debts, of which payment shall have been refused as aforesaid, with the rate of interest above mentioned, vesting jurisdiction for that purpose in any courts, either of law or equity, of the courts of the United States, or territories thereof, or the several states, as they may deem expedient.

18. SEC. XVIII. If any person shall falsely make, forge or counterfeit, or cause or procure to be falsely made, forged or counterfeit ed, or willingly aid or assist in falsely making, forging or counterfeiting any bill or note in imitation of or purporting to be a bill or note issued by order of the president, directors and company of the said bank, or any order or check on the said bank or corporation, or any cashier thereof; or shall falsely alter, or cause or procure to be falsely altered, or willingly aid or assist in falsely altering any bill or note issued by order of the president, directors and company of the said bank, or any order or check on the said bank or corporation, or any cashier thereof; or shall pass utter or publish, or attempt to pass, utter or publish as true, any false, forged or counterfeited bill or note purporting to be a bill or note issued by order of the president, directors and company of the said bank, or any false, forged or counterfeited order or check upon the said bank or corporation, or any cashier thereof, knowing the same to be falsely forged or counterfeited; or shall pass, utter or publish or attempt to pass, utter or publish, as true any falsely altered bill or note issued by order of the president, directors, and company of the said bank, or any falsely altered order or check on the said bank or corporation, or any cashier thereof, knowing the same to be falsely altered with intention to defraud the said corporation or any other body politic or person; or shall sell, utter or deliver, or cause to be sold, uttered or delivered, any forged or counterfeit note or bill in imitation, or purporting to be a bill or note issued by order of the president and directors, of the said bank, knowing the same to be false, forged, or counterfeited; every such person shall be deemed and adjudged guilty of felony, and being thereof convicted by due course of law, shall be sentenced to be imprisoned and kept to hard labour for not less than three years, nor more than ten years, or shall be imprisoned not exceeding ten years, and fined not exceeding five thousand dollars. Provided, That nothing herein contained shall be construed to deprive the courts of the individual states, of a jurisdiction under the laws of the several states, over any offence declared punishable by this act. 19. SEC. XIX. If any person shall make or engrave, or cause, or procure to be made or engraved, or shall have in his custody or possession, any metallic plate, engraved after the similitude of any plate from which any notes or bills, issued by the said corporation, shall have been printed, with intent to use such plate, or to cause, or suffer the same to be used in forging or counterfeiting any of the notes or bills issued by the said corporation; or shall have in his

(ACT of April 10th, 1816.)

custody or possession, any blank note or notes, bill or bills, engraved and printed after the similitude of any notes or bills issued by said corporation, with intent to use such blanks, or cause, or suffer the same to be used in forging or counterfeiting any of the notes or bills issued by the said corporation; or shall have in his custody or possession, any paper adapted to the making of bank notes or bills, and similar to the paper upon which any notes or bills of the said corporation shall have been issued, with intent to use such paper, or cause, or suffer the same to be used in forging or counterfeiting any of the notes or bills issued by the said corporation, every such person, being thereof convicted, by due course of law, shall be sentenced to be imprisoned, and kept to hard labour, for a term not exceeding five years, or shall be imprisoned for a term not exceeding five years, and fined in a sum not exceeding one thousand dollars.

20. SEC. xx. In consideration of the exclusive privileges and benefits conferred by this act, upon the said bank, the president, directors, and company thereof, shall pay to the United States, out of the corporate funds thereof, the sum of one million and five hundred thousand dollars, in three equal payments; that is to say: five hundred thousand dollars at the expiration of two years; five hundred thousand dollars at the expiration of three years; and five hundred thousand dollars at the expiration of four years after the said bank shall be organized, and commence its operations in the manner hereinbefore provided.

21. SEC. XXI. No other bank shall be established by any future law of the United States during the continuance of the corporation hereby created, for which the faith of the United States is hereby pledged. Provided, Congress may renew existing charters for banks in the district of Columbia, not increasing the capital thereof, and may also establish any other bank or banks in said district, with capitals not exceeding, in the whole, six millions of dollars, if they shall deem it expedient. And, notwithstanding the expiration of the term for which the said corporation is created, it shall be lawful to use the corporate name, style, and capacity, for the purpose of suits for the final settlement and liquidation of the affairs and accounts of the corporation, and for the sale and dispo sition of their estate, real, personal, and mixed; but not for any other purpose, or in any other manner whatsoever, nor for a period exceeding two years after the expiration of the said term of incorporation.

22. SEC. XXII. If the subscriptions and payments to said bank shall not be made and completed so as to enable the same to commence its operations, or if the said bank shall not commence its operations on or before the first Monday in April next, then, and in that case, congress may, at any time, within twelve months thereafter, declare, by law, this act null and void.

(ACT of March 3d, 1819.)

23. Sec. XXIII. It shall, at all'times, be lawful, for a committee of either house of congress, appointed for that purpose, to inspect the books, and to examine into the proceedings of the corporation hereby created, and to report whether the provisions of this charter have been, by the same, violated or not; and whenever any committee, as aforesaid, shall find and report, or the president of the United States shall have reason to believe that the charter has been violated, it may be lawful for congress to direct, or the president to order a scire facias to be sued out of the circuit court of the district of Pennsylvania, in the name of the United States, (which shall be executed upon the president of the corporation for the time being, at least fifteen days before the commencement of the term of said court,) calling on the said corporation to show cause wherefore the charter hereby granted, shall not be declared forfeited; and it shall be lawful for the said court, upon the return of the said scire facias, to examine into the truth of the alleged violation, and if such violation be made appear, then to pronounce and adjudge that the said charter is forfeited and annulled. Provided however, Every issue of fact which may be joined between the United States and the corporation aforesaid, shall be tried by jury. And it shall be lawful for the court aforesaid to require the production of such of the books of the corporation as it may deem necessary for the ascertainment of the controverted facts: and the final judgment of the court aforesaid, shall be examinable in the supreme court of the United States, by writ of error, and may be there reversed or affirmed, according to the usages of law.

ACT of March 3d, 1819. Pamphlet edit. 72.

An act to enforce those provisions of the act entitled an act to incorporate the subscribers to the bank of the United States,' which relate to voting for directors, and for other purposes.

24. SEC. I. In all elections of directors of the bank of the United States, hereafter to be held under, and by virtue of the Act to incorporate the subscribers to the bank of the United States,' whenever any person shall offer to the judges of such election more than thirty votes in the whole, including those offered in his own right, and those offered by him as attorney, proxy, or agent, for any others, the said judges of the elections or any one of them, are hereby authorized and required to administer to the said person, so offering to vote, the following oath or affirmation, viz:

I do solemnly swear (or affirm, as the case may be) that I have no interest directly or indirectly in the shares upon which I shall vote at this election, as attorney for others; that those shares are to the best of my knowledge and belief, truly and in good faith owned by the persons in whose names they now stand; and that in voting at this election I shall not, in any manner, violate