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118 The crisis had come, swift and appalling; and with a steady nerve and a quick-thinking brain each man of that Committee set himself to meet it. There was much to do, and it must be done quickly. First, as to that cash payment of half a billion in gold. Was there that much gold in the city? The question was quickly answered. In the sub-treasury was one hundred and twenty million dollars; in the banks and other depositories, four hundred and fifty million dollars, more or less. Yes, the cash payment could be made—that very day, if demanded. And, as for the other four-and-a-half billions,—well, New York, even with that financial burden to carry, was better than a New York thrown down by bombardment and ravaged by a universal conflagration.

And so, while the cannon thundered and the fleeing citizens surged past the City Hall, seeking a way of escape by Subway,