Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 14.djvu/891

OHIO. and Michigan Southern, the New York, Chicago and Saint Louis, the Pittsburg, Cincinnati, Chicago and Saint Louis, the Toledo and Ohio Central, and the Wheeling and Lake Erie. In recent years there has been a decided tendency toward centralization of the railroads. In 1901 there were 858,815,080 passengers carried one mile; the average distance which passengers were carried was 25.73 miles; and the average receipt per passenger per mile was $.025. In the same year there were 12,450,261,839 tons of freight transported one mile, the average distance haul per ton being 72.18 miles, and the average amount received per ton mile $.013. Ohio leads every State in the extent of its interurban electrical railways. It is now possible to cross the northern part of the Commonwealth on electrical lines, or to go from Newark to Cincinnati. Cleveland, Toledo, Columbus, and Dayton are important centres for electrical lines.

Ohio has three United States customs districts, of which the ports of entry are Toledo, Sandusky, and Cleveland. Cincinnati also is a port of entry in the district of Louisiana for the State of Ohio. These customs ports represent only the foreign imports and exports which the position of Ohio on the lakes, adjoining Canada, and in communication with ocean commerce through the Canadian canals and the Saint Lawrence, enables the local merchants to make direct to and from foreign countries. The same may be said of Cincinnati, though its foreign trade has to be carried much more indirectly through the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. The foreign commerce of Ohio is, however, insignificant compared with the vast domestic commerce east, west, north, and south, along the State's lakes, railways, canals, and great river. Lake Erie is still the greatest single highway of commerce for the State, and the Government has improved several of its harbors. Those at Cleveland and Sandusky are the finest in the State. Sandusky Bay extends inland about eighteen miles, and admits the largest lake vessels to wharf. Cleveland figures most prominently in the lake commerce. Formerly the canals were expected to be second only to the lake and the Ohio River in volume of commerce, but the railways have far surpassed them in carrying facilities. The great value of the canals is now to force low rates upon the railway system by their cheaper, though slower, transportation. The canals now operated comprise the Ohio Canal, completed in 1835, extending from Cleveland to Portsmouth, 309 miles long; the Miami and Erie Canal, completed in 1835, extending from Cincinnati to Toledo, 250 miles long; the Hocking Canal, a branch of the Ohio, completed in 1843, extending from Carroll to Nelsonville, 42 miles long; and the Walhonding Canal, completed in 1843, extending from Rochester to Roscoe, 25 miles long. There is also a large mileage of artificial feeders and slack-water navigation.

. In 1803 a trading company was chartered with the privilege of doing a banking business. From 1808 to 1813 five more banks were incorporated, each by a special act of the Legislature. The banks did a prosperous business, and when in 1817 a branch of the first United States Bank was established in Cincinnati it called forth strong opposition. The State made an effort to drive out this branch by special taxation, but was defeated in the United States Supreme Court.

Some 25 banks were established in the following twenty years, and when in 1836 the second United States Bank made an effort to establish a branch, a special act was passed prohibiting it. A large number of unauthorized banking institutions sprang up between 1840 and 1850, and their currency flooded the State. Several of them failed and caused losses to the holders of currency. To correct the evil, the State in 1845 strictly prohibited any one from engaging in the banking business without special authority of the State; but the law did not prove sufficient, and in 1851 the State was forced to pass a free banking law. In 1863 almost all the State banks became national. Since then the national banks have remained the more popular. In the panics of 1873, 1884, and 1893 the numerous bank failures were practically limited to the private and State banks. A reaction in favor of State banks came toward 1900, when the high prices of the United States bonds made the advantages of national banking unattractive. Savings banks have existed in Ohio since 1850, but the institutions do also a commercial business.

The condition of the various banks in 1902 is shown in the following table:

. The first debt of the State was created in 1825, when the construction of several important canals was begun. In 1835 the debt amounted to $4,500,000. The State continued to subscribe to railroad, turnpike, and canal companies, until in 1843 it had a public debt of $16,880,000, in 6 and 7 per cent. bonds, and interest charges of $1,022,000. Simultaneously with the loans, the State established a system of taxation to meet the charges. All the income from the canals and a special tax were pledged for that purpose. These measures kept the credit of Ohio high and enabled it to borrow further sums. In the financial stringency of 1838-40, however, borrowing became more difficult, and as the abandonment of work would have meant too great a loss, 7 per cent. bonds had to be issued in 1843. But the law authorizing this loan also closed up all means of further increase of the debt. The sinking fund, the proceeds from sale of lands, and the school fund were absorbed by the canals. The debt was then gradually reduced and in 1856 it was $13,897,242. During that year, however, $2,423,349 more was borrowed, after which the debt was rapidly reduced by redemption of several hundreds of thousands of dollars each year. In 1880 the debt was only $6,476,805; a greater part of these bonds were acquired by the school fund and so became irredeemable. Of the redeemable debt only $2,541,655 was left in 1890, and in 1902 only $200,000—maturing in 1903. The income of the State was always derived mainly from direct taxation and was divided between the general revenue fund, sinking fund, and school fund. In 1892 a special university fund was created. In 1902 the total income was $9,855,524, of which almost 60 per