The rate of interest paid on deposits varies with the Bank of England rate. It is, however, usually so small that no one, except for special reasons, will let money lie on deposit in a bank whilst there are plenty of perfectly safe investments to be met with outside.
For business women who travel few business documents are of greater interest than a letter of credit. This is a communication from a banker to a correspondent, or correspondents, authorising credit to be given to the bearer to a certain specified amount.
In applying for a letter of credit you must name to your banker the sum you will require altogether, and the number of towns in which you wish to draw portions of that sum, and if there are, say, three towns—Paris, Berlin and Rome—you must enclose your signature on three separate sheets of paper. The banker sends one of these slips to an agent in each of the towns named, and forwards to you a letter of credit in this form:—
| Messrs. | Ancelot & Santine | Paris. |
| ” | Otto, Rust & Umlauf | Berlin. |
| ” | Trento, Bertoni, & Valentino | Rome. |
London, 27th November, 1886.
Gentlemen,
We have the pleasure of establishing a credit in favour of Miss Robina Turpin, who will present to you this letter, and we shall thank you to supply her with cash to the amount of one hundred and twenty-five pounds (£125) sterling, or such part thereof as may not previously have been paid on this credit, writing off on the back of this letter the sum advanced, and taking her drafts on us in your favour for your reimbursement, which we engage duly to honour.
We remain, Gentlemen,
Your most obedient Servants,
Smith, Paterson & Winkles.
Across the face of the letter of credit is written, “This credit to be in force for twelve months only from this date.”
Circular Notes, as they are called, are in one respect an improvement on a letter of credit: they can be cashed in almost every town the traveller is likely to visit. They are issued by most London bankers and for sums of from £10 upwards.