THE PROBLEM—ITS METHODS OF STUDY 5 
although it did not seem necessary to publish the dollar amounts 
upon which they are based. The latter, by districts, are matters 
of record and are generally available. 
3. THE PLAN AND METHODS OF STUDY 
It is unnecessary to do more at this place than to indicate in 
general the methods of analysis used. Throughout the text dis- 
cussion, those employed are specifically stated, the steps in the 
manipulative processes, wherever involved, being set out clearly 
and in many cases fully illustrated. Briefly described, the meth- 
ods may be characterized as classificatory, tabular, and graphic. 
These promised to be most fruitful of results, and it is doubtful 
whether other methods would have served the purpose so well. 
Interest centered on district and yearly differences from type and 
upon changes from year to year, both in individual and related 
series, and these were most clearly revealed by the methods of 
study used. A fundamental canon of procedure throughout was 
to stay close to the data, to study their peculiarities intensely, all 
the time watching for similarities and differences, and to adopt 
those devices of summary and illustration best suited to disclose 
them. 
No single set of manipulative processes was found to be suf- 
ficient for the ends in mind. The writer is distinctly not one of 
those who believe that statistical techniques should be used “rule- 
of-thumb.” This study, more particularly, is exploratory; a 
variety of methods serves this end best, and these have been used, 
care being taken at each step in the process of analysis, to state 
precisely and, it is hoped, without ambiguity, what is done. Ac- 
cordingly, the text is extended. Tables and charts are freely used, 
first, to present the evidence supporting the various conclusions, 
and second, to assist the reader in following the analysis. 
The plan of the discussion is indicated broadly by the Table of 
Contents. Part I relates to the subject matter now being dis- 
cussed. Part II pertains to a consideration of the norms and 
trends in the individual series for member banks by districts, at- 
tention being directed primarily to the uniformities of the nature 
and of the percentage amounts of difference from type—district 
and country—the systematic nature of trends and year-to-year 
changes, analyzed by themselves and with respect to deviation