greater amount than twenty-five cents. National
bank notes may be paid or tendered to the government, and by one bank
to another, yet they may be refused by an individual in payment of his
debt. It is important, when one owes another and there is a dispute
over the amount, that the debtor should tender or offer to pay his
creditor the proper kind of money, because should he offer him some
other kind, national bank notes for example instead of United States
notes, or those issued by the federal reserve bank, and he declined to
take them and should afterwards sue his debtor for the amount, the
latter's offer to pay in national bank notes would be regarded as no
payment, or even offer of payment.

A note or check given for a bill of goods is not payment. In everyday
affairs a check is thus given and received, in fact it is only a
payment conditioned on payment of the check. Consequently if it is not
paid, the creditor can sue to recover on the check, or for the
original goods as he might elect. In most cases he would ignore the
check and sue for the original bill. Suppose some one had endorsed the
maker's check, then the creditor would probably sue on that in order
to hold both parties.

Does a debtor who turns over a note to his creditor in payment,
thereby cancel the debt? If he does not, of course the creditor can
still sue the debtor; but if he turned the note over in actual
payment, then his right to sue his debtor is gone. What was the
intention of the two parties? This is a question of fact to be
ascertained like any other.

How shall the money be applied of one who owes several debts to the
same person and makes a general payment? The debtor can make the
application, if he does not, the creditor can do so; if neither does
this, then the law applies it, first to the payment of interest that
may be due on any of the debts, and the balance left, should there be
any, to the payment of the principal. Of several debts the law applies
it to the oldest debt. Again, if there is a surety for any of the
debts, he may insist on the application of the money in order to be
relieved.

If a depositor in a bank has made a note payable there this is
regarded very much like a check, it is a direction to the bank to pay
it, especially by the Negotiable Instruments law. Unless the maker of
a note is insolvent, a bank can never pay the unmatured note of a
depositor. Nor can a bank apply a deposit, which is known to be trust
money,