After leaving school at the age of 14, Mason got a job with the district bank while he attended night school in his spare time.

Each of the Fed's 12 district banks is responsible for setting up its own home page, and there is no standard format.

So we weren't exactly getting all the right information from the district banks.

Those expectations suffered when the Fed reported that a survey of its 12 district banks showed the economy was "stable to modestly expanding."

It is an administrative role very different from that of the other district banks.

The Fed's district banks get their information by questioning business people in their areas.

The $100 million outstanding is held by 12 district banks.

The district bank hired consultants who reviewed its procedures and wrote new guidelines for its examiners.

And yesterday, the Fed disclosed that all 12 district banks had requested an increase in the discount rate.

At least three other district banks are close to failure, economists say.