Article Text
Nebraska State News Furnished by the Nebraska Press Association Counsel for the state banking department announced that enactment of a constitional amendment permitting the banking department to sue stockholders on their double liability as soon as the bank closes has resulted in doubling the assets made available to depositors. Forty or more cases are pending and within the next month 25 or 30 more will be filed. The suits are being brought against Nebraska bank stockholders in several states. So many of the stockholders reside in California that special counsel has been employed there and has regained thousands of dollars for depositors. One recent settlement of $19,000 was made. The district court at Friend allowed the $720 claim of attorneys for Clarence G. Bliss, former secretary of the state department of trade and commerce, in connection with the handling of receiverships of ten Nebraska banks. The judge held that it was not within the power of the the heat. governor to discharge a receiver but that it was the duty of the court. Chief Counsel Radke of the state banking department has filed notice of appeal. The district court at Alliance has awarded fees and expenses ron state normal school. of $337 to attorneys representing Clarence G. Bliss in his action against present state officers in the receivership of ten banks. Judge Tewell of Sidney allowed fees of $55 each for eight failed banks to attorneys for State Receiver Bliss in recent actions. A. E. Torgeson, receiver for a Bridgeport, bank which failed and was taken over by the guarantee fund commission in 1925, has filed suit in district court against the state department of trade and commerce for $29,775. It is alleged that assessments for the guarantee fund amounting to $7,355 were collected irregularly from May 1925 to July 1927. It is further alleged that it was was held. illegal to take $22,000 from the sale of the bank building to pay the bankers conservative fund. It is claimed that if the bank was insolvent and operated by the commission. it could not legally be made to in the press. pay such assessments and that the money involved was put into the depositors' settlement fund when the legislature passed the law in 1930. The secretary of the state game commission has made an appeal to sportsmen and farmers asking them to spread food for pheasants and other birds. The unusual amount of snow and ice makes it impossible for them to get through to food. The commission itself spends much money for grain and other food but is unable to cover the entire state where the need is great at this time. A Central City man and another man at Mitchell have recently been fined for shooting pheasants out of season. A meeting of the Nebraska chapter of U. S. No. 6 Roosevelt Highway association was held in Lincoln last 5, 1932. week. M. T. Caster of Lincoln was elected president and other officers were named. This transcontinental route begins at Provincetown, Mass., and terminates at Denver. The new U. S. No. 6 absorbes the present U. S. No. 38 in Nebraska and runs from Omaha through Lincoln, Hastings, Holdrege, McCook and Imperial. The purpose of the organization is to promote popularity or tourist travel over the road. The University of Nebraska student loan committee will help as many worthy seniors to complete their work as possible. At present the red may be sold. fund amounts to $6,400 and part of this will have to be retained for future use. Student loans must be re- paid within two years after graduation. Thirty-one loans have been made this year. State Auditor Marsh's annual report showed an expenditure of $28,205,678 for the support of the state government and its activities not including bank receiverships during 1931. Warrants issued in 1929 totalled $22,266,899. The total in 1930 was $26,007,507. A total of 115,216 warrants were issued during 1931. The largest number of warrants ever issued in one month went out from the auditor's office during December when 14,338 warrants were issued representing a total of $2,087,589 in expenditures. The capitol commission in session last week formally awarded contracts for furniture and rugs for state offices. Contracts for tapestries and draperies were not awarded. Bronze hoods are being put on corridor walls over the registers to protect the newly painted walls from blackening dust carried upward by The state normal board met last week at which time a Grand Island architect was employed for the planning and construction of a dormitory costing $100,000 to be built at ChadTwo hundred members of the farmers union state exchange in annual convention in Omaha last week passed a resolution asking Governor Bryan to revoke his order, effective February 15th, against the sale of colored gasoline other than Ethyl red. The resolutions charged that the order would result in a monopoly for the Ethyl corporation. Native sons and daughters of Nebraska convened n Lincoln last week. Gertrude Heikes of Dakota City, Nebraska, who recently was selected as the national health champion, was a guest at the banquet. The following day a meeting of the Nebraska State Historical Society Former Governor Weaver, while in Lincoln last week. stated that he would not be a candid te for governor as had been suggested recently Payments to depositors in the failed State Bank of Champion and the State Bank of Litchfield amounting to $7,850 were recently made. The state tax commissioner has received a protest from several Lincoln men against the action of the state board of taxation in not taxing United States securities owned by banks, trust companies and other corporations. A similar protest was filed with the board last July by the same parties, It is allaged that this class of property is not exempt under the constitution, laws of the state or by court decisions and that such property owned in Nebraska amounts to two billion dollars. The protest was accompanied by a copy of resolutions adopted by the Nebraska Federation of County Taxpayers Leagues at Norfolk, January Two state inspectors for the department of agriculture brought charges against a Holdrege oil company for coloring ordinary gasoline red and selling it at a premium. In addition it was charged that the gasoline did not come up to the requirements for straight run fuel. Inspectors are equipped with protable disstilling outfits so that the gas may be tested immediately after the sample is taken. These inspectors will enforce the new ruling effective February 15 that only straight run clear gasoline and Ethyl A report filed with the state tax commissioner shows that the Burlington railroad paid $1,821 taxes in Nebraska for 1931. The railroad has 2,860 miles of track in the state and paid an average tax of $632 per mile. The Nebraska Farmers Union in convention at Omaha last week decided to ask the governor to call a special session of the legislature to take steps for immediate and adequate drouth relief. Recent heavy snows piled up on the nine-acre roof area of the state capitol caused some concern in capitoI commission circles. Engineers checked up to see if the roof was capable of carrying the load. It was found that the snow, though deep, did not even approach the maximum