Article Text
Auditor's Report Stirs Echoes Of Bank Run Here 11 Years Ago United States Trust Company Had $6,000,000 in Deposits-Gotl Hearty Support in Crisis From Leading Bankers. BY 1. A. FLEMING. Bank of Chicago, for an address before the A. B. A., on Wednesday of The passing of the United States last week. Mr. Reynolds concluded Trust Co., one-time mighty financial inhis address as follows: stitution of Washington, was recalled "There is a growing tendency to give last week through the report of Herbert attention to larger production and larger L. Davis. court auditor. of the receivernational income. It should be a source ship of Tucker K. Sands, one-time promof gratification to us that the national inent banker of this city, and also of the income of the United States is the largsecond receiver, William K. Quinter, in est in the world's history. and the per handling the liquidation of the assets capital income is higher than in any of the company for the benefit of the shareholders. other country. But, looking forward. we need not be. so much interested in The statement was also made in conthis or so much concerned over it as nection with the filing of the report that over larger production and larger nathe trust company named had "failed in 1913. tional income through better management. better use of capital, more efficient As a matter of fact the United States labor, the elimination of waste. There Trust Co. never failed. A run started will be income enough if we will look on the main offices of the company on after the other things. There will be Tuesday afternoon, November 18. 1913; bank profits enough if we are good spread slowly during Wednesday and managers. became a wild and furious scramble at "And so we are brought again to the the main office and the five branches on banker's obligation-the one that he Friday afternoon. the 21st of the month. cannot shirk or dodge-the one of Then at the Shoreham Hotel that gathering and distributing capital. He night, some time between 9 o'clock and muet do it in a way that brings profit midnight, arrangements were completed to him, of course, but, more important, whereby the Munsey Trust Co. took over it must aid in increasing the national sufficient assets to guaranty the payincome: it must work for more effective ment of the $6,000,000 odd deposits and production it must be so done that it the different premises under lease as will bring greater wealth. main and branch offices. leaving the "If this be a worthy ambition and shareholders of the $1,250,000 institua worthy cause, if bringing to the tion to go by the board or to be served people the things they desire IS as they might in liquidation. At that time the United States worth while. there is no place in our Trust Co. operated the main office scheme for socialistic experiment or where the Merchants' Bank and Trust communistic blah. For myself. wish to live where economic forces Co. is now housed; the Dupont branch, operate. where private property is now operated by the latter company; protected, where enterprise is free also the present quarters of the Franklin National Bank, the bankand competition is under no restraint save that of justice. I could not come ing room formerly occupied by the Merchants and Mechanics' Bank at before you on a platform of social distress, unrest and dissatisfaction. I Seventh and G streets northwest, the northeast corner of Fourteenth and wish to build confidence, not impair U streets northwest and the northor destroy it. I would rather be an east corner of Twentieth and Pennappraiser of the things that make for sylvania avenue northwest. prosperity-of the things that make for good. for comfort. for intellectual A Big Institution. and moral progress, not for a day or It was a big institution, with one a week or a year, but for all time." of the finest locations and banking offices for the head office. from which Absorbed by Illinois-Merchants. negotiations had been carried on for The old Corn Exchange Bank of the purchase of the Merchants and Chicago, once presided over by "Old Mechanics' Savings Bank, with three Hutch," and dating back about to branches, and the Fourteenth Street Civil War days, has been absorbed Savings at Fourteenth and U streets by the Illinois Merchants Bank. It northwest, paying United States also did some absorbing itself in late Trust shares at $150, plus $20 a share years. for the Merchants and Mechanics'
