The daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1848-1851, 1849-03-01

the very singular admissions confessions which
it contained relative to the violation of its charter
and stated it as our impression, for had not read
the act for some years. that the law of 1912 made it
the duty of the Attorney General, under such cir
cumstances, 10 proceed against the Bank for for
fixture of its charter. We perceive that several
papers have been misled by what was, with u.s.
mistaken impression, and have assumed 1t as the
settled law of the land that it is the duty OF the
Board of Currency and of the Attorney General
forthwith to bring a suit for forfeiture. Among
others. the Delta of yesterday morning, anu the
Courier of last evening, the former In an Indlrect
manner. and the latter in very strong and direct
terms charge upon the State officers that they have
been direlict in duty in not subjectng the State
Bank to the penalties Of the law'-and it is even
attempted to give to the question political party
aspect
That the State Bank, by dividing its capital
among its stockholders in the shape of dividends
has violated the spirit if not the very letter of its
charter there can be little doubt the minds of
the Executive officers of the State there was on
those of the present Board of Directors. But is it
one of those violations which make it the duty of
the Board of Currency and the Attorney General
to commence legal proceedings The act OF 1872,
"reviving the charters of the Banks" does SO on
condition of their observing certain rules, which it
declares to be fundamental; it appoints Board of
Currency, to supervise the faithful execution of
the act, and of che charters and bylaws of all
banks working under it," and gives to it, for this
purpose, certain specified powers; it makes 1t the
duty of the Board of Currency to make an annual
report of its doings the Legislature and it pro-
vdes that in certain cases it shall be the duty OF
the Board and of the Attorney General to proceed
against the Banks for forfeiture of their charters
Neither the charter of the Stale Bank nor the act
of 1912, revving it, expressly declares that the
offence committed and publicly confessed by the
Directors shall be cause of forfeiture, does the
law direct prosecution for forfeiture for every vio
lation of the charter, but it says
SEC. 9 (act 1922 ''That it shall be the duty of
leach and every bank to accept this act within
:" twenty-five days after its PRONUNCIATION, and
within three days thereafter to give written no.
GO tice of said acceptance to the Governor OF the
State and If any bank neglect or refuse to make
such acceptance, TO notify the Governor thereof,
,pithin the above delays It shall be considered as
having forfeited its charter; and it shall be the
duty Of the Attorney General Immediately to sue
said bank for forfeiture of Its charter, for any
acts or omissions violations of its charter prior
&c to the institution of said suit
The section then continues to provide for the re-
moval of the Attorney General in case he fail to
perform this duty which part of the section was
repealed by the act amending this act, during the
same session of the Legislature.
SEC. TO- ':That it shall be the duty of the Board
" of Currency, often they shall ascertain that
4" any of said revived banks shall fail or refuse to
Sc comply NTH The conditions Of tis act, to notify
&c said bank enter at once into liquidation, on the
" conditions provided for in this act, and on such
" bank refusing or neglectng to do so within twenty
" days after such notification, it shall be the duty
sc of the Board of Currency, under the penalty Of
:. one thousand dollars each member, TO apprse the
&c Attorney General of this neglect or refusal And
" it shall be the duty of the Attorney General imme
ter and should the Attorney General neglect, &c.
The remaining part of the section is repealed.
Now, the first thing that strikes the mind is that
the Legislature has specified in what particular
cases the Board of Currency and Attorney General
should prosecute, and according to the well known
rule of construction, this specification precluded
them from acting in other cases not specified The
Legislature itself so understood its mandate as is
shown by the necessity under which it conceived
itself of giving express instructions to the Attorney
General to claim forfeitures of charters in other
geographically in the case of the Commercial
Bank, which has lately been tried. The whole
legislation of the State forbids the supposition that
the Attorney General has the power or authority to
claim forfeiture for every violation of charter,
without previous defnitive instructions. In the
present instance, the State Bank does not come
within the terms Of the ninth section of the act of
1872 does it fall under the penalties prescribed by
the tenth! "The conditions of this act,'' a refusal
to comply with which subject it to suit say nothing
whatever of the declaring distributing of divi-
dends. 1t might, perhaps, be construed in such
manner as to make it one of the conditions" that
the bank shall in every respect conform to its char
ter, but we do not think that tie courts would give
it that construction-they always touch these sub
jecs with great caution, and give the advantage of
the doubt to the defendant and here there is great
doubt a
That the Legislature itself could claim the for
fixture of the charter of the State Bank for the acts
exposed by the Directors themselves, is most evil
dent, and there is great question that the claim
general or special law, directed the Attorney Gene
raj to set up such claim in its behalf Under these
would it be wise or prudent for the
Board of Currency to notify the Bank according to
the terms of the tenth section of the act of 1912,
anu IOI Tie AltoTey UcIlefdl u Institute proceed
ings on the Banks refusing to go into liquidation
The power to Do this, is doubtful.
The issue of the process, is equally doubtful under
the law as it stands
If the suit be instituted and fail, it would be
injurious to the present stockholders by Immediately
the value of their stock and enabling
those to purchase it at the lowest prices who are
anxious to get the entire Bank under their control
it would prove injurious to the customers of the
Bank by deranging all their business transactions,
is the intimate connection Of every one
with every one else in commercial city-would
nfct serious blow upon all classes of our people
and it would not benefit any one but the lawyers
engaged to defend the suit and the spectators who
would, by buying the stocks, gamble on the result
No good and much harm must follow from the
attempt; but no great harm can arise
to any party by waiting the meeting of the Legis-
ature and referring the question the sovereign