The Leavenworth weekly times., 1877-11-08
Letter From ..ou. G. W. Bancock.

II 40 : .ar
,a;a. a.. NJ p,b,oal. -.
ing by the bank failure. If Yea knew ii
was unsafe, why did YOU not tell US poor
feilowsy and added: Il put nv money IN
there because 1 knew yoC md your business
there.
1his same question was asked me some
years ago when Mr.. Lykins made a sad fall !
ure here. In the Lykins case. l think some
OF the losers really ieit aggrieved because
did not give them warning. L had at one
time been partner oil Mr. Lyklns, though
had had no business relations with him
Tor more than seven years previous to
ms failure But the facts are, dId know,
or thougaf 4 kne'r, IN both these cases,
ihat they were unsoand Tor more
than a year before the Crisis came. Now
the question Is, did do right IN keeping.
Tins TO myself, and continuing TO Keep
s"aaa amount with them, aud deceivInS my
neighpors VINO mad no means oi knowingl
py giving my checSs out All over town
the reasohanie inference oil "hich was, that
my money tii mad any was IN that bank
MY honest convictions are that ! anu very
wrong: In justice to my nelghbors,
should nave Wlthdrawn my account and
warned theh oi my suspicious iiad ana
others (who knew as naeh or more than l
did oil the re'ii condition oil these cankSl
done this, nave no uouot IL Would nave
saved many a poor ianiiiy months and years
oil hard iapor, sorrow ana s.ifering- his
mas Oeen my experience IN these Two eases,
and l have no DOUBT there are many oil our
business men VINO nave naa similar expert
ence- 1 am aware that IL Is a general Gus
tom IN almost All communities, where
man mas suspicious Oh the management Il, or
onvl arynment in favor Of ,ilsnoe il that m,
bank NAV null THROUGH If no run is made up-
on il Now. let usexamine this argument
for few minutes: First. let us see what
our own experience has been. We have
had two faiIures-the Lykins Rank in
and the Savings at this time. Nv under
standing now il that there was never one
cent maid the general depositors in the Iv-
kins Bank. There were no cash assets. and
what good paper and real estate there WAS
left was pledged for TEMPORARY loans 10
OuN tsrough onl. and it took it all to paw up.
Now. is there anv one who believes that
this wouId have been the case had Ivkins
been conpelled TO close a wear before he
did, I think not Now in repar,, I, the
Savings Bank | have been su picious Of
il for mo,e than wear: and one of our
hest business men told me that h. had been
afraid of il for neariy three wears. And I
understand that Col. Rankin now saws
that . the only thing he bIames
himself for is that he did not close the in
stitution at an earlier date. Let us see
what the result would have been had he
il for granted / am safe in savin, that du-
ring the thirty davs previous to the failure.
Col. Ranking raised onlv S30, 900 (by sacri-
ticin. the securities of the bank, AMI paid
il out irving to puH through. Now suppose
he had that amount OF money in the wants
TODAY. That would give these poor people
at least 80 per cent. on their losses: and
what a relief this would b. Ia the MANY
who have lost ALL Hence. | ,av our ex-
perience is againt the policy Of silence
and in favor of warning our ncighbers nf
dancer the same A. Won would if Won knew
a great flood Was coming down the stream
upon which Won lived. or that a great prai
rie fire was aDproacbine vour neirtborhooI
What would we saw Of a man who happen-
ed 10 know that such caIamities were ap-
proachinp and should keen il Tn himself
Yea more when snoken tn ,inon the sub;ect
should he deny any knoweIedce Of il. and
in the mean time take care of his own prop
erty and leave his neiyhbor's property To be
DESTROYED. Ii would not be decent hu-
manitv. and | see little or no distinction in
these eases. But YOU saw IL am not nv
nejghbor's keeper'-let him take care OF
himself. There is no law compelling Won
4, inform your neiobber that ynu see his
house ON fire. Common humanity. howeve-
err generally prompts Won To do so.
Now' what information nave we from
abroad upon tiiis SUBJECT! Wi'h'n the iaS'
tnree months three iarge savings banhs III
'hicaSo nave iaiied- III each case they at
rifc.d all their available assets and left
nothing for their depositors. From NV own
experience, and from all the information |
have this is the result in attemptinp to save
themselves and their dep,sitors. in nine
cases ont of ten. Who ever knew or heard
of bank officer in lime of trouble. but be-
lieyed he could get through and If let
| alonel would ruin not only all hi. wit.
relation. but take his own family. ipcIud.
ing his father and mother. down with him
Hence | conclude il will never do to take
the word of a bank officer ON OCCASION. Of
this kind. Notbino b,s n oaretd en,si,n,ios
i