Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1883-08-24

IhNIIIlI nl|Il IN' AItHaI
The failure OF the st. Adams Trust com
pauy and the fact that the state inspector Of
finance did not or could not do anything to
save the unfortunate depostors Of the iusti-
tuition calls 10 mind a passage in Governor
BarstOw's annual message which is well worth
careful perusal at this time In that part Of
his message which referred to savings banks
and trust companies, Governor Barstow used
these words-the italics arc ours
Cd" I trust that his the state inspector
OF finance recommendations will receive
your serious notice Coming from IA bank
officer they nre likely 10 be within rather
than in excess Of the necessities of the case
Ills cautious Int decjded jr1yds IN regayd IL
certain hanks Mat he dOes net name, IL MT
htsdtd Hdy ledd tD disdster AMI distress
especially recommend to your notice his re-
mark a. to Trust companies and in regard to
large loans to and deposits from a single per
son. II is your duty to see that all
the safeguards that prudence aud expert
ence can suggest are thrown around the
vital interests Of these persons (depositurs in
savings banks and trust companies e
But laws will be Of no avail unless they are
enforced. The inspector Of finance should
be given ample power, and it should be made
his duty, to ehf0rcl the observance Of the law.
mere report from year to year that certain
banks do not entirely comply with the law
will never remedy the evil B."
III his report to the legislature of 1850 the
state inspector Of finance Mr. Dubois called
the attention of that body to the desirabilty
Of enacting a law restricting the amount
which "a savings bank or trust company should
loan to any one person or firm and giving the
inspector power to enforce it. No such law
was passed, and Mr.. Dubois renewed his rec
ommeudatlon IN 1881 and in 1882 In the
latter la gar1 .
"Some limitation, based upon the amount of
deposits held should be made by the legisla-
ture above which neither savings bank nor
trust company should be allowed TO loan to
any one person or firm, and full authority
should be given the inspector to enforce com
pliauce with such law"
Surely these are pregnant warnings and ex-
plicit and earnest recommendations but so
far from The one being needed and the other
adopted 10y the legislature not the slightest
effort was made in either House or senate to
remedy the defect in the law 80 plainly point.
cd cut. To the Legislature, therefore be-
longs part Of the responsibility for the wreck
Of the st. Albans Trust company and the dis
trcss and trouble it has brought into hun
dreds Of homes. The inspector now has at
least some excuse for his failure to prevent
the wreck had the law asked for by his
predecessor and Governor Barstow been
passed he would have had none. Shame on
the state Of Vermont, that through the inca
pacity and shortsighteduess Of its lawmakers,
refused to give its people any substantial
safeguards against swindliug bank officers
We confess that We are unable to look at this
matter as calmly As do some Of our state ex-
changes. Our sympathits are with tue de.
posilors Of the broken trust company-the
widows, the old people, the hard working
laboring men, who had entrusted their little
all to It's care They are the people for whom
W feel, and We can not see them robbed and
swindIed with any sort Of equanimity. And
morally, if not legally the whole thing is d
robbery and a swindle
But let us in the name Of honesty and
common sense, learn something from expert
ence. Let the uext legislature pass such a
law as will give the state some efiic ieut super
vision over the affairs of trust companies and
power to do something to avert such shame
a. this st. Adams failure Or II the legisla-
ture will not do this let it abolish the sham
of pretended supervision and give the people
fair notice that they are at the mercy of
swindling bank managers. List the people
be either guarded or warmed.