The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1883-08-29
The st. Adams Trust Company and
It's Victims.
ST.. ALBANs. August q. 1889.

ST. ALBASs, August q, 1883.
Mr.. Editor In January 1876, there ap-
peared in an issue Of the st. Adams Messenger
glowing inducement to the public TO become
depositors in the trust company. Among other
alluring statements were the following; That
the business would be transacted the same as
formerly, with the same skill and integrity
that inspires confidence in depostors in all
similar institutions 1t has cash
capital of 100000 paid in, and has a right
by its charter to increase the same to $780,
900, should the increase of deposits demand it.
The capital alone Is always TO be assessed In
case of losses, and to be kept fully paid in, as
security to the depositors against Losses II any
should occur and its directors and officers are
not permitted by the charter to borrow any of
the deposits or trust funds in its possession,
and are liable to punishment in the state prison
tor ilve years. and to fine of one thousand
| dollars, IL they misapply or divert the moneys
or tund OF the trust property in their care"
| mat the trust company being an in
| corporated institution, etc. men die,
| but institutions live" "This institu-
ton affords to those who are DESTROYS OF saving
| their money, the means of employing it TO ad-
vantage, without running the risk of losing 1t
| as many do by loaniDg 1t to persons who take ad-
vantage of their inexperience to defraud them,
1t affords widows and orphans the greatest Sc
curity, etc, E. =. perfectly safe place,
etc, and free from all fear OF fire and
robbers All who avail themselves of the ad-
l
rely with implicit confidence upon the faithful
| execution OF all its engagements. (sgned)
Lawrence Branerd, President. Such was the
| public announcement and those who were
| awakened to sense of the wisdom of saving
| for rainy day" doubtless we're induced to
commence in that direction. And when they
| got bank book they saw the first half dozen
| pages covered with similar advice and admoni-
| ton about the advantages of saving These
recommendations were no doubt intended for
| the whom the O1ippra Of the
| pany had in mind Judas at one time had the
| poor in mind, and St John tells u.s. This he
| said not that he cared for the poor, but because
he was thief, and had the bag and bare what
was put therein" In the light of the recent
| failure Of the trust company brought about by
the fragrant violations Of the provisions of its
charter, these aphorisms in the depositors
| books are mockery.
Let us see how faithfully the officers of the
trust company have performed the duties of
their stewardship; how mindful they have
| been OF the interests of the widows and orphans!
The charter says there shall be seven dire ctors
who shall be stockholders to the amount Of
| 81, 900 each. Some of the directors have not
dollars worth Of stock. The duty of the d.
rectors is defined in the charter, to manage
the business of said corporation" Some of
these directors endeavor to screen themselves
from censure by pleading ignorance Of what
was going on. Such an excuse Is an aggrava-
ton rather than an extenuation. 1t was their
business to know what was transpiring, and
what loans were being made. How the funds
have been invested appears by the reports
made to the inspector OF finance. The largest
item is represented by loans on personal Sc
curity on about $3.50, 900, which includes large
sums loaned to drectors-a fragrant violation
Of the charter. The assets include quantity
of shares in the ST. Adams rolling mill, a now
insovent institution in which A. q. Brainerd
Ia director of the trust company and Herbert
Brainerd IAN ex-director) have great interest.
Then there are number OF shares in the St.
Albaus gas light company of which Mr.. E. A.
Smith, director in the trust company, is an
officer. manufacturing concern situated at
Pattsburgh, in which Mr.. Lawrence Branerd
has doubtless an interest, seems to have had a
loan and put up their stock as collateral. How
much these various securities are actually
: worth. does not appear. The blank reports
. furnished by the inspector of finance to the
trust company, have their parallel columns
! headed " Par value Market and estimated
value" and Value on the books This last
column is the only one that the officers OF the
: st. Adams trust company seemed inclined to
fill out 1t seems likely with regard to some
of these resources that their only worth
3 will be "Vaue on the books" The talk about
Z" state prison is no guarantee against mis-
management; the act of 1878 took away the
r penalty prescribed in the charter. AS the law
reads now, any officer of any similar institu-
tion may missappy or divert, rs large sub
: as he can say d Few hundred shou5snd dor
lars-and if he should be brought to trial under
| tu6 dCL VI 1910 anu COuNlClcu, Idy tsCdpe pun
/ ishment by paying fine of, at most, 81, 900,
which is the extreme penalty provided by the
L law for violation OF the provisions OF thai
: act. II the legislature of 1878 had not rushed
!, the act through with the inordnate haste thai
i | characterized its passage, it might have beer
a so framed as to have the effect of restraining
those who are inclined to so hagrantly anc
wickedly violate its provisions. AS it stands
now it is indeed a perch for birds Of
Il prey and not their terror.
Ihn ala of In hn will h,xN ~
. wrong doing of the officers of the trust com.
pany, are those who can least afford it. Some
@ of these cases are piteous, indeed poor ole
woman was in the office of the bank last week
D and saw Mr.. Hendee; she told him she haC
g | saved 500. Said She " pick berry in de fielC
and some day I'll be took sick, praps, you
b know, and III want money; dots why III saw,
= it, you know, and the poor woman cried in al
uncomfortable manner. What thrift and self
IT denial, what frugality was represented by tina
4 $500, the savings of a woman who in the season
picked berries which sold from six to ten cents
'' quart. The wife of poor cripple had saved $50
f by her own earnings; 1t represented all she had
her son, a lad of about thirteen had saved S2S
o and on the day the circus was at st. Adams
v had foregone its attractions and put his money
. in the bank. widow who had been in bust
u ness at st. Adams some years recently sole
Is out; all her money and savings were in thu
trust company. Another widow with severa
> children mad deposited the money received
Is from the company in which her deceased hus
band had held policy. little boy met Mr.
II Lawrence Brainerd near the bank and holdn
q up both hands said, " | want my five dollars.
There are scores of such depostors in the in
solvent institution, and if their deposits canno
. be paid to the uttermost farthing," the proper
ty Of each and every director should be mad'
W to respond to the amount that is lacking to pa,
them in full. There is a provision in the chap
- ter OF the Revised Laws on banking associa
g tions making the directors liable to tue deposi
tors in case of loss. A clause in the following
., chapter on savings banks and trust companies
- brings such institutions when insolyent, unde
the provisions of the banking act. There sure
10 ly should be some way of providing for pay
1t ment in full TO the poor helpless class of depos
tors whose all has been applied TO loans +
D. directors, or to the developing of the lumbe
N business in northern New York
COrinth.-The Congregational church is in
10 yited " the ordination OF Rev. Evan Thoma
E. | at Vershire the 29th inst