St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1884-09-21
BETRAYED TRUSTS.

The numerous bank failures of the present
year caused by the misappropriation of bank
funds, by officials and confidential employees,
is producing startling effect, and weaken
ing the confidence of capitalists, and causing
great timidity and caution in the invest
ments of their funds. While the great mass
OF the banks in country and city are safe
and sound, and conducted by men of iron
clad integrity, the large number of bank
failures, the number of robberies of banks,
oy trusted and confidential officers, cause q
general distrust and loss of confidence.
Presidents and cashiers of banks, as we'll as
trusted under officers, bookkeepers, tellers,
and the like, have yielded to temptation, and
have Incorporated, or to speak more
plainly have stolen money OF which they have
been made the custodians. And these rob-
berries are perpetrated by men who have
acquired the character of men of the highest
prObity, and often are shining lights in the
church. And when exposure comes, as it is
sure to come, sooner or later. despair seizes
upon the unfaithful stewards, they escape
by suicidal hands dreaded earthly doom
only to forfeit the favor Of heaven. These
bank robberies by trusted officials, is owing
to the prevalent vicious greed of the times
to become suddenly rich.
The dishonest bank official, as a rule, does
not mean in the outset to be dishonest, to
acquire the chara cter of robber, but vainly,
weakly and foolishly fiatters himself he
can safely and privately "borrow'' money
not his own for temporary use and, after a
fortunate venture return it. But rarely if
ever, that fortunate venture occurs, disaster
overtakes the schemer, and deeper and deep
er he goes into the vortex, led on by falla
cious hopes, like the desperate gamester, till
ruin oVertakes him and others, who are
wronged by bet rayal Of trust. Gambling
in stocks and cereals is one of the most per-
nicious features of the present time and
lures thousands to destruction, and irrepar-
able ruin, to loss of self-respect and the
respect and confidence of others, and to es-
cape the opening doors of prisons the fren-
zied operator" rushes to a suicides doom.
How lamentable the weakness of poor hu-
man nature, that yields to temptations so
seductive and ruinous. No sufficient safe
guard has yet been found to protect the
funds of banks, or to hedge the way effec-
tually too easily tempted bank officials.
No system Of bank inspection by examin-
ers has yet been found adequate; and
bank directors are too often negligent and
censurably trusting to others duties that
they ought to perform themselves. They
trust implicitly to their bank President
or cashier land too often awaken to the fact
that the populations of one or both have
ruined their bank and robbed its deposoitors.
A bank depositor in a shaky bank In Erie,
Pa, recently went TO the bank and demand
ed his deposit in two minutes, holding a
cooked revolver in his hand. He got his
money. But this mode of securing a return
Of deposits cannot go into general practice,
and it is quite time, if human ingenuity is
adequate to the task, to devise some plan to
make bank robberies, by their trusted Off
GERS, at least less frequent, if not put an end
to, entirely.