Omaha daily bee., 1884-05-29
COUNCIL BLUFFS.
ADDITIONAL LOCAL NEWS.
THE BROKEN BANK.
The Cause Leading 10 The Failure al
DGnEOn,
A Kick About Preferred Creditors.

The failure OF the Craw ford county
bank, at ,Denison, has already been an.
nounced by The Bee, but a good many
fresh details are learned from the Bulletin.
1t appears by Mr.. Hetlelfngcr's state.
ment that the liabilities are SOS, 292. 80,
and the assets are $50, S54 II, Of which
$4,000 is in real estate and personal
property, S3,623.73 cash, 500, 293.7 10 in
bills receivable, Sl1,375 in government
bonds, and 81, 56l. So in accounts receiy.
able. 1t is thought that the depositors
vii ~lrealize 20 cents on the dollar.
CAUSES OF II FAILURE.
Mr.. Hetfeltinger, president of the bank,
comedies that he was doing business on
insufficient capital, but that the institu.
ton was in a better condition than at
various times heretofore, and might have
continued but for the circulation of
malicious rumvrs affecting its standing.
Not long since Mr. II. reported his stand
ing to an agent of Bradstreet's CONNER.
cial Agency, giving as assets real estate
and other property not regarded as bank
ing capital by the agency. His bank was
thereupon reported in bad condition.
This led to local inquiries as to his inan-
cial condition, and to an attempt on his
part to transfer his interests to men of
means in Denison, to the end that conf
dence might be restored and the business
continued without interruption
He learned however, that numerous
la,Nna,tnr. hol hn., nnncntl,, ,,,@;Enl a.
to the banks condition and a ''run' in
vited for Saturday hat would have ex.
hausted all available funds and invited
suspension, with affairs in a much worse
condition. Therefore he refused to open
the bank Saturday. He had not enough
cash to withstand the whirlwind that fol.
lows a lossof confidence il a bank. He
denies investing bank funds in any prop.
erty save n little real estate which has
doubled in value and now figures as
assets. He expresses his determination
to pay a hundred cents on the dollar and
believes he can do 80, but will require a
little time.
Il FAILURE AS VIEWED BY OTHERS.
That Mr.. Heffelfnger was doing bust
ness on too small capital is evident. 1t
appears that his ready funds were largely
exhausted in building and furnishing the
bank, and he used deposits to purchase
Mr.. Wallis H%two-thirds interest, to -pur-
chase and improve real estate and per-
haps incidentally for family uses, which
together with bad paper, long time notes
and over drafts threw him many thous-
and dollars behind in ready assets and
wholly unprepared him to meet the de-
mands of a run"
1t is apparent that while Mr.. Heffel-
finger may not have anticipated being en-
quilted by a tidal wave, he was doing bus
mess more on confidence than on capital
and was not only resting on a financial
volcano himself, but wus constantly
leading innocent depositors to the mouth
of the crater. He should have known
the condition of his business, and know
ing it he should have fortified his depos-
itors against loss, regardless of the ex-
pense to himself.
RFERE CREDITORS.
Mr.. FL. is not so severely censured for
failing as for preferring his creditors,
several depositors having secured their
money in full after the bank had practic.
ally failed. Noneca be blamed for secur-
ing their deposits if possible, it was Mr.,
H~effel6nger's duty to see that all de-
positors suffered ''pot-luck" together.
Respecting the Midnight examination of
books, we learn the following from Mr..
L. M. Shaw, which is corroborated by
his brother, d. W.. Shaw, and Mr.. FL.
g. Lamb and Mr.. J.. B. Romans-all of
whom were in the bank that night. These
parties, with j. A. Miller, intend to as
s~ociate themselves with the bank and by
jointly putting in $40, 900 r%e-establish its
standing. With this in view the books
were examined and the liabilities found
too large to warrant the investment of
securities in the face of a prospective
run.
The bank owed the Shaw brothers
$4,000, while Romans had oveIdrawn his
accounts a little morethan that. Against
the protest of H~effelfpger, who said his
creditors must share alike, the Shaws
drew their drafts on the Romans and the
latter paid in the balance ofthe overdraft,
thus all three etiecting a settlement with
the bank. This IL, in brief, the state
ment of the partners who kept vigil over
the bank ledgers during thesolitary hours
of night.
Something for Nothing.