The Superior times. [volume] (Superior, Wis.) 1870-1912, 1885-06-20
WHERE BANKS ARE WEAK.
Bank President Shows that il is Easy for
Amy Receiving Teller to Steal If He
Chooses.

A Bank President Shows that it is Easy for
Any Receiving Teller to Steal If He
Chooses.
From the New York Commercial Advertiser.
Apropos of the defalcation of j. A.
Van Gelder, late receiving teller of the
Union National Bank, O. ID. Bald
win, president of the Fourth National
Bank, said this morning; "Any man
who can devise method to prevent
banks from being swindled by their
employees can get 100000 for his de
vice. The means used to commit sys-
tematic robberies by those who are in
| the confidence of the bank are as va
riOus as the individual instances. Ev-
cry time the thing is done a new way
| is discovered, or some variation ofan
old one. | don't know exactly the
plan pursued by the teller who gath
cred an illegitimate income from the
Union National Bank, but it is easy
for any receiving teller 20 accomplish
a theft if he has the desire. He takes
in the money, and if he chooses toput
1t into his pocket he can't be pre-
vented"
"Then how is the bank secured
against loss ?"
way of careful bookkeeping, and
selecting men in whom to place conf
dence. About as good system as |
know of to protect the bank from sys-
tematic fraud is to change book-keep-
ers occasionally.
1.-The system OF receiving and credit
ing money at the bank is this: The
money, accompanied by a ticket OF
deposit, is taken in by the receiving
teller. Hepasses the ticket to the paying
teller that the latter may know to
what extent the depositors may draw
on the bank. The ticket then goes to
the bOOk-keepers. Two separate sys-
TENS OF books are kept; a balance
ledger for the use of the teller, and an
individual account ledger. If these
books balance with the account kept
by the depositor himself there can be
no mistake or defalcatiOn. But if,
when the depositor gives his money to
the receiving teller, the latter destroys
the ticket and pockets themoney there
Is nothing on the books of the bank to
show what he has done.
"About as good a system as | know
Of to save the bank from being system
atically swindled is a plan we have
adopted. The book-keepers in this
bank do not know how soon they may
becalled upon to give up their books to
other hands. Our custom is, without
warning, to give notice, every man
take a new ledger and there is a gen.
eral changing about among the book
keepers"
"HOw abOu+ the TELLER 9''
His work is peculiar, and it is not
possible to exchange him for another
on short notice. 1t requires a peculiar
disposition and a special talent to
make an efficient and valuable teller -
''Does the teller take regular vaca-
tion?"
"No; but he takes one when we give
him notice to do so. He is compelled
to leave his post for a time, though
he generally doesn't need much urg-
ing"
"How can teller appropriate
funds Systematically for a long time
without detection on the part of the
depositor
THAT is very simple, though it re-
quires a systematic shrewdness on his
part. If | should deposit $4,000 in
the bank to-day, and leave my pass
book to be written up, and to be
called for at the end of the month, the
teller may appropriate $4,000 for his
own use, and by false ticket he has
my deposit recorded as only $4,000.
Now, suppose that at the end of the
month you deposit $4,000. The
teller, in order to make my book bal
ance correctly when l callfor it, trans
fers $4,000 of this to my account, and
so on, keeping the records, as seen by
the depositors, correct, but constant
ly, by an exchange of accounts, in
creasing the amount he is stealing.
OF course, there comes a revelation
finally, but by shrewdness it may be
postponed for year or more"