Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1886-07-13

reasoning NitNDt A&AlNft iN'h WIZ @'N ~
unfortunate 81 % Be officers q banks
under system established BY law.
That me officers d such banks are not
The coipaieui rnonopollsts they are repre-
sented 70 be-, and that The shareholders
Of national banks are people 10 al
walks Of iiio, and that the stock
Is scattered among g vast mum
Der u people, IS shown IN the
recent address u cx-Compirollcr Knox
before the Bank Onlcers association Of
Boston. ar. Knox said THAT the major
ity Of bank stockholders were not rich
mon. and that The national and state
banks and their officers are continually
being misfeprescnted in and out Of con
qress On the silver question: lie said
the bark with which he IL connected has
a capital II 800, 900, distributed among
$50 shareholders, one-thifd Of whom are
New England men and women Of mode.
rate means, who have been shareholders
Tor thirty years. only Two shareholders
hold as much as 300 shares, representing
100000 The holdings on the average
are $1,000, and this IS about the average
held, 10 the aggregate, by the etOckhold-
ers ofall the national banks. The small
stockholders, as well ~ large, under the
national banking system, a. you know,
are individually liable for an amount
equal 10 the amount Invested in the
stock. The national bank stock Of the
country is not held, as a rule, by rich
men, nor are the officers Of banks gene
rally rich men Tie average amount held
by each stakeholder IN the New England
states IL but $1,000. The number Of
stockholders IN 1876 Ia Massachu.
s3tts was about 10000, OF whom 10000
held $1,000 Of stock or less. The
whole number Of stockholders in
New England was about $1,000, about
two-thlrds Of whom held stock varying
from 800 10 $1,000. The same rule held
good IN New York, where the number OF
stockholders WAS 2G,0O0, nearly half Of
whom we're small holders owning stock
Of ten shares or less. The whole number
Of shareholders 10 the Middle states was
Gs 900, Of whom $4,000 held from one TO
ten shares only each 10 the Southern
and Southwestern states there were held
II ,00l shares Of stock, Of which G052
were held in sums of ten shares and less,
aud 2BO5 in amounts between $1,000 and
$1,000 In the Western states there were
held II, 10 shares, OF which 1894 were In
sums Of $1,000 and less, and 3422 In sums
between $1,000 and $1,000. The officers
and directors Of national banks are the
trustees for thousands Of these small
shareholders, az well as for thousands OF
small dcposltors, aud there rs nothing
more absurd than the statement that they
desire TO maintain gold payments at The
expense Of the debtor class"
Mr., Knox estimated "tho number OF
pieces Of paper discounted Ia tho ycai
1870 AZ 10000 and the amoupt Of dis
counts AZ 80, OO,OOO,00O, which was S8l(
Tor each voter aud 5000 for each family
in the country The deposits, including
those Of savings banks, are about 81 800,
100000, aud II Is believed that not leB'
than one-iourh Of the population, or one
fourth Of the families aud housoholders
OF the Union are directly Interested ~ the
loans and deposits Of the banks. Those
who ara familiar with these facts ind il
dillcult TO understand the prejudice
which prevails in this country alone, both
In and out Of congress, against bankr
that are conducted upon sound principles
The capital aud deposits Of the banks arc
loaned TO millions Of people, and at the
present time largely at rates much lower
than the rate fixed by law. The coin and
bills receivable held BY the banks belong
TO the deposltors FIRST, and the remainder
to the stockholders, who, as a rule, are
men OF moderate meansj aud II ls the
duty Of the officers OF banks TO insist that
the borrower shall pay dollars having the
same Intrinsic value as those which were
borrowed, In order that deposltors may
be paid In dollars like those which were
! deposited, To fail 10 do this would be I