St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1895-01-18
Minnesota State Bankers As
ISOLATION Holds It's Annual
at the Ryan.
ONE HUNDRED ARE PRESENT.
Prominent Finaneieps Discuss
Financial and CONNER
ciai Conditions.
THEY ADVOCATE HONESTY.
Business Meeting and Elec-
ton Of Officers Praeede
the Banquet.

The brilliant banquet of the season
was that given by the Minnesota State
Bankers association at the Ryan hotel
last night. About one hundred bankers
from all over the state and large
number of invited guests occupied seats
at the tables, and several very thught-
full addresses were made. those of
j. f. II. FOSS, president of the Nicollet
National bank, of Minneapolis. and j.
q. Pyle. associate editor Of the Pioneer
Press, being especially interesting and
Instructive The other speakers were
Hon. Albert Schetfcr, St. Paul; eX-
Mayor w. Ii. Eustis, of Minneapolis;
II. Il. Wells, of Preston: d. y. Mou-
fort, of st. Paul. and Senator Henry
Keller.
Vice Presidentaelect Foss presided,
in the absence of President-elect Up
ham, and among the prominent bankers
and guests present, i'll addition to those
already named, were w. j. Murphy,
of the Minneapolis Tribune: f. L.
Searle, the Duluth banker; Luther
Memdenhall, of Duluth; Col. G. IL.
Prush OF Fergus Falls, national bank
examiner: g. q. Thorne, of st. Paul,
national bank examiner; w. 3. Pay
sons, Of Dodge Center; Frank Seymour,
of ST. Paul; J. A. Wheel0ck. editor OF
the Pioneer Press; State Bank Exam
liner Kenyon; William Bickel ST., of
ST. Paul; Mayor Il. A. Smith, OF st
h., Of
New Ulm.
The tables were elegantly decorated
with flowers, and Ryder's orchestra dis
cOursad numerous choice musical selec-
tions while an excellent menu was be-
ing discussed. 1t was after 10 O'Clock
when Mr.. F0ss raped for order for the
opening of the speechmaking, taxing
the initiative himself.
Address Of NEr. Floss.
Mr.. Foss read an able paper, in which
he said in part:
AT the present time about every one
appears to have a plan or panacea for
the cure of financial troubles. l pre-.
sumo every banker present has plan,
and can tell just how his neighbours
business ought to be run. Financial and
commercial affairs are not in salts
factory condition. The idea of an elastic
currency seems TO be the one thought
uppermost in most minds.
1T is tWenty-fOur years since ! en-
tered the banking business. and think
our national banking system is the best
the country, or the world, has eyer
seen. 1t is we'll that we be
careful lest in securing elasticity we
should 90 TOO far. l think our present
financial difficulties are due to three
things: Commercial dishonesty, over
trading and bad government tinancier.
ing. Men tired of the slow process of
legitimate business, and in order to get
rich rapidly went into the business of
speculation. The most skillful lawyers
i'll the country were secured to draw
mortgages that were not mortgages aud
bonds that were not bonds. Moneyed
men in this country and Europe loanded
their money OH these empty securities,
and did not find out their mistake until
it was too late. Our own people were not
the only ones who engaged in this kind
American countries engaged i'll It, and
the Barring Bros failure was the re-
suit. The lenders finally lost conf
dence, and the panic set in. Very few
business institutions honestly and prop
erly managed failed.
TIE government should set an eX-
ample in the establishment of an honest
and stable system Of finance. If the
whole question of finance and currency
could be left to a commission it would
be a gOdSend.
Some WHISPERED Jay
is sent to congress, and at once sets
ABOUT to regulate the whole affair. The
result of his work is the withdrawal of
gold, and then the jay goes out to find
a banker to kick at.
1--WE are largely to blame for financial
difficulties ourselves. A customer comes
to bank. and by reason of the compe-
tItiOn between the bankS-the desire to
secure buSineSs-he is pledged a loan
much larger than he deserves if he will
open an account with the bank. This
often leads to bad results.
"This country is suffering great
deal more from lack of commercial in
tegrity than ii is from inelastcity in the
currency. Oar present troubles are due
to three things: The grcenback, the
ignorant eiudice against the banking
system and the tax on national bank
circulation.
The greenbacks should be retired by
Issuing long time, low rate bonds, and
fund them.
The national banks put up their
money in time of need, but the public
Overlook this fact. We have been i'm
porting TIE scum of Europe. bring
ing their nih;iistic and socialiStc ideas,
and the last twenty years has witnessed
the spectacle of the people railing
against the banking institutions on
which they must depend i'll time of