The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1895-02-23

Amendments to the Law Relating to
Investments Disqualification of
Officers.
A meeting of this association was held at
the Office of the Portland Savings bank
yesterday. at which thirty-four banks were
represented.
PRESIDENTS ADDRESS.
President Noyes of the Portland Savings
Bank, addressed the convention as follows:
sin behalf of the two savings banks of
this city I extend to you hearty welcome
and beg you will make yourselves thorough
~ at home within these walls today.
''As president of this association L have
been reniss in not calling you together dur
ing the year 1884, but SO great were the
cares and responsibilities entailed on us all
by the great financial troubles of 1898, that
the year passed without there appearing to
be convenient day for such meeting.
when the association was formed it
seemed to me its organization might be
used to aid us socially by making us all
acquainted with each other, and thereby
creating unity of feeling and good fellow
ship, to- facilitate which l hoped. and still
hope, that at some time in the next two
years we may have a meeting lasting two
days in midsummer or early autumn at
some one of the charming resorts by noun
tain, sea or lake of our Leautiful state.
but had another thought that through
the executive council and its secret advis-
ors. private, but reliable in formation might
be circulated among the banks about the
security of bonds offered to US for invest
ment. Whether you desire such experiments
tried should be determined at this meeting.
I'VE have prepared form similar to that
to be used i'll Massachusetts for making re-
turns under the income tax law. Blu ad-
wise the passage of resolution defining
our position as savings banks not liable TO
make returns. - 9'.a "a:
1.-THE question of the amendment to the
state law requiring a time of notice for
withdrawal of deposits of at least ninety
days, strikes me as the most important thing
to be considered for legislative action. The
fact Is. that unlike all other panics affect
ing savings banks, the panic OF 1893 demon
strated to any careful observer the utter
impossibility of meeting demands from de-
positors of hundred dollars in thirty
days. land two thousand dollars in sixty days.
'.Of the SIX panics have witnessed, as an
official of this savings bank, two of them
were purely local, resulting from an at
itemptssof some witty person. tosscare poor
depositor3 the panic which resulted from
the suspension of the payment of legal ten
ders was silly met. We ooald not pay de-
positors what they demanded. because we
could not get the bank bills, and while it
was wearisome to stand hour after hour and
go over the same story with very deposi-
tor who came in. yet ignorant and educated
alike We're satisfied with the explanation
that would give them CHECK, but we
could not give them bills.
1.-The panic of 1878 was con fined to savings
banks all over the country, but did not
affect national banks; we did not have any
stay law to take advantage yof. We could
not sell municipal bond at sany price
above par, but owing to relief afforded by
onr large collateral loans were able to get
through the panic without asking any IA
vor from any depositor. In that panic we
lost about one-forth Of or deposits, but
never at any time had. any difficulty in get
ting currency to pay depositors. During
he two years succeeding the greater part
OF the depositors Brought back the same
bills they had received.
This last panic of 1898 was SO general,
that on the one hand you could sell very
few securities except at fearful loss, and
yet you could lot call on your cussom
to pay notes without producing disaster, and
the visible supply Of bills was nearly ex-
hausted. H.
From May LIST. 1898, the uneasiness
among depositors grew steadily until he
20th OF July, when we commenced taking
notices for sums exceeding one hundred
dollars in amount, and no oil upon the
waters could have had a more uuieting
effect than the simple annonu nc enc ut to
depositors that 1--WE could not pay them ex-
oept upon notice, any larger sums than one
hundred dollars. The crowds began to di-
minish. and the necessities of Gdepositors
apparently ceased at once; am satisfied
that one great element in our savings bank
panics Is the fear of the average depositor
that some one else will be paid his money
before they get theirs. Let them once be
assured that the panic struck are not to
run all the good assets of the bank out, and
they come in only for the poorer or slower
securities, and you will restore con fiience
at once. Ut course the average officer OF
the bank can detect The real cases where
Withdrawals necessary from t he assumed
case of man who isn't afraid of The bank,
but thinks he will buy piece of real es-
tate and wants to have the money handy
in case he should
Indeed, the depositors need to be protect
ed against themselves having in mind al
wayssthat these institutions of ours are, SO
far as benefits are concerned purely mutual,
run only for the benefit of the derositors,
who receive all of the legitimate gains, at
least all that can be safely paid cut. There
is no reason why a deposit in savings
bank should be treated like demand loan,
payable on call, and am not sure that
notice of ninety days on extraordinary oc-
casions would be su eicient; am not sure
but what it ought 10 be discretionary with
the bank examiner in extreme cases to Or
der a general suspension of payment OF all
large sums except at the discretion of the
officers of the bank, until the troubles have
been settled.
STREET RAILROAD SECURITIES.
THE recommendation of the bank e xami-
ner that some modification of the law shonld
be made with regard 10 the purchase of
street railways which have been held to
come under the general term of railway
Investments is an excellent one, although