The herald., 1897-07-06
THE INVESTOR
OFFICE OF THE HERALD,

fabulous amounts supposed to be on de-
banks of the country, have been the means
of securing legislation in some states, CAL
ifornia among the number, for the pur-
pose of getting sworn statements as to the
exact amounts so lying dormant, and the
result in every case has been to discredit
the fairy tales that have been woven out
of the reciter's imagination. American In
vestments puts the matter plainly when 1t
says as follows:
Our country is quite too young to pre-
sent such a record as some on the other
hemisphere, where banks have been in ex-
istence for many centuries, so that it can
not be expected the dormant deposits here
will attain anything like the proportions
as are there found. With our banks these
accounts and their amounts have been
grossly exaggerated. In Maine, for in
stance, where there are fifty-two savings
banks, only twenty-nine report any de-
posits that have remained silent for twenty
years or more. And in spite of certain con-
ditions. which seem favorable to their ac-
cumulation, they aggregate only S03 in
number and sS7, ,097.04 in amount. These ac-
counts range all the way from five cents
to $a247.1S the average being $46O7. The
amount held by each bank runs all the way
from s60.11 to sS22S.SS, the latter being the
Portland Savings Bank The Maine Saw
ings Bank, also at Portland reports 174,
the highest number Of accounts. There is
an apparent reason why the coast banks
sh q In
these dormant accounts because of the
large number of their depositors being
seamen. 1t is very doubtful If the greater
portion Of the money above reported will
ever be called for, the depositors having
gone to sea and never been heard from.
From the fact that these deposits are but
.00662 per cent of the total deposits In the
entire fifty-two institutions, 1t does not
look to be very serious matter Some of
them. however, are so small as to become
a nuisance, as they have to be carried
forward from book to book and from year
to year.
In New York state several attempts have
been made to secure the passage of a law
requiring the publication Of these dormant
1894 conducted a hurried investigation of
this question and found that there was
about 81, 100000 of such accounts. one bank
alone in New York city reporting nearly
one-half of this amount. Taking into con-
sideration the enormous amount of saw
ings banks deposits in this state, the above
sum is not excessive and is probably
fair estimate of their condition today. Cal
ifornia has statute requiring the publica-
ttAr, fAr ntxvA NA1rr
paper in the town where the bank is To-
Gated, of all accounts in savings banks
that have been dormant for ten or more
years, except in cases where depositors are
known to be living and where the account
is less than fifty dollars. There are fifty
seven savings banks in this state, four
teen Of which report 764 accounts in
active for ten years or more, aggregating
the surprising amount of $235, 1862. These
run from thirty cents to Sill. $685. II, the lat
ter amount standing to the credit of Jere-
miah Pendergast, formerly of San Fran
cisco, their average being $307.S2, or .0179 of
the deposits of all the banks combined.
The French Savings Bank has 231 of such
accounts, most of which are good-sized,
the largest being $33S0.S7 Here, in the sea-
board banks the sailor element enters and
has the mining element to raise the number
and amount of these lifeless accounts. 1t,
as a standard for all the savings banks in
the country. but as we have no other state
giving us definite statistics, it is we'll to
take Maine. This would give $19, ,6S4, COL "a
as the total unclaimed deposits in the
whole country. 1t is very evident that this
is entirely too high, and that it could be re-
duced more than one-half and still be
within the limits of safety. In any event.
we are bound to accept the fact that no
mol fS ayis han
ly supposed. and the question therefore
should be forever set at rest.
An eastern financial circular considers
that one of the most remarkable phases
in the present financial and Industrial de-
velopment of the United States is the per-
sistent antipathy of London toward our Sc
curities. Even Henry Labouchere shows
reluctance to encourage their purchase and
the London Statist Is so ''illogical" as to
critcise his views. Quotations are given
from both sources of information. Henry
Labourchere says: The question is fire.
quently and anxiously asked by those who
used to belong to the large number Of
votaries of the Yankee market as to
whether the present upward movement In
this department will really prove the pre-
cursor of one of the old-fashioned booms
or whether it will fizzle out again, as has
been the case with so many recent attempts
to raise quotations. Considering the extra
ordinary fickleness of Yankee rails,
should not like to answer this question
absolutely in the affirmative or to pin my
self to the prediction of boom during the
next few weeks, but that the surrounding
circumstances are making for lasting
improvement cannot be doubted.
\ \ \
The "illogical' London Statist follows
this up with a comment in which it says !:
Were there the prospects of any real i'm
provement in the United States we should
agree with this opinion. so far as the
American market is concerned, but unfor-
tunately there are as yet no good grounds
for investors in this country to INCREASE
their holdings Of American securities. Trade
still remains extremely depressed, and,
while here and there traffics show some
slight Improvement, the increases cannot
be regarded as indicating any appreciable
revival in Industrial activity.
Los Angeles bank clearings for the week
ended July Sd amounted to 81, ,029, SIP, against
1911, 1856 for the corresponding week Of 1896.
Building permits for the City Of Los
Angeles issued during the month of June
aggregated s2S5,524. as against s191, ,206 for
the corresponding month of 1896.
National Bank Changes
The comptroller of the currency gives
notice in his latest bulletin of June 2S, of
the following, among other, changes: