Marietta daily leader. (Marietta, Ohio) 1895-1906, 1899-03-21
REASONS
For Continued Prosperity as Given
by Business Men,

900 capital Will be represented by the
guests. But last night at the Union
League Club a dinner was held al
which were guests representing prac-
tically the entire banking interests oi
the United States and approximately
81, ,500, 100000 capital and resources
There was no special significance in
this dinner. 1t was given to the repre-
sentatives of the American Banking
| Association, who has been holding a
meeting in this city. They have con-
sfdered technical questions of no i'm
portance TO the general public. One OF
them may be important to intending
swlndlers and bank burglars because
the subject of still more thoroughly
projecting the banks from evil doers
than has been done in the past was
thoroughly discussed. This feature of
the associations purposes has been a
most important one, and has done a
great deal toward reducing crimes of
violence or cunning from which banks
few years ago suffered so greatly.
At the dinner last night the import
ant things that were said were not
publicly spoken. Some things were
said privately that were of interest,
one or two of them rather startling.
For instance, in private and informal
way, these bankers expressed the opin-
ion that there was no doubt that the
present financial prosperity of the
country is to continue, and that no
conditions that can Le eforeseen can end
it. A number of the bankers being
asked privately upon what they based
their opinion that prosperity would
continue declared that it would be due,
first of all, to the present and probably
long-maintained ease of the money
market, supplemented by a great and
probably increasing export of manu-
factured articles and markets for the
harvest of American farmers.
Among some of the bankers the talk
centered upon the widespread tendency
toward bank consolidation. The opin-
ion was that it had been more strik-
ingly manifested in Boston than any
where else, but that it would extend
throughout the country, at least so far
as the large financial centers were con-
cerned. 1t was said that when some of
the recent consultations of Boston
banks were under way certain startl-
ing discoveries were made. They in
volved the financial soundness of in
stitutions in Boston whose weakness
had not been suspected. One of them,
IN institution which stood high in
public confidence, was found to be car
rying nearly $1,000,000 of long-past-
iue paper, and another was crippled,
although not to so great an extent.
The consolidation put an end to those
weaknesses, and there was no general
knowledge of the danger which had
lhus been averted. 1t was the impress
sion that in other cities more and more
the stronger institutions would absorb
Or control the weaker ones, and that
the concentration of banking capital,
80 far as direction is concerned into
fewer hands would be a healthful
thing AT the same time the impress
sion is that while there may be concen-
tration of direction there will be
great diversity of the ownership of
bank stock.
When John D. and William Rookie
Teller began to protest agalst assess
at Tarrytown for the purpose of taxa
ton the general impression was that
these very rich men were revealing
some of lie weaknesses due to avarice
which now and then beset men in pro-
portion as they gain more and more
wealth. Public sentiment was against
chem. Much was saiu about competing
rich men to pay their fair share of
taxes. 1t may be that a reserve which
CudI IdCltIlLcS DOlll lnSSc men NaiS III
part accountable for that feeling. They
were accused of doing a small thing
when they insisted that their taxes
we're too high. The Courts decided
that there was something like a con-
5piracy to compel the Rockefellers to
pay so great tax as greatly to lessen
che tax that other and poorer citizens
would be compelled to pay. The Court
finds that the Assessors, or one of
them, was actuated by malice, and that
he had boasted that the poor had been
taxed too heavily and the rich too lit
lie, and that he would stick the taxes
On the Rockefellers," and that this is
exactly what he did.
Therefore the Court will compel the
town to repay to the Rockefellers the
excess of taxes over those which might
be collected upon a fair assessment, las
we'll as the cost of the legal proceed
ngs. The expense of the town will
not be far from $4,000.
DIR Bulls Cough Syrup is uRques-
tiunHbly the most remarkaule remedy ever
produced fnr the cure Of throat and lung
troubles IL has cnre1 thousands, and has
dIne wonders Ia many cases OF incipenL con.
sumption.