The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-07-16

| iuea that their affairs were to oS- sohe too thoroughly into by the officers or the State. If you pass this law, you drive every individual in Alabama cut of the banking business. There gre good many people in this state, wno | own property other than that which they have invested in the banking pCs- mess. They have other business irter- | ests besides the banking business Tn | which they may be engaged. nave m my mind a citizen of well rHcognizeo financial ability, who resi1es in the town in which live. lIe has bank and does a banking business l Part of his sscets are invested III that hank. but large part of his assets are not invested in the bank. He may owe debts other than the debts that are due | by him on account of the bank. In or der to get an intelligent report-as to his condition, you would not only have to ascertain how much he owed as banker, but how much he owed as an | individual to other people, and you would have to find out not only how l much money he had invested Tn the banking business, but what he had in- vested in other enterprises. in order to make a report upon his financial stand- ing and responsibility.
 | It does seem to me that whenever | you get t" that pass in this State. | whenever you get to the point that man. in order to engage in private enterprise. which is a lawful business, must report his affairs to the State | tv ice each year and get into the pub lie prints. you absolutely drive him | out of hUsiness, because the banking | business is not more lucrative than l great many other characters of husi- | ness in this State.
 | MT. ONeal-If 1t Is a private busi- ness, does he not receive the moneys os the public. just like National bank. and ought not the public to be en- titled to some protection. if he has a | private bank. or an incorporated Aank. or National bank?
 MT. deGraffenreid-The reasons for the establishment of examine6 for na- tional banks Is not applicable to an individual who engages in the banking business. In the first place, as we know the national banking law authorizes the bank which is conducted under that law to issue bills which circulate as money. It goes further and re- quires that the stockholders in the bank shall be liable in double the amount of their stock, all because the l government of the United States itself | is more or less involved in the financial integrity and proper conduct of the bank But when you come to the in- | d1vfdual. when you come to the man | that lives in a community, the deposit Is made with him on account 1t may be of personal friendship, on account of personal association or on account of the manner in which he is regarded bv his nefghbors. He is not made a de- pository as is the national bank for the | rNIr ftVr. L bank that exists in the United Staes Is liable to be made a depository of | public funds. For that reason Its of ficers are quasi public officers, and as the institution is in fact a public in | stitution, 1t becomes the government | which called 1t into existence. and | gave 1t authority to act, to see that the bank is properly conducted, as far | as 1t can do SO., With an individual | engaging in a lawful business, it has | never been heard of anywhere I do not | believe, that any public officer should pry into his private affairs more than into the private affairs of any other | individual in the Commonwealth. | will state that we have in a great many small communities in this State indi- | viduals who conduct a small business, | that is in reality a banking business, I they live. but if you adopt this law, you will drive them out of that busi- ness and for that reason 1 am opposed to 1t. and l move to lay the amend | ment offered by the gentleman from | Marenge upon the table.
 Mr. Williams (Marengo)-I will ask the gentleman to withdraw that mo- tion.
 MT. deGraffenreid-I will if the gen. tleman will let me renew 1t.
 Mr. Ashcraft-1 rise to the point of der that the same motion has been sub- mitted to this house and voted down.
 MT. deGraffenreid-Then I withdraw W it. I did not know that.
 The President-The point of order is well taken.
 MT. Williams (Marengo)-1n answer to the position that the gentleman from Hale takes that national banks ought to be examined. and that State banks ought not to be examined, fASd that this section should not be incorporated in to the Constitution, I will say with him that on the proposition before the house 1 voted to strike this particular Section from the Constitution. but the Convention saw fit to keep 1t in there. The Convention seeing fit to re- tain that section, in my opinion safe guard should be thrown around all of the banks, all of the trust companies and all banking instituptions. whether private , incorporated or individual bankers, and my idea is to make this section apply to all banks and banking institutions. As matter of fact this is legislative; no one denies that ana no one can doubt it. but as 1t is there let us make 1t go far enough to cover the whole thing.
 Now as to the matter of prying into private affairs, desire to say that We find these private matters investigated in the national banks. They have large depositors, and if perchance some squeamish fellow has gone over to a private bank, or a State bank, ana there deposited his funds because he does not want to have his private ar- fairs looked into. it strikes me that man has builded his house on a sandy foundation. It is just for such fellows as that, along with the balance. that it strikes me this section should be adopted, so as to say to that man whether that bank is safe, or is not safe. Suppose the bank Is decided not to be safe by the public examiner, the particular individual who doesn't want his affairs inquired into is told of it and don't you believe he will take his money out? It is like an old fellow in Texas. who had sixty thousand dollars in bank and in 1894 during the panic banks began to go under everywhere and he took the sixty thousand dollars out and carried it home; the next day he carried it back to the bank. He