The daily morning journal and courier., 1903-10-20
BALTIMORE BANK FAILURES
sUsPENSIoEoFT oPTHEBEsT
 KNOWN HoUsESIN oITY.


 Thunderboit from . Clear sRy-Ru-
 nor Of the Probability of Another
 Failure
 Baltimore. Oct. 19.-The Maryland Trust company and the Union Trust company, two of the best known bank ing houses of this city, went. into re- ceivers' hands to-day. Except to few in inner financial circles the an- nouncement of the Maryland failure came like thunderbolt from a clear sky. The suspension caused the great est excitement. but fears were some what allayed by the favorable assur- ances of banking interests
 The day began with the announce nlent of the failure Of the Maryland Trust company. The cause given was inability to market Mexican railway securities, which the bank held in large amounts. Added to this was the fail- ure to negotiate s2,00O,00O loan in Lon don.
 While business men were anxiously discussing the suspension of the Mary land company another shock was given
 the financial community by the suspen- sion of the Union Trust company.
 The two failures were the cause of numerous rumors One of these was that. at the request of another trust company, the name of which was freely handled about. the clerk of the circuit
  than the accustomed time to accommo- date one more applicant for a receiver ship. But the applicant did not mater ialize, and the day ended with only two tsuspensions and with the assurance of the cool headed fnanciers of the city that all peril of a panic had passed, and that tomorrow would note the dissipa- tion of every sign and portent of fur ther trouble.
 It was agreed among the leaders that there was nothing alarming in the gen. eral financial situation in this city and the mere fact that temporary difficult ties overlook one or two concerns is no reason why other perfectly solvent in- stitutions should be regarded with sus- Dicion. As one of the most influential bankers in Baltimore.put 1t: Our finan- cial institutions are strong and have placed themselves in a position to with lstand any assaults upon their credit Istanding''
 Or. as another leading banker, per- haps the most prominent in Baltimore, l put it: Tt all depends upon how the people of Baltimore act. If they do not | 5eta{ over in time and nobody will be hurt;
 but if they become panic stricken, the
 consequences will be serious'' Allan McLane, third vice president of the Maryland Trust company, was ap- lpointed to take charge of the affairs of lthat company as soon as the suspen-
 sion was announced and Miles White ljr.. first vice president of the Union
 Trust company was appointed receiver of that institution. MT. McLane gave
 bond in the sum Of $2.00O,OOO and Mr.
 White gave bond in the sum of $1,00o,-
 GOO.
 l The last. statement of the Maryland Trust company issued on June 30 1903,
 showed capital stock of $2,125, 900, sur-
 plus 5$2, 437 500, and undivided profits of
 $677, ,998. 86. The company has demand
 and time deoosits amounting to $5,773,-
 81L15
 The Union Trust company at the close
 of business on March 31, 1903, had cap
 ital stock of $1,O00,000, surplus of s250,-
 900 and undivided profits of $15s, 687. .55. The Union Trust company has deposits amounting to nearly $2,000,00O. The fil- ing of the first applications for receiv- lers for the embarrassed companies was followed by petitions for co-receivers for both comDar1ies
 l The total liabilities of the two com Epanies exceeds s10,000,000.
 The cause of the Maryland Trust
 comDanys failure was due, as is set forth in the following statement of Re-
 ceiver McLane. to the investment of
 assets of the company in Mexican rail- l way securities which could not be marketed.
 The whole cause of the embarrass- ment of the company is the fact that it has loaned to the Vera Cruz and Pacific Railroad company in Mexico a very
 large sum of money, as security for I which 1t held on deposit the entire is- sue of first mortgage bonds ($5,0OO, ,000), Ipreferred stock ($5,0O0,000) and common lstock ($5,0O0000) of that road, and that lowing to the unfavorable conditions of | the money market it has been unable to effect a satisfactory loan upon these I securities.
 "The Maryland Trust company has tfor some time been able to go along l without serious barrassment in spite I of having so much of it's money tied up in the Vera Cruz and Pacific railroad. 5I and would undoubtedly have been able
 to wait still longer time for a loan or
 sale of those securities were it not for I the fact that find it has a large line lof demand deposits subject to with l drawal on call, and that during the past 1week two large withdrawals were made upon it. This rendered it absolutely | necessary, for the conduct of the busi- iness upon an honorable basis, to obtain
 a temporary loan upon certain of the
 investments owned by the company.
 "This latter loan was in process of negotiation with prospects of fayor- able result, when on Saturday last the third vice-president, who, owing to the 1 illness and absence for the past six weeks of the president and first vice. lpresident, had been compelled to take up the entire management of the com Ipany, discovered that the obtaining of
 such a loan was merely temporarizing; I that the obtaining of such temporary
 loan, when taken into connection with