Evening journal., 1905-12-08
BANKS REFUSE
THEIR TAXES
Forty Thousand Dollars Now
Due State From Finan-
CiaI Institutions
MAKE EFFORT TO COLLECT
Special to me evening Journal.

Dover. Dec. S.-Has q bank any
more right than a citizen to refuse to
pay a tax in Delaware, and is It right
for a corporation or individual to re-
fuse to pay tax because the other
fellow will not pay his?
Forty thousand dollars is now due
10 the state Of Delaware from the
. banks doing business in this State, and
\the officials OF the state are preparing
ho proceed to collect IT, if still unpaid
by January T. The matter was discussed
before the last Legislature, but no ac-
ton was taken as Il was understood
that the banks would give up their
nght.
The tax is not q new exaction upon
banks on the part Of thesState, but be-
cause the trust companies recently
formed in the State declined to pay
the tax on the ground that they were
not banks, the banking houses claimed
discrimination and ceased to remit like
wise.
The state is now about to close its
accounts for the year and somebody
VIII have to pay this tax. or spend
some court costs in declining.
The contest has also been before the
courts before and Section 5219 of the
Revised Statutes Of the United states
was used as a basis of previous suit
when William Herbert, State Treas
urer, forced the banks TO pay TO the
state as required of them by the Del
aware Legislatures enactment Of April
s, 1869.
After the passage OF the 1863 act
the banks refused. particularly the ma
tional banks which claimed account
ability only TO the national govern
ment until in 1891, State Treasurer
Herbert brought out the big stick and
began prodding. He collected the
money
The First National Bank Of VIII
mington. 1t appears. paid the money to
Mr.. Herbert under protest and then
began action against him, as reported
under the title. "The First National
Bank versus William Herbert" "a Fed.
15S. Under this suit, "a compromise
was reached. under appreciation OF an
act OF the Delaware Legislature pass
ed April Z, 1891.
This compromise provided that the
banks would pay the State $4,000 in
pro rata parts according to their capi-
tai stock and surplus.
on June 4. 1895. the banks retained
Attorney William G. Spruance, now
judge OF the Superior Court of Della
ware. to investigate the law, after the
trust companies took their stand
against the State tax. and under the
opinion which MT Spruance rendered
and which IS published I'm pamphlet
form as we'll as reported in the legal
reports. some Of the banks stopped pay
ing and some continued.
Cashier W. II. Janney Of the Ma
tional Bank of Smyrna. who was one
OF the bankers who continued paying
his banks share of the taxes, was
seen today and asked for a statemer'
concerning the matter.
n was said that Cashier Janney wa,
paying the tax under a special opinion
recently obtained by his bank IN ordel
to be on the safest possible side of thu
contest which may involve large costs
Mr.. Janney denied that he was pro
ceedlng on any special opinion
rrhe opinion which we have is th'
same one already printed, that Of Hon
w G. Spruance. and the reason tina
we have been paying is that we wer
notrfully aware of the refusal by th'
other banks to pay because Of this dis
elimination between banks and trus
companies. The probabilities are tha
this bank will likewise decline to pa,
further until the matter is finally ad
judicated, as we do not desire to pa,
out moneys we do not legally or prop
erly owe"