The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1906-09-27

force and high character. has COM
pieteiy dominated their anairs.
When a board Of directors finds
such a ri or when he-dnds himself
and ctooses q board or his " 70
support hin, II makes q great bank
III most cases even where q gen
fHs rs not chosen the directors elect
10 oace men of htgh character and
sddfcfant ability Ameucan banks
scertsnly since the civil have
been very successful The record 81
the national banks REMARKABLE 10
the small number Of failures andsthe
comparatively small amount lcstet @
idepositer SO tie many billions otltot.
lars on deposit The trust companies
and the banks ofsmany States have
highly satisfactory and commsndable
records These reeor1 have been
largely made by banks rtnehtirelys by
their omeersy with little real superyi.
sion BY the directors for such man
.agement has been the rule rather than
the exception.
The success g%ainedt1s a tribute main.
" to the Judgment of directors in
choosing their ofacers ana the honesty
andiabifity Of the American bank Off.
Ger. The results are better taan one
might have supposed, but they3arenot
az good as they should be. The weak
ness and shame of American banding
IS that more often than it should hap.
pen, there are scandalons failures Of
banks which have been robbsd and
looted by officers WHO has gained.
the confidence OF their shareholders
and directors as to be given absolute
control of the business with little or
no supervision, check or examination
on the part OF the directors.
Theirs IS no excuse for such robbery
5of-a bank. 1t can not -happen where
the directors are honest and doing
theff duty. 1t is no answer for the di;
rectors to say they had conffdence in
their oficers and did not know the
real condition. It is their business
and their sworn duty. to know the
condition, and to prevent such steal
ing.
1t is no answer, either, t. Hblame the.
bank examiner or the supervising au-
.thority. The examiner and the bank
ing department. may or may not be to
Blame, Sometimes they are at fault
fSl1&
sooner Bat the examiner can not and,
shouIdtnot be expected to entirely pre
vent wrong doing in a bank except so
far as fear of detection may dossos
The examiner does his duty if he dis.
covers dishonesty and crime after it.
is committed. He can do nothing un-
til some, perhaps, all, the harm is
done; until the loan Is made, the forg-
ed note is in the bank, the fraudulent
entry made, and the money gone. II
is for the examiner to discover fraud.
It is the directors business to pre-
vent it. If they do not, they are gull
ty Of criminal intent or almost equally
criminal neglect. No officer can rob
and ruin a bank, unless the directors
are his confederates or his dupes.
For probably the same reason that
we all think all. men are mortal but
ourselves. bank directors are apt to
believe their bank and its officers are
exceptions to the rule and to feel such
absolute confidence in them as to al
low them to continue to run the banks
business as they always have done,
without supervision and with little or
no searching examination. Have we
not, they say to themselves, known
these men all their liyes2 Are we not
sure they are honest? Do we not
know they are able and faithful? Hap
PLY in the great majority of cases
they do. But they must remember it
is men with just such regulations who
occasionally turn out to be s%coundrels,
and are discovered too late to have
been faithless to every relation in
life and to have robbed and deceived
one who has trusted them. How
frequently it seems that they pIunder
the most ruthlessty those whom they
would seem most In honor bound to
protect? 1t must be remembered that
1t is only men who nave the talents
TO establish reputation for capacity,
problty, and honor, who get the chance
to commit such crimes. They are gen.
orally men of Unusual talents. A bank
wrecker is never a fool. 1t takes ratn.
er exceptional ability to first acquire
a position where 1t is possible, and
then to carry out the plan. Only a
ofcconsiderable nerve and conr.
age would dare try such a thing or
could carry It ON without early disepy
cry. What 1 wish to- impress IN any
bank. director who may happen to hear
read what 1 say, is that it is men
who have just as nigh regulations and
stand just as well among their friends
opd evspr4atas 90 fha men vnu AFRO