Los Angeles herald., 1909-10-16

IHW, WJTU ITf5tII-
abled us to convert.it into cash in SIX
hours.
Again you say: "a bank which
needs a guaranty has no title to be IN
business at all"
This is unworthy of space for an
swer, further than to ask your read
ers to reflect on the miserable failures
that have occurred under the national
law YOU have attempted to sustain.
Again YOU state: "A dishonest di-
rector exercising the necessary pow
er on the finance committee, could dis
count his worthless note of hand, ma
turing a year ahead, with his bank,
credit his deposit account with the
amount, suspend the bank and receive
in full the amount of his fictitious de-
post from the other banks"
Now, Mr.. Editor, under separate
cover 1 am sending you a copy Of the
Oklahoma bank law. No such con-
dition could be accomplished under
our law. You have simply been read
ing the national banking law and have
gotten our state law mixed in your
mind by comparison.
OF course, men can rob a guaranteed
bank just as they can rob any other
class of property, but under the Okla
homa law they have to do it on very
short notice to even get started away
with the goods.
Shows Lack of knowledge
Your general statements that the
Oklahoma law encourages weak bank
ing, 1 would ask you to advise your
self. There are class OF people,
among whom there may be some edi-
tors, who form the habit of speaking
first and thinking afterward. This is
a bad practice. You should quit It.
You will discredit your newspaper.
There has never been a quarterly re-
port since the Oklahoma law was
passed that does not show conclusive
ly that the state banks of Oklahoma
are stronger than any other class of
banks in the state. I do not mean to
say that the other class of banks are
not sufficiently strong, but I do mean
to say that the Oklahoma state banks
are exceptionally strong.
In your issue of October Z you have
the following:
Both the governor and the bank
commissioners of Oklahoma, who are
disobeying a restraining order of the
United States court sitting at Guthrie,
in regard to paying depositors of the
failed Columbia bank, may in the end
acquire very wholesome respect for
the federal COURT Disobeying an order
of the United States court is danger
ous'
You have obviously copied this para
graph from the petition filed in the
United States court and the motion
for citation in the case referred to.
There is no other source from which
you could have acquired any such
statement of fact
Attorneys in Both Cases
In the first place the attorneys who
brought the suit are the same attor-
neys who have the case pending in
the United States supreme court, ap-
pealed from our state court to destroy
the state banking law. They secured
client, nonresident of our state,
with a $25,000 certificate of deposit on
the Columbia Bank and Trust COM
pany.
Protest against the payment of this
certificate had been filed with me. We
asked the holder to verify the gen
uineness of his claim under oath. His
counsel did not see fit to do this, but
proceeded to Guthrie and instituted
their case, not for the purpose of get
ting their money but for the purpose
of discrediting the law "a sentiment
which imagination might attribute to
you, but which we hope in your case
does not EXIST.
Learning that this action was con-
templated, our attorney telegraphed
the federal judge, asking a hearing in
case any application was made to him.
We feel that the governor of state
in the discharge of an official duty,
particularly of this character, where
great public injury might result, should
have been accorded the courtesy of a
conference. 1t was not given.
The court issued not such restrain
ing order as you indicate, but linn
tied order, solely attempting to re-
| f. kI,o tofa nIItbnrifinG from +
ing different creditors "unequally'
Inasmuch as there had been no un-
equal treatment, the restraining order
covering nothing that was not already
being practiced by us, and again ouI
attorney, at o'clock that morning
was before the judge with the full
amount of the plaintiffs claim in cash
to deposit in the hands of the clerk
of the court, subject to the final find
ing of the federal judge as to the
merits of the plaintiffs claim.
Knocks National Machine
do not expect to induce you to con-
cede that the authorities of the state
of Oklahoma have any rights what
ever. We have come to know thai
YOU and the element in which you cir
culate cannot accomplish your or
binary purpose in life through the TN
strumentality of governmental ma.
chinery selected by the people, AM
therefore your readiness to condemn
us-but 1 beg to assure you of one
thing: I am proud of my record as
public official for nearly three years II
Oklahoma. The people of Oklahoma
are satisfied and the fact that tho
Wall Street Journal persistently con
demns me is a source of great salts
faction to me.
There is but one thing to add; theor-
ize all you will about the virtue of the
national banking law; criticize all you
like about the policy of the Oklahoma
banking law, but the fact remains that
in Oklahoma state banks creditors can
get their money any day on demand
In a failed national bank he can't gel
his money anywhere in the union short
of several months, and in many IN
stances in several years, and ther
usually in such small partial payments
as to be the equivalent only of ordinary
interest per annum on his deposit, with
no hopes of ever getting the principle
Oklahoma can handle failed bank
without the slightest disorder on the
street or in the bank; policemen are
not required to preserve order. Local
business is not suspended by the tying
up of bank funds. We need no anti
dote for fever throughout the state on
such occasions.
You are not entitled to criticize the
Oklahoma law until you can show that
the law you favor produces equally
commendable results.
NIoNucc DCCT MCAMC E0p