The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1910-05-22
BANKERS HAPPY AT
LUNCHEON GIVEN AS
FAREWELL FEATURE
Lancaster of Wetumpka Was
Elected President at the
Business Session
VALUE OF ADVERTISING
IS LAUDED BY LEWIS
Hammer Explains Nature and Duties
of State Banks-Brodus of De-
catur Submits Defense of
jtl Branch Banks


With delightful luncheon at the Coun-
try club, at which the bankers reduced
their capital of wit, and issued dividends
on their stock of eloquence, the conven-
ton of the Alabama Bankers associa-
ton closed its business yesterday and
adjourned to meet in Montgomery next
year.
The luncheon began at Q o'clock and
ers passed quips and jokes, which even
bankers found exceedingly funny w. w.
Crawford, chairman of the committee on
entertainment, with a few remarks, in
troduced Walker Percy, who acted as
POSTMASTER
Mr.. Percy in the course of his remarks
used the Knight-Yancey failure as an
example to stress the necessity for
rigid enforcement of the criminal laws
of the state and the improvement of
the laws. He thought the time right for
the bankers to express their condemna-
ton of such proceedings.
President introduced
| President w. L. Lancaster was intro
duced, and in a few words thanked the
members for the honor which they had
done in electing him and pledged them
his best efforts during the coming year.
| The POSTMASTER introduced McLane
| Tilton, secretary of the association, as a
very versatile man, to whom the bankers
are under lasting obligations for his I'M
firing energy and his courage in sug-
costing needful legislation, and Mr.. TIL
ton made an interesting reply.
After humorous introduction he said
he wanted to stress two particular points
before the bankers. 1.-THE bankers pros
perity and the prosperity of the producer
| of cotton are identical. We can't afford
to fail to support the farmer in his con-
tention that 10 cents under the present
| conditions and high cost of living is
cheap price. 1t is imperative that we
bankers should give them all the aid and
protection they need"
| He had just returned from conference
| at Charlotte, where the representatives
of the spinning interests of the world had
met and declared that he found that the
| Nav pool in cotton had been caused by a
| combination of the spinners, who had
bought the cotton for May delivery. and
when they appealed to New York bank
ers to finance them, the money had been
refused unless they would agree not to
call for the cotton in May. Nevertheless
many of them had gone ahead, and he
declared the bears had failed to deliver,
and to his mind there is a determined
effort on the part of the Arkwright club
and the New York bankers to depress the
price of cotton. For this reason he urge
the southern bankers to stand by their
own farmers.
| w. o. Jones of the Park National bank
| of New York followed Mr.. Tilton with u
score of anecdotes in happy vein.
| Gen. Rucker Introduced
1.-THE next speaker" said Mr.. Percy, us
| a pioneer of Birmingham, Forrest $
right-hand man, who has always been
successful in war and in peace. His
courage was shown in his backing every
enterprise looking toward the building up
of this district, the grand old man
General E. w. Rucker."
General Rucker declared that he had
never made a speech in his life, and is
now too old to begin; that he had but one
| thought In answer to the compliments
of the POSTMASTER. He said he still had
unlimited faith in the Birmingham dis
| trict and had recently shown that faith
| by, in his small way, backing DR.. Grove
in his development of the Fayette gas
wells. While he owned some OF the stock
there is not dollar of 1t for sale, nor
| did he intend to put 1t on SALE and what
he was saying was simply to promote the
| continued development of Birmingham
and Alabama.
He told how a New York banker, after
careful examination by an expert who
spent three weeks at Fayette, had offered
| to put 100000 in the enterprise, but
when Dr. Grove submitted the terms to
| him he had advised unhdsitatingly that
| they be rejected as the New Yorker
wanted it ALL His last word to the bank
| ers was that If they wanted to show their
patriotism and continue the work OF de-
| velopment which the toastmaster said he
In some way had himself promoted. they
| would advance to DR.. Grove all the
money needed and every foot OF land
| between Fayette and Mobile and between
Fayctte and Birmingham would be
doubled in value.
E. w. Barrett was called upon. and in
response to his toast spoke of Birming-
ham as a place for young men. why,
there's Will Harding" he said, who
came to Birmingham as clerk In the
old Berney bank. and now he is president
of the largest bank in the state" Webb
Crawford he said, had risen from a real
estate agent to be the president Of an
i other great bank, and Walker Percy came
to Birmingham as young lawyer. land
now he has risen to the honor of becom-
ing a member of the legislature"
Election of Omcers
The election of officers and the dis
cussion of branch banks were the feat
ures of yesterdays business meetings
The following officers were elected:
-
dent.
Frank M. Moody of Tuscaloosa, vice
president.
McLane Tilton of Pell City, secretary.
treasurer.
Group Vice Presidents
No. Is. H. Rhett
No. Wv. w. Crawford.