The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1911-10-12
BOARDS NEW POLICY.
Dolley and Sessions Ask Restrictions
in Granting Bank Charters.


The board which grants charters te
new banks will make certain limits
| as to giving the charters. This poIiey
was outlined by J. N. Dolley, state
bank commissioner, and Charles Ses-
| sIOnS, secretary of state before thc
| meeting of group two of Kansas bank
ers at the Elks' club Wednesday. The
provisions with which the board was
| empowered at the last legislature al
| low the board to determine whether OF
not it is to the best interests of the
banking business to grant the char
! ter.
For instance: If as many banks as a
TOWN. can carry have already been es-
tabhshed in a town, the board will not
grant an application for a new char
ter; likewise:
If a town is too small for single
bank; If a bank is organized for spite:
or If the bank is organized by a pre-
moter who makes it his business and
his record is not first-cIass.
However, if there is room for a bank
and it is organized in good faith with
responsible men behind it, the charter
VIII be granted. Mr. DolIey brought
this out in his talk in the afternoon.
AS far as possible Mr.. DolIey has
advocated and followed that policy
ever since he has become bank commits
sioner. But until the legislature pass
ed law giving the board discretionary
powers there was no way to prevent a
bank from securing a charter. Even
after the law was passed and in oper-
alton IN the case of the Abilene bank,
the supreme court had to determine the
exact status of the board. In the de-
clsion banded down Saturday it sus-
tanned the opinion of Dolley and Ses-
slons in claiming discretionary powers
against Attorney General John Dawson,
the third member of the board.
Mr.. Sessions speech in part follows:
The state supreme court has just
upheld the law giving the charter
board discretionary powers in the
granting of bank charters That law
lays a responsibility upon me as a
member of that board. I did not seek
the responsibility, neither shall I run
from it. 1t may interest you bankers
to know what the policy of at least one
member of the board will be- I be-
lieye that Kansas is pretty well stock
ed with banks right now, if not over
stocked. The 897 banks of Nebraska
have an average deposit of S2O22S4I
each; the 1861 banks of Iowa have
deposits of $222,412 each: the
912 banks of Minnesota have an aver
age deposit of $352,703 each, while the
$50 banks of Kansas have an aver
age deposit of $169,000 each. Kansas
has a bank for ever 1904 people,
Iowa has one for every 1854 people
and Minnesota one for every also
people. The only state that has more
toned is Nebraska, and yet it has
nearly two hundred banks less than
Kansas.
81 bring you this message concern
ing the Kansas state banks, and what
[ say of state banks am also certain
applies to the national banks of our
state,' said Mr.. Dolley. ''They were
never in a stronger, cleaner, and more
solvent condition than they are today.
Our deposits are increasing, reserves
are strong, assets are clean, the man
agement of the banks very creditab1e.
and we have no apologies to offer for
our stewardship as custodian of the
peoples earnings and wealth entrust-
ed to our care
D. R. Anthony in a talk said regard
ing the coming report of the currency
commission named at the last session
Of congress, that he thought that it
meant better legislation for banking
and business in general.
J. T. Pringle conducted a question
box.
Following the afternoon session the |
bankers visited the Santa Fe shops.