Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1912-06-06
COMPTROLLER OF CURRENCY HAS
EFFECTED MANY REFORMS
DURING ADMINISTRATION.
ONLY REPRESENTATIVE OF
rEppY's TENNIS CABINET LEFT
Murray Too Valuable an Official for
TAFT to Loss-Has Plans for Adding
Strength to National Banking System
Has Secured More General Co.
operation Of Dirsetors.
Especial Correspondence

| lSpeclal correspondence
Washington, June 6.-Men who have
held over from the days Of Roosevelt
are about as scarce as hens teeth in
| the Taft administration. One of the
few of them is Comptroller Of the Cur
rency Lawrence o. Murray. Mr.. MUIR
ruy used to be a member Of the tennis
cabinet in the Roosevelt admtnistra :
ton and somehow or other he has re-
! manned persona grata with the present
| administration. One secret of it seems
| to be that Mr.. Murray is making rec
| ord for strict administration OF the
laws for the regulation of national
| banks which has never been excelled,
! Leading bankers do not hesitate to
say that national bank regulation and
| supervision has vastly improved In the
last several years. Mr. Murray has
! kept hammering away on the PROPOSE
| ton that the directors of banks must
remember their responsibilities and ex-
ercise them. BY pounding away at this
idea and by holding the examiners up
to high standard. Mr.. Murray has so
far improved bank supervision that
failures in national banks these days
are becoming rare.
more Legislation NeO0o0.
However, there is need for more leg
islation before the banks can in all
respects be brought up to the standard
which Mr.. Murray wants to see estab-
;iisii.el. ue has been giving especial
attention of late to the question OF
how to detect all defalcations and
forged paper. He will ask congress to
enact law, modelled after the New
York law, which requires boards OF di-
rectors, either the entire board or a
committee of not less than three mem
bers. at least twice year to make
careful examination into the books, pa
pers and business of the banking in
situations with which they are con-
nected. The nature Of the securities
held by the institution is the thing
which the directors are required to
give special attention under the New
York law. Reports in writing and un-
DER oath must be made of these exam
nation. to the authorities. Such ex-
aminations are required in New YORK
under penalty Mr.. Murray wants
congress to apply similar law TO the
director. of national banks. He be-
lieves that such examinations would
be an efficient safeguard against bad
that has undertaken to enforce this
principle Of having the directors give
personal attention to the condition OF
, the banks paper Nebraska. Oklahoma
and Missouri have requirements for pc
riodical examinations by committees
and reports to the state banking au-
thorities.
COOPERATION General.
Mr.. Murray has found that many
things can be done by appeal to the
directors and he intends to do what he
can to get the directors to take this
matter UP without waiting for law. He
IL urging the directors to give special
attention to the reports OF examining
committees and to send him copies Of
the reports made by these committees.
No additional expense worth mention
| ing is involved
| Examiners Of national banks have
beer instructed to take up with ex-
aiming committees the question Of
methods and to give them suggestions
which will be helpful. These sugges-
tons relate to the general proposition
Of insuring the genuineness Of paper.
II is the hope Of the comptroller that
by the exercise Of due attention to the
banks paper. defalcations and forged
securities will become practically a
thing of the past and that the certainty
of detention will be such as to dis
courage attempts at palming off bad
aaper on the national banking institu-
tons.
GEORGE EDMUND Foss DEAD.