Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-06-03
Payment of Dividends.

Payment of Dividends.
Whenever any company undertakes tG
organize in the District of Columbia, or
to increase its capital stock, the expenses
of organization shall not exceed 10 pei
cent Of the capital stock and surplus;
nor can any dividend be paid unless that
dividend is actually earned during the
next preceding dividend period.
No one of the financial institutions
named can either directly or Indirectly
be stOckhOlder in any other corpora
ton Interlocking directorates are
hibits any officer or director in any
financial institution from being an of
nicer or director in any competing COM
pany. and any trust company author
lied to do real estate business shall
be construed to be in competition with
any other company organized for the
purpose of carrying on a real estate
busines.
Governs Realty Holdings.
The bill further provides that no finan-
cial institution Incorporated under the
laws OF the District of Columbia shall
hereafter have invested more than - per
cent or It's combined capital and surplus
In real estate; and said amount should
be invested in real estate to be used ONLY
as the principal or home Office of said
company in the District of Columbia.
Any financial institution now owning
reai estate in excess of % per cent of its
capitai and surplus shall within a period
OF three years next after the passage of
tnls act dispose Of the same or forfeit
its charter Tor not so doing.
NO insurance company nor anv com
pany engaged I'm the business of making
contract OF indemnity shall be licensed
either upon original application or unon
applcatlon for renewal of license pre
riousiy granted. to do business in the
District or Columbia unless the s,lperin-
tendent of insurance shall first have sat
lsIed hlmself that the assets of said
claimed by said company or published hy
= lot tne purpose of inducing residents
OF the District of Columbia to enter into
contracts with said company
Agreements Barred.
The superintendent of insurance
shall also be further satisfied that anv
such company applying for license 10
do business in the District of Colum-
bia has not been, within three months
next before the application for said
Incense, member Of. or party to.
either directly or Indirectly, any union
conference, agreement, mutual under
standlng, or board, by which the rate
10 De charged for it's contracts Of in
demnity is fixed. and agreed upon he
tween, or among. 1t and any other like
company whether operating in the
District of Columbia or noD. consti
tutlng the membership of anv such
board. conference, union, agreement or
understanding,
Would Give Expenses.
IL the bill should become Law avary
financial institution in the Distric, of 90
lumbia will be required to include in it's
anhuaI statement a complete list Of it's
expenses, including salaries paid ia IFS
officers. directors and agents, and such
other expenditures as will enable the su-
perintendent of insurance or controller of
the currency. as the case may be. to as
certain whether said company is being
managed carefully, prudently and eco
nomically
There is a provision in the bill which
gives any OF the named institutions tho
right Of appeal to the Supreme Court of
the District of Columbia from any deci-
sion rendered by either the superintend-
ent of insurance or controller Of the cur
rency.
Aimed to Protect People.
oHe oi the most important and far
reaching provisions of the bill is that
which seeks to protect the residents of
the District of Columbia from the exor.
bitant rates charged by insurance and
indemnity companies. which rates are
fixed by agreement among the yarious
companies.
The existence of such a condition as IN
the fire insurance trust was fortu-
nately made manifest by the Testimony
Of Alfred NJ. Best. an insurance pub-
Usher of New York. who is we'll in
formed upon this subject Mr. Best vol
unfairly appeared before the congress
sional committee which conducted the in
vestigation as to the Commercial and
First National fire insurance companies
and gave the committee the benefit OF
this information