The Donaldsonville chief., 1914-04-11
BANK GUARANTEE LAW NOT 4 FAILURE
Measure Has Proved Successful in Kansas Texas and
Nebraska, Declares Representative SchWing---
Similar Statute for Louisiana to be Urged al
Coming Session of Legislature

which deals comprehensive with
this subject? The writer of your ed
itorial has evidently unintentionally
Wronged the readers by causing to
/ be incorporated and embodied in
/ your editorial columns a statement
/ that is wholly without foundation in
fact in connection with this matter.
| | refer to the statement quoted that
Oklahoma has adopted a new bank
ing law with the guarantee feature
eliminated Oklahoma has done
nothing of the kind if the article pub
llshed In the Saturday Evening Post
OF last Saturday is c9rrect. Are YOU
willing to deny the CORE
that article? 4 &@s siszs
Newspapers with tb4
est at heart will make
superficial study of z#ss
while it will not baS
to all agree, We sho
fairly and squarely
Some old ladie@ nalistiS
world will, Of CO.. eyes
and oppose a measuKe Of this kind
"just because Based on ignor-
passive stupidity, the pretended ar
guments of such newspapers relate
more to its advertising columns and
its counting rooms in the way Of
bank advertisements than to the gen
eral interests and Well-being of the
masses of credulous depositors
through the length aAd breadth of
the state. In thus hying I refer
neither to the States nVr to the Times
Democrat, whose articles on this sub
ject have been at least interesting,
however one-sided or leaning in the
wrong direction-from my point of
view, of course.
Properly administered, a guarantee
system should be run on somewhat
the same basis that a fire insurance
company is operated. 1t is, as the
Times-Democrat has said, a matter
of actuarial calculation. But the
banking interests of New Orleans will
not accept this point OF view, though
the board of directors of the Peo-
ple's Bank of Donaldsonville has
passed a resolution heartily fayoring
and indersing such q plan. Many
country indorse the plan. Others, it
is true, oppose the principle either
through ignorance or because they
act as mouthpieees for their city cor
respondents. issz.sake .u,sisa pres
ident Of the T3lzs8efRan GanK and
Trust Company of DeRidder, La, is
one Of the foremost advocates among
the country bankers. With guarantee
laws in Texas and Mississippi this
forWard-moVing banker sees what is
coming-or going-if we don't make
a move in Louisiana. Already Lou
lsiana has furnished large number
of depositors to Texas banks.
With an efficient, capable and
scrupulous banking department, re-
quiring the proper and rigid exami
nations into a banks affairs before
it becomes member of a guarantee
system, there is no more reason why
it should prove other than a success
than there is reason for fire in
surance company, with a big business
and properly managed, proving other
than a success.
Certainly we insure our homes in
which we live though guarding them
ourselves. Yet we foolishly put
money in banks, emit lsting it to
strangers, without anyssecurity at all.
Why should we trust others with
our money and not trust our homes
to ourselves? Surely We do not ex-
peet our homes to burn when we in
sure them, but still We do not wish
to take any chances. Likewise We
do not expect bank to fail when
we deposit in it, but why should de-
positors be made to take chances?
If depositors had any idea of the
probability of g they
would not depd course.
But it is always thg~knk that gets
the confidence of th4 people that
goes wrong. If it dit have the
confidence of the who didsa
business with it then it would edaa1ataI
be aBanso get the business. s
1t a learly a one-sided S
ton sauses a borrower esas
nish III kinds of collateral and moTrs
gage notes when he borroWs a thou
sand dollars from a bank, and at the
same time causes a depositor to
hofC LIZ oSSu11ty SbI GIL SzASSpt - q
pass book when he deposits a thou
sand dollars in bank.
Is it fair or just, or near-just, that
widows and orphans should be swept
into the streets through bank fail
ures? Is it becoming in strong men
to permit a continuance of such a
condition that could be and should
be easily and properly remedied? Is
it right that powerful newspapers Ia
boring in the interest of justice and
humanity should see only the in
terests of the financiers, and be OBJ
1ivious to and forgetful of the toll
ing masses of the people?
A small assessment of, say, one
twentieth of one per cent on the de-
posits of a banking Institution with
deposits of a half million dollars
would amount to only $3.50, and that
assessment would only continue an
nually until such time as the fund
would reach fixed sum. That
would be very little for bank, but
if that same bank should fail 1t
would mean q great deal to the I'M
happy, unlucky and unfortunate Deo-