Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1914-06-13

Trust Company, of Red Bank, the
| Newton Trust Company, of Newton,
and the New Brunswick Trust Com
pany, of New Brunswick In defer
ence to the tendency of the times,
recognizing the sentiment against
| holding companies and interlocking
directorates, and also to effect econo-
mics in management and to facilitate
| the general conduct of the business
of these companies, we asked under
that bill for permission to operate
these particular institutions as
| branches. In other words, we asked
for authority to simply take over
| what belonged to us. Insofar as the
| public might be concerned the only
| difference would have been that these
companies, instead of having distinc-
| tive local names, would have been
called branches of the Fidelity Trust
| Company. In no way would it have
tended, as some feared, to the Gre
alton of banking trust. On the con-
trary, 1t would have given greater
elasticity to the money situation in
these various places.
That was the situation when this
matter was before the Legislature.
1t is precisely the situation now.
Then we asked only to take over
as branches the companies that we
already had, That is all we ask now
Then We had no thought of adding
in any way additional companies to
those that we owned. And we have
no such thought now. What we
would like to do is to make branches
of these five companies. We do not
want any more branches than these.
In neither fact nor fancy is any such
thing even family contemplated
That fact is made plain in a bill
which / wish to submit to you. You
will see that even if we had a change
of heart and mind-which I assure
you is SO unlikely as to be impossi-
ble--this proposed law would not per-
NIT us, or any other institution to
start distinctly new branches or ac-
quire by purchase or in any other
Provisions of Measure.
way existing institutions that might
| subsequently be made branches"
Mr.. McCarter then went on to read
the proposed law. 1t is entitled, "A
| Supplement to an Act Concerning
Trust Companies" (Revision of 1890.
approved March "a, 1899. In the first
section of the proposed supplement it
| is provided that mo trust company
of this State shall hereafter acquire
a majority interest of the stock of amy
other trust company or national or
State bank doing business within this
State The second section says
Except as hereinafter authorized no
trust company of this state shall
maintain any branch where banking
business in any form is carried on,
outside of the county in which the
principal office of said trust company
is located" The third section reads
as follows:
s''Any trust company of this Estate
which now owns at least three-quar-
tiers of the capital stock of any other
trust company of this State may,
upon the dissolution of said last
named trust company, in the man
ner now provided bylaw, acquire the
property and BUSINESS of said dis
solved trust company and establish
and maintain branch of the con-
duct of all business which by law 1t
is authorized to transact. in substi-
tuition for and in the place of the trust
company so dissolved as aforesaid.
THAT" said Mr. McCarter, sis the
entire bill except the clause which
provides that the act shall take
effect Immediately Under it State
wide general branch banking Is not
permitted. If that is to be permitted
provision will have to be made for IT
in another act. This particular Dill
| gives us, or any other trust COM
pany situated as we are, PERMISSION
not to form now. or in the future
new and additional branches. but to
take over what we already own. IN
der this bill we can do that and Moth
| ing more Were we ever so ANXIOUS
to form additional branches or pur-
chase additional established instltu-
lions we could not do il under this
measure. In having 1t drawn by apie
counsel we endeaVered to have thot
fact and that limitation made as plain
as the English language could make
il. 50 as to meet and forever set at
| rest. any possible fear that there
might be in any quarter on tnat
score. If this bill does not confine
rs and all other trust companies to
the taking over of only what we how
/ own-if il does not bar US and other
institutions from going one step fur-
Their than that-I'lf be glad to have
the measure changed to cover the
point if anyone here, or elsewhere
will suggest the method or the Ian
| guage for that purpose
Mr. McCarter went on to explain
that in spite of the fact that the tul-
est publicity had been given to the
I
been some suggestions that an Mt
tempt had been made to smuggle II
through the Legislature. In order
that no such implication might be at
tached to the present bill, he said, he
was bringing the matter up at this
time so that it might have unques-
toned publicity and also be sub
mitted next Monday to the special
committee of twenty one State bank
ers, which has the subject of branch
| banking under consideration.
"All that Mr. McCarter has said.
! declared President Harry c. Bachel-
1 Ter. of the Ironbound Trust Company
"is so frank, and so fair, and so abso-
lutely true TO the facts as we know
| them to be. that ! don't think that
we ought to hesitate one minute
about indorsing this proposed bill. 1t
| is a business proposition pure and
simple It is legitimately helpful to
| the Fidelity Trust Company and it
! cannot possibly hurt anyone else. or
any other institution. l am in favor
of it."
II also am in favor of it," said
Cashier A. II, r. Martin, of the Essex
] County National Bank. and Cashier