New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-05-21
Court Denies Ruling
Printed in Tribune

case to-day Assistant Attorney Gen
crAl Warren called the attention OF
Justice McC oy 20 The Story Of the trial
printed this morning IN The New York
Tribune. lie said he had not proposed
20 argue, but "ir view o. the questions
which your horor put 20 Mr. Inter
myor yesterday and in view OF an
article which appeared in The New
York Tribune which your honor may
or may not have seen"
Here Justice Mccoy interrupted TO
say he had seen the article
In which II i stated continued
Mr.. Warren, "tha. your honor made .
ruling upon "A point which vas then
Under discussion. ] think that | per
hsps owe il 20 my Cheats 10 enlarge
somewhat upon that point. although |
90 not understand that your honor did
make any ruling OF any Kind. and that
the newspaper articles we're erronc-
ous."
In answer TO which Justice Mccoy
said:
THE article was called to my atten-
tion this morning. and you need not
argue on account Of il. OF course, It is
q deliberate misstatement Of what took
place ia court yesterday. and ! am as
tonished thai any reporter who claims
to be an honest neu and a gentleman
could. in view Of my simply having
asked a question for the information
Of the court as to the views OF an al
torncy upon a statute. have gone ahead
and sent 70 his paper am such delib-
crate. not TO say malicious, misstate
mert OF what took place in a court
room; and il vcrges very closely on
contempt Of court. While ! would be
one Of the lsst 70 restrain in any way
any proper statement o. what takes
place in court. the time may come
when somebody will find himself in
trouble for making a statement Of
that kind"
In the pay; OF the court proceedings
Of Yesterday on which The Tribune
story was based Mr.. Untermyer mad
been arguing that The Controller had
the right to impose n fine Of 500
day Oh la-h for failure 20 make any
report called for by the Controller
within a given time. This fine. he
said applied not only TO the five regu-
lar REPORTS of the banks condition.
which must be furnished within Eve
DAYS. and notice Of dividend action.
which must be furnished in ten days,
but 70 all reports called for by the
Controller. He had described the his
tory OF the sections in which the fines
are provided for.
Here is the stenographic report OF
the colloquy between Justice Mccoy
and Mr.. UnteTmyer yesterday:
The Court--Whst about the fact
that when they revised the bank net
they put the clause in regard to spe-
cial reports. al the end OF Section 5,2l1,
and THEREBY took it away from any
period Of limitation? 1t was changed,
apparently. from the act Of 1853 in It's
location in the statute and brought
outside of the five days.
Mr.. Untermyer-But they did not
take it away from any period Of
limitation, because they supposed
they were putting it into the
period OF limitation when they imposed
the penalty BY Section 5,2l3 for the
failure TO file any report. You have
got to give reasonable construction
10 a statute. You have got TO give it
q meaning, and this does not say "any
general report" but it says "any as
ISOLATION which fails 10 transmit any
report required under any of the sec
tons"
The Court-After the period
Mr.. Untermyer Yes, after the
period" is FIVE days in one case and ten
days in the other.
The Court-Five days for the re-
port published in the newspapers. ten
days for the dividend report, but what
for the special reports?
Mr.. Untermyer-No, your honor;
that would be so if X were not Tor
Section 5,213, which is there. Section
5.2l3 mean. something when II says
that every association that tails TO
transmit any report required under
this section" shall be punished, etc
What meaning are you going 20 give
70 that?
The Court-Any Of the reports
after the respective periods. mo
Mr.. Untermyer 49, Yes; but THE
periods, respectively" your honor, sim
ply refers to days. That is. it is as
though they said: AIN Section SILL,
you have got a fve-dsy period in the
other you have got ten-dsy period.
Now then, Section 5,2ll provides for
two kinds Of reports. II you fail to
file any report within the period men
toned in Section 5,2ll, five days
which would have applied only to a
general report. but for Section 5,2l2.
which makes il then applicable 20 any
report-"you are liable to the penalty
But for that what situation are
you going to have? You are going TO
have a situation in which there Is
practically no remedy for the failure
70 file this special report except the
forfeiture or the charter
Now, if they had said "any special re-
port or any general report after the
periods respectively therein mentioned