Evening star., 1923-12-16
Unclaimed Bank Deposits
Before the Supreme Court

could. as there is no way of gather
ing the information.
Many states have laws providing
that II bank account remains dor
mant for twenty years the money re-
verts to the state government. The
rule Is that If no deposit Is made or
any check drawn against the account
in twenty years there is good reason
to believe that the money has been
abandoned. However, even though the
account has lain dormant. If the bank
has any reason Of any sort whatever
to believe the owner of the money
is still alive the rule does not oper-
ate. The twenty-year period must run
from the last deposit or check or
from the last information that the
depositor was alive.
Case From California.
In the recent case decided by the
Supreme Court Of the United States
the state OF California, receiving no.
tice that large Los Angeles bank
had an accumulation OF such dormant
deposits, entered suit to obtain the
abandoned money for the state. The
bank opposed the suit on the ground
that 1t was trustee for the depositors
and must continue to hold the money.
After being fought through the state
courts the case went up to the Su-
preme Court Of the United States.
which upheld the law and turned the
money over to the state. If, however.
within five years some claimant
comes forward and proves that he has
right to the money he can recover
1t from the state.
Banks earn money through making
loans out Of the funds deposited with
them for safe-keeping. Most bank
accounts are likely to go up and down
constantly. owing to the deposits and
Withdrawals made by the depositors.
These dormant accounts are very ad-
vantageous to. banks. because they
remain stationary. The bank keeps
lending the money out at interest
year after year.
A large eastern institution more
than a century ago started a bank
which catered primarily to the sailors
OF New England. It is proverbial
that no one throws his money away
SO freely as a sailor ashore, but there
are exceptions to all rules. Many
sailors do the reverse. Being of
thifty dispositions they save more
than others. because aboard ship
there Is not much opportunity to
spend money. The seafaring life is
one of the most hazardous, and while
1t Is a proverb that a sailor has a
sweetheart in every port, compare
lively few sailors have wives and
children. They are free, rowing per-
sons. whose home Is the whole world.
Men put forth to sea and never come
pack They leave no heirs and no
beneficiaries.
This particular institution obtain.
ed the savings accounts of great
numbers OF sailors, and in the natural
course OF events large numbers were
lost at sea- Every twenty years 1t
had to turn over to the state the
accumulated abandoned deposits, but
In the Intervening two decades II
made good use of the money and be-
came very rich. 1t is now one of
the richest banks in the country.
Occasionally some promoter at
tempts to organize a business Of find-
ing missing heirs and recovering
these abandoned accounts, but much
proof Is required to establish, first.
that the original depositor Is dead,
and, second. that the claimant is tho
rightful heir. =
country that does not have a share Of
this buried treasure--buried In the
vaults and on the ledEer3 Of the Tn
stitutiohs.