The independent. [volume] (Elizabeth City, N.C.) 1908-1936, 1926-01-01
NEGRO BANK CASHIER .
KEPT TWO SETS BOOKS
Startling Find of Secret Accounts Reveals
Albemarle Banks Liabilities in Excess Of
500, ,0O0-Cashier in Jail

31VV,VUU-N
i Evidence that W. III. Holland
! cashier sof the dciunct Abe
marie Rank of Elizabeth CIT!
kept two sets OF books and that
the liabilities Of the bank are
in excess of 100000 was dis
covered by Chief State Bank
Examiner Clarence Latham ;
men this week.
Ono set of books Holland kept
for, tho State Bank Examiner, show
m- St2.JSG.Sl due depositorS. An
other set Of books sccreted by liol'
land sh, we'd $2LJ%0.E additional
due dcposirors. total of SfI,li'.2'.
With S:23%.7OO due other banks this
hr;n.< the total liabilities 50 far
discovered 10 SlO0,SlI.o1. = And the
auditors at work on the books fear
that this isu,t all Of il yet.
The assets of the bank consist OF
securities which Oh their face total
$St,%J7.7i. But how many of these
securities are bogus is yet to bt'
! determined. 1t is also possible that
other accounts due dcpositorS are
yet to he uncovered.
I And Holland Came Back
And ". III. Holland. the cashier,
who left town Christmas Eve mora
Ing whcu the bank closed because
! or Inability to satisfy its customers.
came back to town "Wednesday. went
to the bank. was confronted with
the evidence Uf his cOnccalmcntS.
admitted his guilt and WAS promptly
arrtestel and committed to Jail
without bail.
Holland had gone TO Eyansvill".
Ind. 10 spend Christmas with his
wife and child. He said he would
come back. And sure enough bc
did. lie appeared dazcd when audi
tor W. ). 4Courscy confronted him
with his secret accounts aud admit
ted that he had concealed them.
T! At the county Jail Thursday mora
imy Henaaf would make no fofm-'
statement. lie said he didn't know
there was Il shortage and that Ii
there was he wanted 10 take his
mcdiciue. ... ......
Thinks Holland Crazy
Il cau't account for Holland :
conduct uulcsS be is absolutely
crazy" declared Examiner Latham.
7 lie certainly had every opportun-
, ity Ia get away. lie could even
have destroyed his secret accounts
, before leaving for Indiana AMI his
declaration might not have been dis
covered for weeks.
The AlbCmarlc Bank. the only
Negro bank in Northeastern North
Z Carolina had beeu in business Just
! five years. opening for business Ill
january 1920. Holland had been
! lis cashier all this time. He was Il
bright yellow Negro. of good appear
anrr. well educated. courteous and
nbliriny. Prior TO 1919 he was Il
chief cUmmiSSary steward i'll the
; L. =. Navy. For six months before
coming To Elizabeth City he WIS
assistant cashier in Il Negro Dank
in Portsmouth. Va. lie was highly
recommended and his recoumcnda
tionS and appears ucc commented
him To the Elizabeth City pubic
I from the first. He had the CONT
dcu,,, ,f both white. and cOlorcl
pcople aud not white banker lii
, Elizabeth City believed there was
ANYTHING crooked in the affairs OF
the Albcmarlc Bank when it closed
, its doors on Dec. 2l.
Santa Claus Sarted 1t
, 1t was Christmas that played
havoc with the Albemarlc Bank
Ordinarily $1,000 TO $1,000 day is
all the actual cash the bank needed
to carry on. But the week before
. Christmas it paid ont $4,000 i'll
Christmas Savings checks. Other
dCpoSitorS began TO draw heavily
for Christmas Spcndin.S.
Now in Il white mans bank the
money drawn out by n dcpositor TO-
day usually goes into the bands .!
smother dcpcSitOr who 1itS it back
in the bank the same day or the
next day. John Smith takes $500
out of the bank. pays Il few debts
around town and spends money with
the merchants and the merchants
carry the money right back to the
banks. That's how banks are Gu
ablc,l to lend the same dollar over
and over again and make not six
per cent. but II per cent, Is per
cent or even better Oh their capital.
But not 50 with Negro bauE.
The colored brother draws his
money out of his own baIf. spends
it with white merchants or pays oil
Il note held by white man and th2
money doesn't get back 10 the Negro
bank: it goes over into the white
banks. And 50 when too many
colored folks called for money
christmas week the Albemarle Bans
irSt couldn't get enough cash to
Il u, InhlI.