Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-08-03
!. B. LARNER HAS
68TH BIRTHDAY
President of Washington
Loan and Trust Has Led an
Active Life in Capital.
BY EDWARD G. STONE.

! BY EDWARD {. STONE.
John b. Larner. president of the
| Washington Loan and Trust Co.
reached his siXty-eighth birthday to-
| day, passing the milestone quietly q
] his Summer home in southern Penn
| sylvania and thus denying his friends
| the opportunity Of saying it with
| flowers" Mr.. Larner has lived an
| extremely active life and under his
| guidance the trust company has made
splendid strides. After being the
banks vice president and general
| counsel from 1889 10 1917. he was
! elected to the presidency. John JOY
Edison becoming chairman of the
| board.
Early in life law appealed 10 Mr..
| Larner more than finance and he was
! graduated in 1879 from what is now
the George Washington Law School,
| being admitted to the bar in the SANE
year. He soon gained prominence as
a lawyer, but after becoming con-
nected with the trust company Ee
gradually found himself giving more
| and more time 10 financial matters.
| until he finally gave up active law
| practice. Yet his legal advice has
! always been in demand. as is shown
/ by the fact that ne is president AMI
counsel of the Home Plate Glass Ia
| surance Co., director and counsel Ma
| tional Union Insurance Co, counsel
| for the Young Mems Christian Asso.
, ciation trustee Of the George Wash
| ingtOn University, the Public Library
| Washington Humane Society and the
New York Avenue Presbyterian
| Church president of the Presbyterian
Home for the Aged. treasurer OF the
| Columbia Historical Society and ~
the. John Dickson Home for Aged
| Men and president Of the Washington
Home for Foundlings.
/ Mr. I4arner is member Of the
American Bar Association. Distric
Bar Association and District Bankers
Association. as well as American
| Bankers Association. and vice presl
| dent of the Equitable COOPERATIVE
Building Association. He is a mem
Der Of the Archaeological Institute cf
| America and among his clubs are the
! Chevy Chase, University, Lawyers
! Cosmos, National Press and City. The
! bank president found time to write
quite extensively on legal and finan
cial subjects and his translation int"
English of Dumas Life of Napoleon
brought him much renown. lie is q
contributor to Trust Companies Maya
zine and has edited the Columbia His
torical Society's records since 1905.
He is former member of the Board
of Education, and on recent motor
trip visited some Of the oldest col
leSes in the country. among them
Bowdoin. at Brunswick Me, and
Dartmouth at Hanover. y. II. He IS
ardent in his belief that the elias
sizes should still be taught In the
schools.
Before his next birthday MIR. Lar.
ner will see the completion of an ad-
dition which will double the size of
his bank. construction being due %
start next week.
| Today's Market Session Quiet
Prices held well hut trading was
light on the local exchange today.
Washington Gas Light reached 20.
Railway and Electric preferred stood
AT 90I4 after yesterdays record activi-
ty. Mergenthaler sold nj 1861 on 2
20.share transfer. Potomac Electric
Power preferred registered one sale
at 10ss and Capital Traction did rho
same, the price for this stock being
1885. Five shares of District Nation
al Bank stock sold at 235. Trading :
in bonds was fairly varied and at the
recently prevailing quotations.
New Insurance Directors Named.
At the annual meeting of the iii
rectors of the Potomac Insurance Co.
held late yesterday. the following di-
rectors were elected for the ConlinE
year. NndTleS I1OOu- NildilcS
| Howe, Thomas c. Moore, F. Norie-
Miller, C. F. r. Ogilby. Richard r.
Pairo. Alexander X. Phillips, Edmund
d. Rheem. Frederick Richardson and
George W. White. Lee Brown and
Maurice Besnard were elected as new
members OF the board.
Appointed New Manager.
A. d. Carpenter has been appointed
81 tho local Office nf tho G1lD
Life Assurance Co. succeeding the
late Orville r. Drown. whose death oc-
Cured in June. The new manager
has risen very rapidly in the instr
ance world. having been in the husi-
, Iness only since March. 1922, startinc,
in with the National Life of Vermont
In November. 1924. he was appointed
representative of the Mutual Life Of
New York. staying with that com
Ipany until his present appointment.
/, The Sun Life which has had an office
here since 1923. operates in A. differ
, ent countries. The new local manager
is receiving hearty congratulations
/, from his friends.
Steady Decrease in Failures.
continued decrease in the number
of commercial failures in the United
! States for the last four months is
; shown in July reports to r. G. Dun 4
GO. The total for July was 1.60S, the
smallest since last October. This rep-
resents a decrease of per cent from
June and 80 per cent from January.
Interest Rate Ordered Cut.
: A reduction from sig to per cent
J | in the interest rate on loans from the
Houston. Tex. Federal Land Bank
was ordered yesterday by Commits
sioner A. c. Williams of the Federal
Farm Loan Bureau.
Deposits OF $4,000. 900.
The Federal Reserve Boards weekly
condition statement of 500 reporting
member banks in leading cities as of
July % shows declines of s7,000,ooO In
loans and discounts. $12 1000. 900 in in
yestments and SIS. 900 in net de
mand deposits, and an increase Of
SIS 900 900 in borrowings from the
Federal Reserve Banks.