Evening star., 1933-02-22
MITCHELL QU|zZED
AGAIN NBY SENATORS
Chairman of National City
Bank Questioned About
National City Co.
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
Resuming its investigation of the
National City Bank, the Senate Bank
ing Committee today questioned Charles
e. Mitchell, chairman of the banks
board, about the operations of it's Sc
curity affiliate. the National City Co.
h The banker, taking the stand for the
second successive day, was backed up
by corps of assistants and subordi-
mates. The committees questioning
again was conducted by its counsel.
Ferdinand Pecora.
Asked About Sugar Corporation.
Pecora asked Mitchell further TODAY
about the General Sugar Corporation
which the National City Co. bought
In 1927.
Mitchell said he was chairman of the
sugar company's board and that loans
mad been made to Cuban sugar COM
panies since 1927.
Despite the collapsed state Of the
sugar industry to which you referred
yesterday" Pecora asked.
Mitchell then said he wanted to cor.
rect the impression he had given in
yesterdays testimony that the Cuban
sugar industry had been in a col
iapsed state" since 1920 except for a
orlef breathing spell from 1923 to 1925.
Stock Declared Sold at Loss.
In his testimony late Yesterday. Nit
chell told how he avoided paving an in
come tax in 1929 by selling stock in the
National City Bank to a member of his
family at loss of nearly $4,000, 900,
which he later rebought. Earlier. he
had testified to receiving total bonus
payments, in addition to his salary of
about $3,500,000 during the three years
OF the market BOOM" 1927, 1928 and
1929. from the bank and its security
affiliate, the National City Co.
The committee also heard from its
counsel, Pecora, the story OF an involved
transaction by which he suggested the
bank had "bailed out" loss of $50, ,00O.-
600 on bad Cuban sugar loans by selling
stock to the public for the purchase of
the General Sugar Corporation through
its affiliate.
Mitchell's story of how he avoided
paying an income tax in 1929 was de-
veloped by persistent questioning from
Pecora after the banker had spent al
most an entire day on the stand.
He described how he bought thou
sands Of shares in National City Bank
stock 'in the midst of the panic" in
1929. to support the market. Alto
gether, he said, he bought 28, 300 shares
and shortly afterward sold 10000 of
this. The remaining $4,000 shares, he
testified, he sold "for tax purposes"
How much of a loss did that enable
you to show?" asked Pecora. Wasn't
1t nearly $2,800,000?"
Avoided Income Tax.
Mitchell replied it was between ST.
100000 and $2,800,000.
That enabled you to avoid an income
tax for 1929, did it not?" asked the
counsel.
Eyes, the losses had been such that I
didn't have it." replied the banker.
That sale in the latter part of 1929
was made to member of your family,
wasn't it?"
1T was" Mitchell assented.
1T was just simply a sale of con-
venience to elude the tax, wasn't it?"
asked Senator Brookhart, Republican,
Of Iowa.
You can call it that" was the reply
Mitchell explained he later bought
back the block of $4,000 shares because
he simply couldn't let that purchaser
take the loss
IT individually have suffered a greater
loss from the market fall of City Bank
stock than any other individual in the
United States" Mitchell told the Sen
ators, saying he now holds the largest
amount of its stock he has ever held