Evening star., 1934-08-11
BANK COMMITTEE
ASKS INJUNCTION
AGAINST TREASURY
67 District National Stock
holders Seek Accounting
OF Sale OF Assets.
CHARGE ASSESSMENT
IN FULL UNNECESSARY
Receiver and Hamilton National
Defendants in D. c. Court
Appeal.

The Stockholders Committee OF
the District National Bank today
asked the District Supreme Court for
an injunction against officials Of the
Treasury Department TO prevent
them from collecting an assessment
Of 100 per cent against stockholders.
Sixty-seven plaintiffs, including
Robert N. Harper, former president of
the bank, and John A. Manfuso sec
fetary OF the Stockholders Commit
tee. asked the court for a complete
accounting on the sale OF quick assets
OF the District National Bank to the
Hamilton National Bank An ac-
counting also is demanded in a mat
ter of the Philippine Islands gold
standard fund for which Secretary
OF War Dern was trustee and which
was said TO have been paid in full,
through sale Of bonds.
Suit Filed by Rover.
In the suit. filed by Attorney Leo
A. Rover. former district attorney
charges were made that the District
National Bank and It's stockholders
had been given to understand that IL
was not insolvent during the period
that negotiations were under way to
organize the Hamilton National Bank,
but that later the Government declar-
ed the bank insolvent. complete
accounting, such as asked for would
obyiate the necessity for an assess
ment against the stockholders, the
suit stated.
nafar.aa tfu ara Mnr,,,an u Iyo,~.u
ton, receiver for the District National
Bank; Joshua w. Evans, jr., former
conservator of the District bank and
now vice president of the Hamilton
National Bank: the Hamilton National
Bank itself: Controller of the Cur
rency oConnor and Secretary OF War
Dern.
Evans Criticized.
Evans was sharply criticized because
of the fact that at the time he was
conservator OF the District Bank, he
also was slated for vice president OF
the Hamilton Bank Under these cir
cumstances, the complaint charges,
he was not In q position 10 assume a
neutral or impartial attitude toward
the interests Of the District National
Bank, which had been committed TO
his care, much less TO protect its in
terests at arms length as he was in
duty bound to do against oil persons,
including the defendant controller of
the currency"
The accounting is asked OF sale of
quick assets from the District to the
Hamilton Bank of more than 81 ,500,-
600. The contract under which this
sale was made, the complaint charges,
was not only grossly unfair" to the
bank creditors and stockholders of the
District Bank, but also grossly ad-
vantageous" to the Hamilton National
Bank
For instance, it Is claimed that GER
tain Federal Farm Loan bonds sold
TO the Hamilton Bank had increased
in value by 20 per cent since, netting
a profit OF approximately $l50.000 to
the Hamilton Bank
The charge is also made that costs
and expenses of promoting and organ
izing the defendant Hamilton Ma
tional Bank were betrayed and borne
in large part out Of the assets of the
District National Bank.
Details of the assets sold were said
TO be $i,4S2. 1926 of quick assets sold
at the current market value and bills
receivable amounting to $l,07l 1871 So
sold at face value with mutual adjust
ment Of interest, making grand total
OF s2,524.ol444.
Filed on Eve Of Payment
sT-ka .,,gk s.,ae RInd oo tAa atta IF
the date set by Receiver Hamilton on
Monday for payment Of the first in
Stallment Of the 100 rer cent assess
ment. This assessment. If collected in
fun, would bring into the receivership
81 900 900, the entire capital structure
of the bank Assessments never real
iZe this much, however, as the aver
age collection over a period of years
from inSolvent banks run around 40
per cent Several stockholders of the
District Bank already have paid their
assessment prior to the due date. some
of them paying in full.
The contract for sale of these
quick assets TO the Hamilton Bank.
stockholders charge, was not properly
filed before the court because neither
schedule OF class A assets sold to the
Hamilton or class B assets remaining
in the District Bank was ever made
a physical part of the exhibit before
the District Supreme Court. This,
therefore. was never known or sub
mitted to or considered by or passed
upon by the court. the suit charges.
II the fun and complete accounting
asked for is granted the stockholders
predict that there will be no oc-
casion for an assessment against the
stockholders, but on the contrary all
depoSitors and creditors will be paid
in full out of the assets of the Dis