OCR Text |
Show TRUST PROBE STILL GOING Committee Tracing Morgan Mor-gan and Baker in Controlling Con-trolling Issues. Washington Jan 10. The millions which the Idrsi National bank of Ne ork has available for Investment I were disclosed at todays hearing of the testimony of George P. Baker, halrman of the board, before the ! house money trust investigating committee com-mittee VIr Baker, popularly referred to a i he blggesi man in the street," tes- II I that the bank had 174,000,000 available for investment, of which :;i nun, huh ;,s out in demand loans and 126,000,000 In time loans and dis-j dis-j counts The hank holdB $43,366,000 in securities and has gross deposits of about $llu iioOHin Samuel (Tntermyer for the commit-' commit-' e, led the banker through lim of questioning which was Intended :o bring out his close connection with the anthracite field general 1 referred to as the hard coal trust, without de reloping more than has already been bronchi out Washington, Jan in. An effort to trace the joint effort of George P. Baker with J. P Morgan in the handling han-dling of Issues by railroads and Industrials In-dustrials corporations, as well as the joint Intei ests of the two men In hanks and trust companies in New York and throughout the country, was made by the house money trust ! committee today. Mr Baker's examination was continued con-tinued with particular reference to J this connection A lien Mr. Baker resumed the stand todav he asked permission to make aj statement ' You made me out such a u,reat holder of directorships yesterdav, ' he said to Mr. I'nterimer. "I never became be-came a director 'or voting trustee of, any company at my own ollt Ion." 'We have just legun to ask you about your directorships," said Mr Untermyer. Many Directorships lie added that a list furnished bv i Mr. Baker s bank showed that directors di-rectors in the First National held eighty-eight directorships In other i corporations. In thirty-seven other corporations members ot J P. Morgan Mor-gan and company and directors of the First National bank w.re common com-mon directors Mr Baker agreed to furnish a list of the corporations in which he himself him-self was a director. He thousiht he held about fifty such places. Mr Jntermyer asked Mr Baker If he could supply a statement of the accounts bj which the First National bank Jointly with other institutions handled through syndicates issues of securities. The witness said his counsel had adised him that to demand de-mand this inlormation was beyond the powers of the committee. The facts were now Known In detail by the comptroller of the currency and j be believed the committee had no right to demand them to be exposed to the public. Long Talk With Counsel. A lone conference between Mr. Baker, Ba-ker, Fisher A. Baker, and Senator 1 John C. SpOOner ended w ith the request re-quest that the question he passed to j permit counsel to consider the legal i phases. A statement of the deposit of the First National bank was placed in I the record Mr Baker testified the avorage deposits were about Jion,. 000,000. Unable to Change Witness' Attitude. Mr Untermyer went back to Mr. Baker's opposition to publicity of bank assets, but he was unable to shake the financier's attitude. Mr Untermyer tried in vain to have Mr. Baker testily that the First Securities Securi-ties company and the First National bank were operated practically as a simrle concern. The witness did not want to divulge the price at which the securities company sold a part of it8 Chasc bank stock to President . Wivgiu:-. of the Chase Mr Cnter- mver did not press the question Mr Baker said that despite the , (sale a practical control or the com-j pan laj with the securities company and Mr. Wiggins. H remarked that, Joiten a small percentage of actual j stockholdings Insured control of a large corporation. Loan operations of the Chase bank and the First Ns-tional Ns-tional on the stock exchange were j taken up. but Mr Baker knew little of the details DuritiK the luncheon recess Mr Bi ker conferred witn ms counsel uuoui furnishing the committee with a list of transactions In floating securities In which his company had ac ted joint y with J P. Morgan and other concerns con-cerns Baker to Furnish Data When the hearing was resumed Mr Baker announced be had determined ! to furnish that and other data the , ommlttee desired if the board ol di rei tors of Ihe Firs! National haul, , . , ded that it minh be made publli I The committee gave him until Wed-1 aesda) to submit the information Then H became apparent that Mr Baker's examination, which had be-, be-, ,'.mr. , ic.iled and Involved might not be finished today The committee planned to adjourn until n. kI Tue das ; - was said Mr Rake, ,,.,,,, he" asked to return for further exam ination Trustees n Cr?mp Co. Mr Maker said he end E r Stotee bury were voting trustee of the Cramu Shipbuilding companj of Philadelphia and had siuce 1903 named nam-ed the directors of thal ' ompant He was asked in detail as to his activities ac-tivities In a numher ot corporations and in several WB unable in ' rotnember them. The stock of tho A-irst National Bank was Increased jlrom 1500,000 to $100,000,1 in 1901. Mr. Baker said, and 4o per , ,.nt OI-the OI-the increased stock went to individuals indivi-duals and the remainder to the haul; stockholders 'Who were those individuals''" ask-e ask-e 1 Mi i Intermyer After an argument with Mr. Baker and his counsel, Mr Baker continued contin-ued : "Forty thousand shares of this stock at S 100 a share ere sold to me. be suid. and I later disposed of jit where it would do the most good.' 'What is the present prices of the : stock ."' About $1000 a share.' Mi UntermyeT asked if J. p Morgan Mor-gan had $15,000,000 worth or stock i in the First National sold to him. He I said he did not wanl to discuss the ! personal affairs of his friends or himself. him-self. Mr. Morgan Great General "Is Mr Morgan recognized a8 Mie ! great coneral in this financial army?" asked Mr Tntermyer. "That's according to who von ask." answered the witness. "We his friends, think be Is." He's generally so "recognized?" "Well, yes." nd you and Mi. James Stlllrnan are his chief lieutenants0 ' We were during the panic," ald Mr. Bak n Three Men Dominate "And you three dominate the financial finan-cial 8iluatlon" "I won't confess to that." said Mr Baker. Here John C Spencer, counsel for Mr Baker, interrupted with a laugh i le isn't required to Inci Iminate himself, is he1" he said "It Mr. Morgan the most dominant figure in the financial world." persisted per-sisted Mr Untermyer. "He would be If he were younger. I know of no one who is more dominant' dom-inant' rejdied Mr. Baker "There is no dominant figure in finance fi-nance now," exclaimed Mr Baker. Th.-re was during the panic, but not since the disturbance" Mr. l"nterm.cr endeavored to trace the relations of Mr. Baker's bank and the Morgan firm. Can you give us the name of any' issue of security of stock for which you have compete,! with Morgan and' company In the past five years?" he I asked. They Divide Issues. "No," said Mr Baker. "We usual- ly divide the issues." "Can you recall any single trans- faction of $10,000,000 or more during j the last five years that has not in-irolved in-irolved either Morgan and company' or the First National bank" Mr Baker could not recall Modern Plan of Combination. "This is the scheme of modern ' i combination and co-operation as acainst the archaic principle of competition, com-petition, isn't It?" asked Mr T'nter-myer T'nter-myer "Well, yes, if you put It In that elaborate way. ' answered the witness Mr Baker said that he was a member mem-ber of the finance committee of the ' I'nited States Steel corporation and that his bank aided in marketing ' steel securities. The details of methods of floating securities was the basis ol a long examination in 'the courst of which Mr. Tntermyer , got into the record mention of a number of large Issues of bonds in which the First National and Morgan and company operated together. |