Show SOME QUEER LAY LAW LAYA A CURIOUS D DECISION N although It Itis t 1 is l fortified with abundant of almost ca is report reported ed in the Bankers M gaine for Cor Jane Janu January ary The supreme cOUrt or of Georgia h held ld lit in the ca case e of Langdale versus the Citizens bank of Savannah that where a 8 passbook Is stolen and the thief forges a cheek presents it wIth the book to the payIng teller and draws the mone money the depositor deposit r his has no iio CaUse of action against iiga the bank hIs is whet what happened In the case referred to Ono One of tha banks rules provIdes that every effort will be tc ta protect depositors rs gU a fraud but bUl payment made t 14 a shall be good und and valId aUd on account or of orthe the owner unless the p has been lost an and writing given ghen to the bunk before belore such JI is made I The court heW held this to he be a reasonable rule and 01 binding upon depositors 11 I effect was simply to make u a passbook much like a rail rall of currency to be u used ed by the fleet first person laying laing hands I upon unon Jt it Tile The Involved was only onh 51 0 and the su iwas so much to recover noy as to test the banks rule The rhe law as laid down by the court may be sJ enough but It to tous tous us most unjust Th The l loss Of r 4 should not make It possible for Cor an any rascal who vio s It il to d rive Its right rightful rightful ful Owner of the mcney it represents Counsel for the plaintiff in th the Lang Langdal Langdale dal dale ease case argued that the paying telIo should at least have compared the sl sig nature on th the forged check the signature on baRks banks book Such a I comparison would have resulted in iii the immediate discovery ot of the fraud the court d declared that even this simple precaution could not be required i of oC the teller that he had a right with i ithe the passbook before hIm and wit without out anything to cause him to suspect fraud to pay a out the money If Ie that sort of a arule arule rule is good In the ease case or of passbook It ought to be good In the case of a check Suppose for example that a hank bank bee a depositor who ts money so rarely that his features s are to th the sim ody knowing this pD to jt ito f ank and impersonate te the th draw a w wing big ing out all or a s J y Does Docs anybody suppose for a moment thit a court would net hold the bonk re responsible Ye We not at outside of Georgia for ordinary pru prudence deuce dence would chue the paying teller to compare signatures when the drawer ot of a check and the man presenting it 4 were unknown to him Ordinary deuce dence causes most tellers to Ire ll when the payl paye a I cheek chok is unknown to tho theme It is to be hoped that th the Geo g a do de cislon will not be recognized as s l law for It would have a tendency dency to tellers ext extremely emely |