The Hastings Standard Published Daily. MONDAY, SEPT. 14, 1896. BANKING LEGISLATION.

Hastings Standard, Issue 120, 14 September 1896, Page 2

The Hastings Standard Published Daily.

MONDAY, SEPT. 14, 1896. BANKING LEGISLATION.

For the cause that lacks assistance, For the wrongs that need resistance, For the future in the distance, And the good that we can do.

Of course every one knows that further banking legislation must be passed this year to ensure the payment of the interest on the preference shares which are held by the State. Under the present Act it appears that the interest cannot be paid until payment is authorised by the shareholders at their half-yearly meeting, which of course is at variance with the spirit of the Act. This must be altered, and an Amending Act passed to make the payment obligatory at due dates. It is evident from the trend of the reports of the proceedings before the Banking Committee that the banking legislation, which is admitted to be necessary, will be amplified to sweep in the reforms suggested by some of the Directors of the Bank, and possibly the Government may add a little on its own account. It has been made clear by Messrs W. Booth and T. G. Macarthy, two of the directors, who have given evidence, that it would be conducive to the interests of the Bank to provide the Government Auditor with assistance; (2) to extend the powers of the Colonial Treasurer, so that it may be competent for him to discuss with the directors the affairs of the Bank ; (3) to appoiat two General Managers ; and (4) to separate Messrs Watson and Mackenzie, the President and General Manager respectively. The first suggestion may be accepted without any question, as it is manifest that the energies of one man are insufficient to cope with the great labor involved in auditing the work of this institution. The second suggestion also is reasonable and in the interests of the Bank and its guarantor —the State, Under present conditions

the Colonial Treasurer must get his information officially from the President, and to extend the privilege to the Directors of affording the Minister such information as they may deem necessary, -will, if it does nothing else, act as a check on the President and Auditor. The appointment of two General Managers is open to criticism, and it might be urged that two such officers exist at present. The President is simply a General Manager with more extended powers and an exaggerated salary. His duties are practically those of a General Manager, and to appoint another would be increasing the cost of management without any material gain. If the suggestion implies that the Presidency should be abolished to make room for another General Manager, then the proposition is not likely to receive serious support. The fourth suggestion really amounts to an expression of opinion on the pirt of the two directors named. Mr Macarthy is a very shrewd business man, with a faculty for seizing upon the faulty construction of any commercial scheme. Mr Macarthy told the Committee that while he had no doubt about the honesty and ability of Messrs Watson and Mackenzie, he had a lack of confidence in them acting together. The importance of this expression of opinion will be seen later on, but it is only necessary to point out here that the Bank to be successful must earn the confidence of the commercial community, always a difficult class to satisfy ; and if the Directors have no confidence in their chief officers, how can it be expected that the public will repose confidence in them. It would be injudicious to dilate on this aspect of the question just now, but we may call attention to the opinion of Mr Macarthy as to the political side of the banking question. Mr Macarthy thinks it would be a serious thing for the Bank if it was to be made a political shuttlecock between two contending parties. There is no doubt this is the most serious danger the Bank has to face. Unfortunately for ■ the colony political warfare has reached a reckless stage, for it is a matter of supreme indifference to a political party what the suffering or who suffers, so long as the opposing party is discredited or injured. The Bank has already felt the baneful influence of politics, and it is this influence that will sooner or later wreck it unless our leading politicians on both sides declare a truce on banking affairs; but this would be expecting too much from men whose chief characteristic is their offensive, aggressive selfishness.