CONCENTRATION OF BANKING INTERESTS 419 



The same interests control, also, a second chain of insti- 

 tutions. This is headed by the Hanover National bank, and 

 includes two smaller banks and the Trust company of America. 

 The total capital of the four institutions is $16,000,000; their 

 deposits amount to $97,000,000; and their loans stand at 

 $57,000,000. With the Hanover bank, moreover, the Union 

 Trust company, controlling $52,000,000 of deposits and 

 $44,000,000 of loans, is known to have intimate relations. 

 If now we combine the figures of the two chains of institutions 

 associated with the City and the Hanover banks, it appears 

 that within our first sphere of influence there have been aggr- 

 egated $108,000,000 of banking capital, $474,000,000 of depos- 

 its, and $323,000,000 of loans. And these data, it should 

 be remembered, take no account of the control exercised over 

 banks located outside of New York. 



The other major sphere of influence is controlled from the 

 banking house of J. P. Morgan & Company and from the offices 

 of the two large insurance companies. Perhaps little violence 

 will be done to the facts if, henceforth, we call this the Morgan 

 sphere ; for it seems certain that the dominating influence ema- 

 nates from 23 Wall Street. Three chains of banking institu- 

 tions are the repositories of the power here represented. One 

 of them is headed by the First National bank, which, within 

 ten years has increased its total resources from thirty one to 

 one hundred and ten millions, and now has a capital, surplus, 

 and undivided profits amounting to over twenty three millions. 

 In this institution Mr. Morgan's control is almost undisputed; 

 and with it are associated the powerful Chase National bank, 

 the Liberty and Astor banks, and the Manhattan Trust com- 

 pany. This group of institutions possesses an aggregate bank- 

 ing capital of $33,000,000 while its deposits and loans stand 

 respectively at $149,000,000 and $72,000,000. 



A second chain of banks is led by the National Bank of 

 Commerce in which the Mutual Life Insurance company is one 

 of the principal stockholders. With it are grouped four other 

 institutions, of which the largest is the Morton Trust com- 

 pany. At the head of a third chain stands the Western Na- 

 tional bank, which is associated with the Mercantile and the 

 Equitable Trust companies. The Equitable Life Assurance 



