4 20 CHARLES J. BULLOCK 



society holds large blocks of stock of the first two of these in- 

 stitutions, and the Gould interests are represented in the own- 

 ership and management of the Mercantile Trust company. 

 If both of these chains are combined with the one controlled 

 through the First National bank, we find in the Morgan sphere 

 of influence a banking capital of $97,000,000, deposits amount- 

 ing to $472,000,000, and loans which aggregate $299,000,000. 

 In addition to this the two life insurance companies just men- 

 tioned have outstanding loans of $28,000,000 upon collateral 

 security. 



Compared with the Standard Oil and Morgan interests, 

 the chain of institutions known as the Morse group is of 

 decidedly minor importance. But this includes twelve banks 

 and two trust companies, with an aggregate capital of $23,000,- 

 000 and loans amounting to over $100,000,000. Mr. Morse 

 and his associates have purchased the control of these insti- 

 tutions, perhaps with the aid of loans secured in the manner 

 described in an earlier paragraph. At present the group is 

 supposed to be operated upon an independent basis, but there 

 is no speculation concerning the possibility of its being merged 

 with one of the larger banking combinations. 



And, finally, we have come to the National Park bank, 

 with its group of affiliated institutions. Four of these are 

 small state banks in different parts of New York, which are 

 operated virtually as branches of the larger corporation; the 

 fifth is the Colonial Trust company. The banking capital 

 of the six associations is $13,000,000 and their loans do not 

 exceed $76,000,000; ownership and management rest with the 

 Astor, Vanderbilt, and Belmont interests. 



Outside of these various spheres are independent banks, 

 some of which a decade ago occupied the leading positions. 

 Then, too, many new institutions, generally employing a small 

 capital, have been established during the recent period of busi- 

 ness expansion. Yet the Morgan and the Standard Oil alli- 

 ances control not less than $205,000,000 of the $451,000,000 

 of banking capital invested in the city of New York; and, in 

 all probability, secure a similar proportion of the business 

 transacted. Time alone can tell whether these mighty aggre- 



