294 



DEPOSIT AND TRUST COMPANIES. 



the completion of one already begun, or the 

 formation of a company for any other public 

 benefit where individual capital is not enough, 

 their duty is to make such an examination of 

 the securities offered that the moneys belong- 

 ing to their depositors shall suffer no loss. A 

 usual way is to pay out the money in install- 

 ments ; thus, in building a section of railroad, 

 a given amount is paid or loaned to the com- 

 pany at intervals, according as the work has 

 progressed. Much of the book-keeping of loan 

 and trust companies is similar to that of banks 

 and bankers generally. They often do a large 

 banking business, but more generally have the 

 accounts of a class who do not so frequently 

 deal with banks. 



Safe-Deposit Companies. The business and gen- 

 eral object of a safe-deposit company is to re- 

 ceive on deposit (simply as a bailee for safe- 

 keeping) any personal property included under 

 the name of diamonds, watches, paintings, stat- 

 uary, books, fine clothing, silks, shawls, laces, 

 family relics, jewels, plate, money, specie, 

 bullion, silver- ware, gold- ware, bronzes, wills, 

 stocks, bonds, securities, valuable papers, bank- 

 books, etc., together with trunks, cases, or 

 packages under seal. These are to be held by 

 the company for a given rental, at the option 

 of the owner or depositor. Each depositor 

 receives a paper containing a description of the 

 property that he puts in care of the deposit 

 company. In turn he is himself described mi- 

 nutely on the books of the institution. The 

 applicant is required to sign his name to this 

 description, and is then given a pass-word, 

 which belongs to his case and entry exclusively, 

 or he may rent a box, and have absolute con- 

 trol of the contents, without description and 

 without responsibility from the company, ex- 

 cept due diligence in protection as required by 

 law. He is furnished with a key to his drawer 

 or box, and can have access to his property at 

 his convenience, either in the presence of the 

 guard or in a private apartment secure from 

 any observation whatever. 



In order to secure the extreme of protec- 

 tion, the vaults and offices are usually built on 

 ground-floors or basements, with interior stor- 

 age apartments massively guarded. A favor- 

 ite method of rendering the sides and bottom 

 of the vaults fire, burglar, water, and bomb 

 proof, is to line them with courses of frank- 

 linite and chilled iron, with sections overlap- 

 ping, and so fitted and riveted together that 

 they form a complete solid of two and a half 

 to three inches in thickness ; outside of this is 

 a course of granite from two to three feet in 

 thickness, and this in turn is coated with con- 

 crete to a thickness of three or four feet. 



The vaults are in reality huge steel chests, 

 set in masonry and closed by massive doors, and 

 wrought-iron and steel gratings, and are guard- 

 ed by armed watchmen by night and day. As 

 a further safeguard, each watchman is obliged 

 to keep a half-hour tally, which is recorded on 

 the dial of a clock in the office. He is also 



obliged to communicate by special wire, at 

 regular intervals, usually half-hourly, with the 

 telegraph-office. Any failure to do so causes 

 the immediate sending of a special officer to 

 inquire into either his mishap or dereliction of 

 duty. There are electrical and other safeguards, 

 which in the interest of their customers are 

 kept secret by safe-deposit companies. 



The locks, bolts, and bars with which the 

 doors and gratings are secured, are doubly pro- 

 tected by time-locks and electric apparatus. 



The rentals vary from $5 to $300 a year, 

 according to amount of space and value of 

 property. Another method of rental is based 

 on a percentage of the owner's estimate of full 

 value of his deposited property. For coupon 

 bonds and other securities, an insurance policy 

 is generally issued, containing a description of 

 the bond by date, number, and value, which is 

 also entered in full on the books of the com- 

 pany. Diamonds, jewelry, plate, family relics, 

 etc., are received on deposit in sealed pack- 

 ages, or trunks, and are insured at estimated 

 value. Insurance polices, leases, wills, and 

 other valuable or private papers, are received 

 in sealed envelopes or packages. 



The boxes, drawers, and chests range from 

 the capacity of an ordinary envelope-box up- 

 ward. Each receptacle has but one key, and 

 the keys are all dissimilar. 



The following is a list, nearly or quite com- 

 plete, of the deposit and trust companies in the 

 United States that have a capital of $100,000 

 or more : 



CALIFORNIA. 



San Francisco: 



California Safe Deposit and Trust Co $899,980 



San Jose : 



SafeDeposit Bank 800,000 



CONNECTICUT. 



Hartford : 



Connecticut Trust and Safe Deposit Co 800,000 



New Haven : 



Union Trust Co 100,000 



New London : 



Equitable Trust Co 1,500,000 



Norwich : 



Thames Loan and Trust Co 100,000 



DAKOTA. 



Huron : 



American Investment Co 500,000 



Madison: 



American Mortgage and Investment Co 100,000 



Mitchell : 



American Investment Co 500,000 



ILLINOIS. 



Chicago : 



Merchants' Loan and Trust Co 2,000,000 



Prairie State Loan and Trust Co 100,000 



The Union Trust Co 125,000 



IOWA. 



Creston : 



Creston Loan and Trust Co 100,000 



Des Moines : 



Iowa Loan and Trust Co 500,000 



Northeastern Mortgage and Investment Co 150,000 



Emmetsburg : 



American Investment Co 850,000 



Sioux City: 



Union Loan and Trust Co 100,000 



Storm Lake : 



Farmer's Loan and Trust Co 150,000 



KANSAS. 



Kansas Loan and Trust Co. . . . 100,000 



