As assignee the trust company takes possession of the property assigned for the purpose of carrying out the terms of the deed of assignment in the interest both of the assignor and the creditors of the assignor. The deed of assignment is an acknowledgment of an embarrassed or insolvent condition, and the efforts of the assignee are directed to realizing as much as possible from the assets intrusted to its management. As receiver, the duties may be very similar to those of assignee, although they are usually broader in scope. The business may not be insolvent, and the application for the appointment of a receiver may be due to temporary difficulties only. By such an appointment the property is preserved intact and equal treatment is afforded creditors. An able receivership often results in the adjustment of difficulties and the return of the property to its owners on a paying basis. While in the case of assignee the appointment is by the individual, partnership, or corporation executing the deed of assignment which specifies the powers and duties of the assignee, in the case of receiver the appointment is by a court and the company so appointed acts as an appointee or ministerial officer of the court, and as such is directly subject to the court's orders. A trust company acting as receiver is better able than an individual to furnish additional capital, if amply secured, and thus successfully to meet the difficulties which withdrawal of credit and restricted capital have temporarily brought upon an otherwise prosperous business. The courts authorize the issue of receivers' certificates to provide funds for purchase of equipment and the proper maintenance of the property and conduct of the business when the creditors are benefited by such expenditures. Such certificates may be made a first lien on all assets, taking precedence even of mortgages and other secured obligations. The receiver thus secures the capital necessary to make the property more productive and to secure the largest return from the business. As custodian or depositary, the trust company sometimes holds property the title to which is in dispute, delivering the same when the ownership is legally determined. In taking charge of escrows or conditional instruments or deeds delivered to a third party until the condition is performed, the trust company acts in a similar capacity, as the joint representative of both parties. The trust company acts as the representative of both the living and the dead in practically every legal relation in which an individual is qualified to act. Its function is not only to keep intact the estate of which it has charge, but to look to and safeguard the interest of every beneficiary. CARE OF SECURITIES AND VALUABLES