more recently organized, known as Trust Companies, have absorbed all the savings business where the Mutual Banks had not already been permanently established. Another reason that has enabled them to do this is the fact that in most states there are no prescribed rules for the investment of savings bank deposits, and the banks are using the savings deposits for commercial purposes, and also in speculative ventures, particularly in the way of underwritings where the profits are much larger than could be realized from such funds if they were limited to investments of the highest order where, as you know, the rates of interest are comparatively much lower. MR. MERCHANT: How many such institutions are there? MR. BANKER: There are today thirteen thousand three hundred and eighty-one State banks, with four hundred and fifty-nine million of capital and two billion nine hundred million of deposits. Side by side with these state banks are 1,292 State Savings Banks, with seventy-seven millions of capital and eight hundred and forty-three millions of deposits. These State Savings banks differ only in name from the regular State banks. The only point to be noted in this connection is that the local statutes, or the laws of the State where the bank is located, always determine whether the name will be a State Savings bank, or a State bank. It may be assumed that whatever the name, the business carried on is practically the same all over the United States, with here and there some slight difference, but no substantial variance. MR. MANUFACTURER: These institutions you have named do not include the Trust Companies, do they? There seems to be a perfect craze to start Trust Companies now. Why is that? MR. BANKER: Within the past twenty-five years there has grown up, almost as if by magic, the class of banks you have just mentioned, differing from State banks and State Savings banks only in one single respect, but that is an all-comprehending one. Enterprising men in almost every state have secured the passage of laws for what they call a Trust Company business. Generally speaking, what you cannot do under a Trust Company Charter is some kind of a business that has not yet been thought of. There are 1,410 of such Trust Companies, so called, with capital amounting to $419,000,000 owing individual deposits amounting to $3,674,000,000 with $450,000,000 additional liabilities, or something over four billion dollars, all told. This vast business has grown up outside of the National banking system, simply because the National bank could not, but these other institutions could develop along natural lines of business progress.