Volume 2 - ElectricCanadian.com

DEVELOPMENT OF CANADIAN BANKING 451proxies should be limited to three years. They also askedfor the repeal of a law passed the previous year 1requiring allbank shares to be numbered. This had been passed with aview to preventing speculation in bank stocks, but had proveda hindrance to legitimate business, while at the same time itfailed to accomplish its intention. Almost all these suggestionswere adopted, although no action was taken in the directionof extending the term of the charters or of providing for thecompulsory appointment of auditors.The new Act increased the minimum percentage of Dominionnotes to be held in the reserves of the banks from onethirdof the whole to forty per cent. A number of additionalheadings were introduced into the monthly returns. On theliabilities side there were three new subdivisions, one fordeposits held as security for the due execution of DominionGovernment contracts and for insurance companies, and theother two distinguishing loans from and deposits made byother banks in Canada, secured or unsecured, from amounts"due to other banks in Canada." A similar elaboration ofthe corresponding heading was made on the assets side of thereturn. This was an attempt to distinguish between a loanfrom another bank, or a deposit voluntarily made by onebank with another, and the balances due by one bank toanother as a result of the daily exchanges; but as the resultingliabilities do not differ in character, the attempt was droppedin 1913. Other changes in the assets were the dividing ofgovernment debentures and stock, so as to show the securitiesissued by the Dominion Government separately from thoseof other Governments. Advances to municipal corporationswere distinguished from those to other corporations. Aheading was raised for overdue debts, other than notes and biUxdiscounted, not specially secured. This was an endeavour todistinguish debts of a more or less permanently overduecharacter from items only casually overdue, but as the headingwas worded so that its intention could be easily evaded it42 Viet., 1879, c. xlv.