Light on Loans

"Gentlemen, your agony is about over but mine has just begun," South Trimble, Clerk of the House, told newsman last week after he had announced his conclusion to make public Reconstruction Finance Corp. loans. The Relief Act of last July required the R. F. C. to report its loans to the House and Senate. Did this mean publicity? President Hoover thought not, said he had "assurances"' from Senate leaders that R. F. C. reports would be kept confidential. But Speaker Garner, who forced the report provision into the bill, was of a contrary mind. Besides. Senate leaders had no right to bind the Democratic House. Clerk Trimble, as the House's hired man, wrestled with the question. Publicity, he knew, would incense the White House; no publicity might cost him his job. Armed with a legal opinion from his son, he decided that it was the "intent" of Congress that R. F. C. reports should be open to the public and that he would therefore open them, regardless of the consequences. Last week's R. F. C. report, covering a ten-day period (July 21-31), contained no sensations. R. F. C. had made 437 loans totaling $45,057,556.* Of this $32,990,180 went to banks, mostly small, at 5 1/2% and $6,862,700 to railroads at 6%. Among the larger bank loans were the following:

Bank of America, National Trust & Savings, San Francisco $3,800,000

Union Trust, Cleveland 1,500,000

Winters National & Trust, Dayton, Ohio 1,700,000

California Trust & Savings,

Sacramento 850,000

First National, Santa Ana,

Calif 475,000

American National, Denver. . . 450,000

Commercial National, Washington, D. C 600,000

Farmers Trust, Lancaster, Pa.. 753,810

East Tennessee National, Knoxville 500,000

North Avenue State, Milwaukee 475,000

Mid-City Trust & Savings, Chicago 320,000

City National & Trust, Evanston, Ill 415,000

Valley National, Des Moines. . 250,000

Allegheny Trust, Pittsburgh. . . 341,000

*Last week's R. F. C. relief loans: Louisiana, $1,096,084; Illinois, $6,000,000; Ohio, $768,000.

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