Mergers

Banks. Values of shares in various Manhattan banks last week made 24-hour jumps of from $6 to $150 a share.* High among the jumpers were stocks of the Chase National Bank, of the Garfield Bank. The Chase stock leaped 55 points, the Garfield 125. For last week the Garfield Bank was absorbed by the Chase Bank, became the Garfield Branch of the Chase National. Owners of Garfield stock will receive as many shares of Chase as they hold of Garfield.

The Chase National Bank of the City of New York is Manhattan's second largest bank--the largest being the National City. In 1921 it took over the Metropolitan Bank; in 1926 the Mechanics and Metals National Bank, in 1927 the Mutual Bank. The combination of Chase and Garfield will have deposits of almost exactly $900,000,000.

Effective December 15, the Seventh National Bank of Manhattan will merge with the Municipal Bank and Trust Co. of Manhattan. The new institution will have resources of $75,000,000.

The merger of the Merchants National Trust and Savings Bank of Los Angeles and the United Security Bank and Trust

Co. of San Francisco was announced in Los Angeles last week by E. J. Nolan, president of the Los Angeles bank and of the new combination. As the Merchants National and the United Security jointly own the French-American Banking Corp., the merger announcement really unites the three large Giannini banks in California which were not included in the recent creation of the Trans-America Corp. The triple merger, effective Dec. 8, will form the Bank of America of California, with resources of $400,000,000.

Motors. Samuel Regar, treasurer of the Chandler-Cleveland Motors Corp. of Cleveland, last week announced that the Chandler-Cleveland Co. has been absorbed by the Hupp Motor Car Co. Stock of the merged companies has a market value of $130,000,000. The first Chandler car was built in 1915. Later Fred C. Chandler started the Cleveland Automobile Co., built the Cleveland, a car in a lower price-range, and soon consolidated the two companies into Chandler-Cleveland. No announcement was made concerning Hupp plans for the Chandler.

Bargain Basement. For many a year many a Boston housewife has set out from her suburban home shopping-round for "Filene's Basement." One of the earliest of the "bargain basements" now common in U. S. department stores, Filene's Basement added much to the fame of the Filene Store. Now to its basement Filene's has added a branch. Last week announcement was made that the William Filene's Sons Co. had purchased the business of the R. H. White Co., another long-established and prominent Boston department store. The R. H. White Co. will, however, be continued as a separate concern. Capitalization of Filene's plus White's totals $8,600,000.

Typewriters. The National Cash Register Co. of Dayton last week requested the Federal courts to permit its purchase of the Ellis Adding Typewriter Co. of Newark, N. J. In 1916, the National Cash Register Co., prosecuted in an anti-trust action, was enjoined from acquiring control of any other company manufacturing cash registers, unless the government's consent to such acquisition was obtained.

British "General." Two makers of British cars are the Humber Co. and the Hillman Co. Last week they merged. Soon Humber-Hillman may unite with the Comer motor interests to form a British "General Motors," to compete with U. S. General Motors.

Brass. Directors of the Rome Brass and Copper Company approved a merger with six other companies, the new combination to be known as the General Brass Corporation and to control about 20% of U. S. production of brass and copper.

* $6, Mechanics Bank; $150, National City Bank. So few bank shares are purchaseable in the open market that increased demand skyrockets the price.