[O02

BANKING STANDARDS

direction and amount in the various districts for the two classes of
members? It is, of course, apparent that if certain amounts are
above an average, other amounts entering the average must be
below. But it is neither apparent nor necessary that the direction
of change must be coincident in time for the various districts with
respect to one type of banking institution, nor is it required that
the times and direction of change in two classes of banks must
coincide.
[f the directions of change from year to year in district ratios
of total expense to gross earnings for national and for state banks
are compared, it is found that (1) the national and the state
ratios for the same districts agree in 46 out of the possible 72
direction-changes—six for each of the twelve districts between
1919 and 1925; (2) from year to year approximately an equal
number of national and of state bank district ratios recorded
the same type of change; (3) in none of the separate districts are
the disagreements more numerous than, and in only three as
numerous as, the agreements; (4) for the respective year-to-year
changes, with the exception of those between 1921 and 1922, a
clear majority of both ratios for the same districts agree as to the
direction of change; and (5) the percentage amounts of change
in the ratios for the two groups of banks vary directly with each
other. That is, large positive or negative percentage changes in
the district ratios for national bank members are positively cor-TABLE

 72

NuMBER OF DistrIcTs WITH RATIOS OF TOTAL EXPENSE TO GROSS
EARNINGS FOR NATIONAL BANKS AND FOR STATE BANK
AND Trust CoMpaNY MEMBERS INCREASING OR
DECREASING FROM YEAR TO YEAR, IQIQ-1Q2§

YEARS

101—I1020.. +. ++...
[QIOTOZE. evr vrnnn.
(9211022. ver rse- .
19221023. ven vrvennn.
Jolie or
1024—1025. . SR

INCREASING

DECREASING

National
Ranks

State Banks
and Trust
Combanies

National
Ranks

State Banks
and Trust
Companies

3 0
[O I0 2
6 7 6
8 7 4
J 9 2
5 ” 5

h Y

5

5
r
2
“