David Josiah Brewer

“ While it is true that care must be taken not to weaken the wholesome provisions of the statutes designed to protect depositors and stockholders against the wrongdoings of banking officials, it is of equal importance that they should not be so construed as to make transactions of such officials, carried on with the utmost honesty, and in a sincere belief that no wrong was being done, criminal offenses, and subjecting them to the severe punishments which may be imposed under those statutes. ”

“ An unlawful certification is, in terms, charged, and the form of the writing creating the certification is given.
It is generally true, as claimed, that, where an indictment is unnecessarily descriptive, even the unnecessary description must be proved as laid; but that proposition does not seem to be in point, for it is not claimed that the testimony did not show just such a writing as is charged to have been made by the defendant, and surely it cannot be claimed that unnecessary matter of description must be proved otherwise than as it is stated. ”

“ It is objected that 'certification,' to constitute an offense within the scope of the statute, must be such an act or series of acts as creates a contract binding upon the bank; that a mere writing of the word 'certified' on a check does not, until delivery to some person, have any such effect ”