William O. Douglas

“ On the facts in this record we would find it hard to say that underwriting was not one primary activity of the firm and brokerage another. If 'primarily' is not used in the sense we suggest then the firm is not 'primarily engaged' in any line of business though it specializes in at least two and does a substantial amount of each. One might as well say that a professional man is not 'primarily engaged' in his profession though he holds himself out to serve all comers and devotes substantial time to the practice but makes the greater share of his income on the stock market. ”

“ We take a different view. It is true that 'primary' when applied to a single subject often means first, chief, or principal. But that is not always the case. For other accepted and common meanings of 'primarily' are 'essentially' (Oxford English Dictionary) or 'fundamentally' (Webster's New International) . An activity or function may be 'primary' in that sense if it is substantial. ”

“ In order to vote its stock in controlled banks a bank holding company must show that it does not own, control, or have any interest in, and is not participating in the management or direction of any organization 'engaged principally' in the underwriting business. On the other hand, when Congress came to deal with the practice of underwriters taking checking deposits, it used language different from what it used either in §§ 19 and 20 on the one hand or in § 32 on the other. ”