52. Stock Ledger

The stock ledger, in which is contained a detailed account with every shareholder, should be very carefully and accurately kept. The stock corporation law of New York State provides that every corporation shall keep at its office, correct books of account of all its business and transactions, and a book to be known as the stock-book, containing the names, alphabetically arranged, of all persons who are stockholders of the corporation, showing their places of residence, the number of shares of stock held by them respectively, the time when they respectively became the owners thereof, and the amount paid thereon.

Any arrangement complying with the above will satisfy the law. The simplest and perhaps the best form in use is shown in Figure 34 on page 81.

This kind of stock ledger may be bought at any stationery store dealing in account books. This form may be improved slightly if the book is made to order by having an extra column at the right side as shown in Figure 35 on page 81, to show the balance of shares outstanding. It is perhaps needless to add that no entry, however trivial, should be made except through the transfer book.

Figure 34. Stock Ledger.

Figure 35. Stock Ledger.

Figure 36. Dividend Register.

It will not be necessary to prove the stock ledger except at the dividend periods and then two aims may be accomplished at once. The dividend book or record is shown in Figure 36 on page 81. It used to be the custom for the stockholders to call at the bank and sign for their dividends. The figure shown is intended to exhibit a suitable form for this purpose. Up-to-date banks are mailing checks for the dividend payments and when this is the practice, the last column should be changed to read "Date paid" and the date of payment stamped opposite the name when the check is presented.

When a dividend is declared, profit and loss or undivided profits should be charged and dividend No. - credited. When the checks are presented, the proper dividend account is debited and cash credited.