The Sun.
London, England, 1844-05-03 00:00:00

chequer-bills held by them on aceount
of the trustees

12,942,657 7 2

Difference against the Commissioners up to
the 20th of November, 1843
Difference against the Commissioners up to
the 20th of November, 1842

2,171,192 12 6

Difference against the Commissioners for
the year ended the 20th November, 1843 140,632 18 6
Less interest on Exchequer-bills due up to
the 20th of November, 1843

6,276 8 4

Actual loss sustained by the public in the
year ended the 20th of November, 1843 134,356 10 2
It appears that no sales of stock were effected during the
last year, ended November 20, 1843, by the National Debt
Commilsioners on account of the trustees, to meet the pay-
ment of any sums demanded by the depositors, as has been
usual during former years, but considerable purchases were
made in stocks and Exchequer-bills, amounting in the aggre-
gate to 918,3471. ss. 4d. in the Three per Cents., and
680,2001. in the Three-and-a-Half per Cents., and to
127,8501. in Exchequer-bills ; the sums paid for which pur-
chases amounted to 1,698,4071. Ils. sd. The amount cre-
dited by the Commissioners for Exchequer-bills paid off was
23,150/.
Having thus exhibited the comparative state of the public
accounts for the savings' banks in the years ending Nov. 20,
1842, and Nov. 20, 1843, we may quote from a correspondent
the following deductions from, or illustrations of, that ac-
count :
and of the Three-and-a-
elrimage,pwn'asce o9fstthBes.T9hd.re,e per Cents. on the 20th of
per Cents. at
L 12,287,116 11 3
95/. Bs. 9d. —
per
Half per Cents. 1021. 6s. 3d., and hence-
-15,741,299 19 9
‘N;ol"v2Te,Bmh7e4b,easrvl6l. 7s. 6d. Three
432,400 0 0
296,609 3 0
" Uninvested balance
"Exchequer-bills incsht2se:q2au3te7rll-.01)92i51il Threes69sd:3el.

£28,757,425 14 0
96,130 3 10
" Estimated deficiency

" Due to the trustees on the 20th of No-
vember, 1843 X28,853,555 17 10
____----

r e`e‘
nTh sinceeht Trheee
20thCe
fe nxt se. v
er emdbuecre,dlBa43nd,
bCeotne
rs
eo
el ind a3t eadn
dhaving
risen since the 20th of November, 1843, bet Ween 3 and 4 per
cent., the deficiency mentioned above no longer exists ; but,
on the contrary, a surplus. The general statement shows the
bond fide purchases made by the Commissioners, and the
sums paid for those purchases, and the amount so laid out
(1,698,4071. 1 ls. 5d.) being nearly equal to the increase in
1843—viz., 1,997,669/., shows that the loss, 134,356/.los. 2d.,
must have arisen chiefly from the difference in the rates of
interest received and paid by the Commissioners. With ra-
pidly increasing liabilities and loss as thus shown, it must be
evident that the existing system requires to be carefully
looked into. The returns sent in monthly and annually to
the National Debt-office contain no data whatever upon which
the Government can form an opinion how far an annual ex-
pense of 100,000/. or upwards is justified. The only persons
who have any means of forming such an opinion are the paid
officers, and so long as the payment of their salaries depends
non the amount invested in their banks respectively, they are
ot likely to volunteer much information."
Another subject which may be said to hare a connection
with the savings' banks is that of the loan societies, which
by the Act creating them require to have their powers re-
newed annually; and as these societies have led to very
,rest abuses to the great injury and oppression of the lower
classes, the question has been started by a correspondent,
whether the functions of loan societies may not beneficially
devolve upon the savings' banks, and be made the means
of employing their surplus deposits. With respect, how-
ever, to the abuses practised by loan societies, they will receive
a death-blow by the humane and judicious provisions of Lord
Cottenham's Bill for the abolition of Imprisonment for debt,
as the needy and disreputable attorneys who derive their
chief practice from them, will be deprived of that instru-
ment of terror, upon which they chiefly depended for their
system of extortion. Both that and the detestable tally
system are alike threatened with extinction by that Bill.
fwtwApriroohc
oios
But whatever become the loan societies, it by no
means follows that it woe right to transfer their func-
tions to the managers of savings' banks under the sanction
of the Legislature. It is right to state, however, that instances
exist at present of the union of the two systems in one esta-
blishment, and that they are found to act well together.
Thus the correspondent above quoted observes, that in the
" Liverpool Savings' Bank Loan Society" both operations
are conducted in the same building, and under the same
committee of management ; that the plan has realised the
expectations formed of it, and that the directors, in order
to extend its benefits, have increased the funds by allowing
depositors whose accounts have arrived at the maximum
to draw sums not exceeding 100/, and place them in the
hands of the trustees of the loan society, for which they give
a debenture, allowing them five per cent.
But it is obvious, however the managers of such transac-
tions may see cause to congratulate themselves upon the
prosperous working of them, that the greatest abuses must
result from them, seeing the temptation they hold out, and
the difficulty or impossibility of subjecting them to a suffi-
cient control. to prevent such consequences. There is one
section, it seems, of the Savings' Banks Act, 9th George IV.,
cap. 92, which gives them the power to do this, inasmuch as
it provides that the trustees of savings' banks shall not be
prevented from receiving money from the depositors to be
applied in any other] way than that pointed out in the
previous sections payment to the National Debt Com-
missioners.
The principal points with which the Legislature will have
to deal are the prevention of that heavy annual charge in-
curred in sustaining the savings' bank system, and also the
devising some protection against their too great and rapid in-
crease,distress and national difficulty, the source of very great em-
barrassment to the Government of,the day. The large addi-
notemueocettutainnpntmhstege oos
obtainoof,
nabdseelee3ilt,spsalheio
nfhcesoguei
betterutr
ipvsnhaetd si
3tnts
cerfc eoeoaoonrtfenetvaspthaonhroeldeoefs
evade
ahaietnttechetreeer.
d industriousr
e par,i
principle
to esr
iintcwo
andhii tupnehl
ldtdeeci
eevslfoxsautauteudephnrass
escape
n
his little capital,
from the property-tax.
awut:lrswhhiuudheaeblrtisdecatffshmmi
may
make them hereafter, in some period of