The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1874-10-07
Postal savings Banks.

! The establishment of post-ofice savings banks
has been successfully tried in Great Britain aud
some of it's colonies, and perhaps other countries,
and proved to be one Of the most popular meas.
ures adopted Of late years. Its success is chiefly
owing to the great security which it offers to the
depOsltOr the government becoming responsible
for the safekeeping and return of the money de-
posted, with interest. In England the rate of
interest is stated to be three per cent per annum;
in New Zealand it is but four per cent; yet up
to January L, 1874, New Zealand had on deposit
in pOst-ofce savings banks over t,0enty millions
of dollars.
The late postmaster-general of the United
States, Mr.. Cresswe, strongly advocated the
adoption Of this measure. and had he remained in
Office 1t would soon have been introduced, and
may yet be under Gov. Jewell, who is his sue
cessor. In speech delivered in Baltimore Mr..
CreswelI said
"By this plan every suitable post-ofice could be
used TO receive The deposits of the people and
nit them to the Department at Washington, TO be
invested under the direction of designated officers
in bonds of the United States By this arrangement
the security of depositors would be bastd upon the
very foundation stones of the Republic" And
again There is nothing in the objection that the
establishment OF postal banks would be equivalent
to the assumption of banking business by the Gov
ernment. The rate of interest would be too low TO
justify any such complaint The people with bank
notes in tleir hands need now simply place TO put
them where with certainty they can recall their
equivalent on call, and where they will draw a rate
of interest equal to the value Of their under the
circumstances. Banks are the associated capital of
the stockholders who invest for profit They seek
deposits, pay interest to get them, and, of course,
must them or lose on the transaction. When
high rates paid still higher rates must be OBJ
tanned, and ordinary legitimate business can af.
ford economical rates spectators hire the deposits
Of the people from the banks, and if their guesses
and Judgments rewarded by gains well and good;
fnot, somebody suffers. For time the bank can
stand losses but in the end the dpositor is the loser
because of his greed for high of interest But
it is not only this class who suffer by such folly,
but others, who deposit simply for convenience or
necessity aud who seek interest on their funds go
down in the ruin of the banks. To guard against
this, the postal bauk system offers sovereign rene
dy."
No new machinery is required, for the intro
duction of this measure into this kingdom
simply one or two capable and responsible post
masters on each island, qualified to attend to the
receipt of money from depositors, and to TRIMS
init 1t to the head Office in Honolulu where it
would be loaned TO government on treasury
bonds. Just soon as this measure and its
operation became known throughout the king
dom, it would attract the spare and now idle
funds of the native and foreign population. who
would be sure that their money was in safe hands
and earning little fog them. The amount of
deposits would be small at first, perhaps not ten
thousand a year but the time would come when
it would be reckoned by hundreds OF thousands.
w hat easier way to obtain funds to carry 90 de-
'irable public works better by far than to send
abroad, and sell bonds at a discount. And what
irner foundation for the government to rest on
han the patriotism and loyalty of creditors
whose interest it will be to maintain its credit
md integrity! Gentlemen in authority, if you
would place the government of King Kalakaua
N firm foundation, let no time be lost in .es-
abllshing a system Of postal savings banks
costing very little, but returning sure benefits TO
be people aud the government.