Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1879-01-16
House Of Representatives.
CERTIFICATES OF ISSUE.


of the ways and means committee, reported
back the bill authorizing the issue of certif-
Gates of deposits in aid Of refunding the public
debt The bill authorizes the secretary of the
treasury to issue in exchange for lawful money.
United States certificates of deposit of the de-
nomldatlon OF $lO bearing rate of interest of
D per cert. and convertible at any time with
accrued interest into per cent. bonds author
lied to be issued, and directs that the money
so received shall be applied only to payments
of $40 bonds.
Mr.. Kelly, of Pennsylvania, submitted an
amendment SO as to make the certificates con-
vertible with accrued interest after six months
into lawful money, and at any time into per
cent. bonds.
Mr.. Wood called attention to the bill as in
Producing novel features into the affairs of the
government. So far as the producing classes
are concerned it would afford the poorer classes
an opportunity Of investing their small earn
ings where they would be safe and secure and
not subject to the instability OF private cor
porations: Il was proposed by this bill to make
national savings bank, where there would be
positive and absolute security for every dollar
deposited by the poorer classes, and the result
of which would be to make these classes of
people co-partners in the government itself.
cord throughout the land.
Mr. Kelly said the only provision in the bill
which was characteristic of savings bank was
that the government would receive deposits
as low as 80. There no other. The
United States government proposed to engage
the laboring people in game of chance, Of
which the law was ''heads win, tails you lose."
No laboring man could have any benefit
from the bill. It would turn that
class Into game for shylocks that concentrated
about the stock exchanges of the country.
Suppose poor man had deposited $40 and
found himself unable to deposit more He
would have to wait l23 years and four months
before he would be entitled to interest. That
was the redemption proposed by the United
States when it established a savings bank 1t
was said the certificate might be sold. What
would $iO certificate bearing per cent. in
terest bring when a $50 bond at 4 per cent
could be had FOR par. The laws of trade would
put them far below par whenever they had to
be sold in the market. That was the savings
bank offered the poor of America by the mag
posed that these certificates should be converti
BILE at the end of six months, with accrued in
terest, into lawful money. Without the
amendment the bill was snare and trap fer
the poor and disgrac, to the government.
With it, the bill would be safe for the neonle
and beneficient in its effect on the funding
operations Of the government.
Mr.. Banks said he in favor of the gener-
al provisions of the bill. If it went into oper-
alton its first effect would be to induce depos-
itors in savings banks to withdraw their depos-
it's. This would compel savings banks to 90 to
their securities. They must foreciose their
mortgages, and this foreclosure of MORTGAGES
and sale of real estate would take from remain
ing deposito-s the whole security they had now
in savings banks that were sound.
Mr.. Burchard said that, though the bill was
not very objectionable 30 far as it went, he
should prefer the measure that was reported
last session for the establishment of govern
ment savings bank. He argued in favor of the
latter measure, and suggested that the pending
bill was lacking in the very essential principle
of a savings bank system, and that was removal
from the power Of classes of the temptation to
spend their money. The certificates or bonds
under the proposed system would be converti-
BILE to money, and would be liable to loss, de-
struction and theft.
Mr.. Butler opposed the bill as delusion and
snare. The effect would be that the poor man
might spend a day every month in procuring a
so bond and that when he got five of them
together he might change them into o per
cent bond and that for that privilege he would
have spent five days and would have saved 35l5
cents interest. That was all there was of it..
There was no element of q savings bank 1T it.
1t had no safety and when the poor man want
ed money for the bond he would have to 90 to
broker and submit to shave greater than
the interest II there was anything else in it
u.
was, he intimated, to withdraw greenbacks
from circulation, for there was no way Of pay
ing them out when received for this purpose,
It would be a further contraction of the cur
renoy, which had already depressed labor,
stopped business and brought the country tc
its present condition.
Mr.. Hewett, of New York. spoke against the
bill.
Mr.. Garfield said that the less legislation
there was on the finances the better. The
country was getting on we'll and he would not
favor any radical change in the present orde,
of the currency law. But here was q bill that
was greatly misunderstood. In the work OF
refunding, the present secretary of the treas
ury had abandoned the syndicate and invited
all national banks, marked by all depository
banks, to take hold of the work and aid him II
transferring per cent. bonds into 4 per cent
bonds. He believed that he could make
the work of refunding proceed yet more rapid.
ly by going beyond the banks and dealing with
the people directly. This bill proposed lust
that thing. 1t was not proposal to make {
saving bank of the treasury. The amendment
of the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Kello.g
put a savings bank feature into it, but no
broad enough to fill the idea of savings bank
while it substantially took away the purpose Of
refunding. He believed that the bill. as i
stood would be very efficacious in fastening re
funding.
Mr.. Phillips opposed the bill He desired t
offer an amendment providing for deposits il
any postoffice which is money order Office O.
any amount not less than Is cents, to be for
warded to the United States treasury and a.
account kept with the depositor who shall re
ceive interest at the rate of per cent, on
that when this sum shall amount to $40