The New York herald., 1879-02-13
Postal savings Banks.

There is no longer any hope of the
passage OF postal savings bank law by the
present Congress. The bill of Mr.. Phillips,
of Kansas, was overslaughed in the House
o day or two since by an adverse vote on
motion to suspend the rules and permit its
passage 1t not only failed to get the
requisite two-thirds, but was defeated by
an overwhelming vote. The next Congress
may perhaps be wiser. As to the great
benefit to the laboring classes Of postal
savings banks there is no room for
doubt or question. It has been tried
in Great Britain with the happiest
results, experience of it's effects for
nearly twenty years having made it in
creasingly popular. The experiment has
been tried in Canada with nearly equal
success; it has been tried and become
popular in Australia it has been adopted
with some notifications in half. the
nations of Continental Europe. and no
country which has established postal
savings banks has found any reasons for
retreating.
There is ground for believing that a
would be equally beneficial and satisfactory
in the United States The security and
convenience it would bring to the laboring
classes is unquestionable. Its necessity is
apparent in the wrecks of such multi
tude of savings banks as have collapsed
within the last two years. entailing great
loss and hardship on the most deserving
class of the community. On the great point
of safety it is impossible that there should
be any dispute or question. Unless the
government itself should become bankrupt
the depositors in postal savings bank
could never suffer any loss or ever fail to
get their money on demand when they might
want it. The merits of the system are,
therefore, incontestable 80 fur as the secur-
ity of the depositors is concerned.
The advantage which would accrue to the
government is equally apparent and incon-
testable. With postal savings banks the
savings of the people borrowed by the gov
eminent at o rate more than two per cent
less than the interest ON the fve-twenty
bonds, would enable the government to take
up those bonds and make large annual
reduction in its interest account Why
should there be any hesitation in adopting
system which has worked admirably in
England and every other country in which
it has been tried-a system which would
give absolute security to the depositors and
would enable the government to save more
than two per cent interest on q large pro-
portion Of the public debt?
The only thing that has been said or that
can. be said in opposition to these great
and manifest advantages is put in the
form of doubt of the constitutional au-
thority Of the government. But it would
be merely ON exercise of the power Of the
government s'to borrow money on the
credit of the United States" The money
received at postal savings banks would be
simply o loan from the laboring classes,
which is just as legitimate rs loans from
bankers and capitalists. The allowa-
bility of promoting the convenience Of the
people by pecuniary transactions through
the Post Office became, long ago, settled
question. The postal money orders. which
are so popular and convenient, are inde-
fcnsible on any constitutional principle
which would not equally permit the estab-
lishment of postal savings banks. There
can be no difference in point of constitu-
tionality between receiving the money of the
people in one place to pay it out in another
and receiving the peoples money to be paid
back in the same place. The loss of Mr..
Phillips bill does not discourage us, be-
cause we are confident that public discus
sion will remove all the objections to postal
savings banks.