New-York tribune., 1880-03-09


YEARS. HISTORY or SIMILAR ArTEMPIS-
oposs ExAGGERATIoNs OF A SNAIL SUN
Assemblyman Cohen has introduced in the
Legislature a bill which provides that the
saving banks shall surrender TO the state
Treasurer for State uses al deposits un-
claimed for ten years. The regular Albany
correspondent Of The TRIBUNE gives an ac-
count of similar projects in the past ard
shows how small an amount Of deposits can
be Justly considered as unclaimed.
LIGHT on Mr. COHENN PROJECT.
LEGISLATIVE INVESTIGATIONS OF THR sUrJrcT II
FORMER YEARs-78OOF THAT rHF STATE Has
nor A MAG>IFICENr rkTtsURF WITHIN REACH.
lrRoM THE REGULAR CORRESPONDENT or THE TRIBUNE
ALBANY. March 6.-MT. Cohen. new mr"hr'
from NowYork, hose youth forOids tue 'h"ng"'
of bis having a profound knowledge Of banklnc' r.
Gently introduced in the Assembly biil providing
for the surrender by the SAVINGS banks OF all de
posits unclaimed for ten years TO the safe Treas
urer for the use Of the state. The bill has the sa'-
ircal title Of For the Better security OF Savings
Bank DepOstOrs.'
This IS not the first time in the story Of tie
State thai members Of tue LeCi~iaiure nav al
tempted to grab the alleged unclame deposits >
of tie SAVINGS banks. The very words " unclaimed
deposits arc declared to BE- missioner bv me ~av-
lngS hanh ONlclalSt tlcy hiNt t"9t'"' ''"i '''''
except very small aud insignificant fracti IN. all d.
post books are finally presented fer payment Il
not presented personally they uy some rrpresen
tative of a long absent depositor. Practically.
therefore there are no unclaimed dep"sts."
bank book was presented at the BieeckeT street
Savings Bank IN New-York CITY du,na January
of the present year for the first time since iol7 He
year IN which the bank opened. The book '"d
only Que deposit for So, made IN December, lel9
Tho interest amounted to &l57:- In the y"ar lo29
a butcher of this city deposited some money IA tie
Albany Savings Bank The money WAS claimed IN
1873 by the mans brother, the deposition hay just
died and the SAVINGS bank book having b. EN- "lnd ,
among his effects The Emgrant ludustllh Saw
ings Bank Of New-Iurk recently nad one OF u
books presented that had not been al the bank
counter for twenty-three years. The d'pOSitor Mas
sailor and SAID that since he deposited ne $1,000
no had rarely been IN New York. Since the present
bill was introduced a deposuor OF the Bo"eH
Savings Bank of New-lork who had not been ia
the bank for twenty-Seven years, presented hls
book TO have the interest his deposit written NJ
saying that since there a>inQuiIy by the Legsatur
about the unclaimed Deposits" he Thought 1t wise
TO come 10 The bank and have ms deposit freed from
that stigma These are "A few Instances am"n2
hundreds IN the memory OF the bank officials OF The
claiming of deposits after many years have passed
since there were active business relations between
the dep5StOr aud the bank.
SIMILAR ATTEMPTS II THr PAST.
II has Decn SAID above that many attempts have
been made in the Legislature to contScie the>e un
claimed deposits for the benefit oi the State. H.
deed for thirty years before 1868 The Legislature
may be said to have dreamed yearly of 'he great
income that could be secured by plundrrue the
saving banks Laws were pa sed defining tie nHr
Der Of years when the deposit must be class d as
OOtc llDl for. u q
was only three years. Bills were ntr duced CON-
stantly from 1880 on tor the tran>ference Of th
deposits so CSissed TO the state None Of thcn weIe
passed. At last in 1859, the Assembly did what
ought 80 have been done befoe e-lt appointed a
committee to ascertain the precise amount Of the
unclaimed deponts. Unfortunately the committee
left it 10 the SAVINGS bank officials 10 p0n Out IN"
unclaimed deposits" and as they then rs uow re-
gard all deposits as claimed" an exceedingly small
amount of "unclaimed" reported. A commit
tee appointed in 1868 did far more thorough work.
Its members sent IA circular to all the savings ba a.
asking them ito report all moneys uncialmet for
Eve years as the minimum period, with he amount
embraced in he reported ior that period whic'
had been unclaimed successIvcy tor ten. hiteca,
twenty, twenty-five and thirty years, ano so long
a. the institution NAV have been IN existence"
The responses TO these circulars showed how base
less had been the impression that fabulous suns
we're IN tho savings banks as unclaimed deposits.
The result of the inquiry when tabu!ated as
follows:
Number OF savings banks operation July ]. 1892
6years. 40: 10 years SO 10 years, IL 20 wears, II
IS years 10; 30 years u; 80 y'"rs : 40 lrar,' :.
Aggregate amount OF moneys on July l. 1862 N ih"
sa 70 Years years Ss5SS99 S53S9 Is ysir yr
eel 053 AZ; so s32329 a.; 80 Jears. Sl3,si3
40 years, S391o Vs.
IL commenting upon these figures the committee
said:
on this subject. aud year after wear oils a Ptopos
tons been Introduced ino the Legislature pr0po>
Ing 10 transfer these unclaimed MONEY! 10
tue custody of tue STATE suppOsing them L.
amount 10 millions. The result o. tbt pr's-
public mind has bern greatly missed a. TO the amount
Of these moneys No douoI Dan> have eonloundcd
the surplus moneys OF our SAVINGS banks WIN ne u
aimed and 70 this fact, probably, may justly b. at
tributed the eStravagaDt ideas that have been So
prevalent n tie public mInd upon me su9ect o. th'
latter. II proper that quite lafg, proportion
OF the money reported as unclaimed IL really as mAe'
ciaimed ns any Other GcpOslts III lhese institutions
Guardians aud parents make deposits 10 the credit O.
their and CHI drcn or the very purpose OF having
Their money place OF safety untI the later come
OF age.
By the year 1875 the deposits Of the banks had
reached such vast proportions that the cupdiy
Of members of the LEGISLATURE again
aroused--aud doubtless the memory Of the
result of the former inquiry had become
dim The superintendent of the Banking De
partment was directed to learn from the saw
fngs banks the amount OF their unclaimed
deposits" His report in reply was such an unan-
sverabe comment on the agitation 10 GespOll the
hanks that from 1878 10 the present wear no more
has been said the subject i'll the Legislature The
result OF the inquiry as taDGlated wa as I0nows:
Name Of Bank anG urcilme l0 yrs.sncl morning Of
years aud less than l016.
Upward oytars.