The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1897-01-06
POSTAL SAVINGS BANKS.
How They Operate In the Countries
Across the Ocean.


How They Operate In the Countries
Across the Ocean.
The experience of France, Eng
land, Belgium, Sw2den, Holland,
Russia, Austria, Hungary, Canada
and Australia with postal savings
banks is to the effect that the masses
of the people derive decided advan-
tages from having among them
everywhere safe repositories for
their small savings, managed in
connection with the postoffice de-
partment. 1t is claimed in behalf of
such banks that they benefit class
not reached by other savings banks
Their function is thus described by
distinguished French writer:
"It is the savings bank which has
taught the workman of France how
he can become capitalist, in mod
Grating his consumption to bring it
within his production and in amass-
ing the excess, called savings. From
the bank he learns how capital is
formed and how it can be produced
The savings bank is in facta school
which seems to bo created for the
apprenticeship of industrial busi-
ness. It teaches man to govern
himself, to resist bad or useless i'm
pulses, and so aids in building up
sound discretion, which is the first
success in life The presence of ia
cilities for saving and obtaining q
small interest on ones accumula-
tions affects the character as well as
the wealth of tho people. Not only
is capital created and the rainy day
provided against, but habits of So
briefly and thrift, which are ele-
ments of moral excellence, are great
ly promoted.
In the "Annals of the American
Academy of Political and Social
Science there is an article by E.
T. Heyn on Postal Savings Banks, "
in which are enumerated the advan-
tages to be derived, in the writer's
opinion, from adding savings bank
feature to the operations of our post
Office department. These advantages
are as follows: Postal savings banks
would furnish a safe place for the
earnings of the laboring classes and
stimulate them to habits of saving.
At present such sums as they hoard
are kept out of use, to the aggregate
amount of hundreds of millions,
thus producing scarcity of money,
whereas if their savings were put
in bank they would be restored to
active use. After few years tho
amount deposited with the postofice
department would approach 81, 0O0,-
OO0,O ,OOO and if applied to the retire
ment of government bonds would
wholly extinguish the public debt
to bondholders. Not only would the
moral tone of citizens be improved
by becoming depositors, but the
stability of the government would
be increased by the practical inter-
est depositors would have in its well
fare.
In the United Kingdom deposits
| are now received at II, 900 postofices
from 9 a. m. to p m. The deposit
or receives from the postmaster a
passbook, in which are recorded the
deposits and Withdrawals. Any
sum from s cents up to $3.50 may be
deposited in one year, and interest is
paid on any sum that is a multiple
| of SIS and is compounded. With
drawals may be speedily effected, by
| telegraph OF otherwise. A depositor
may, if he chooses, have his accu-
mulated deposits invested in gov
ernment bonds. Small savings may
be made by the purchase of postage
stamps, which, when they reach
certain amount, are recorded as de-
posits.
There are 5000 schools in which
the children are encouraged to save
through the machinery of the post
| office, a clerk coming to the school
| at intervals to receive the stamps
and furnish passbooks. The aggre-
gate deposits in postal savings banks
| at the end of 1893 was $4o2, 500, 900,
the years increase being $23, 5O0,-
600. Besides this, 60, 131 depositors
held s31, 100000 of government
bonds. One out Of every seven per-
sons in England is now depositor
in the postal banks. In 1893 there
were 9, e3S, 1913 deposits made, aggre-
eating s123, 900, 900, and withdraw
ais aggregated s1O8, 500, 900. Opera
tions are conducted on similarly
large scale in the postal savings fea-
| lures of other countries. Various
public officials have at times urged
upon congress the idea of utilizing
the postohices for the accumulation
as well as the transmission of mon
ey, insisting upon it's utility in the
agricultural districts, but SO far
| congress has not deemed the matter
ripe for action. Sun.
Something Small,