The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1900-02-28
THRIFT.

A place like Honolulu does not pre-
sent itself to the ordinary mind as one
where a mutual aid society for children
is worth consideration. The average
Hawaiian born or imported says "they
can easily be looked after. I will put
my hand in my pocket, and there is the
end of the matter" And very nobly
the men and women who have means
come forward in this way. Now the
question is whether these very excel
lent and worthy people have been do
ing what is right towards those to
whom they extend their bounty.
The results in many places of the
system employed towards the Hawai-
ian have always been the same, ten
dency to lean upon the instructor with
no idea of acting upon his own respon-
sibility, and then when showed off lean
ing upon very much worse material
than those he reposed his faith in. To
us, therefore, any solution of a prob
lem of self evolution is valuable, and
as often, the French nation affords us
an example of how thrift can be
! taught.
! From the year 1856 to the present time
an institution established by Edward
Petit and j. C. Cave has been gradu-
ally spreading among the school chill
dren of France. The idea has been
fostered by the government which has
allowed a supplemental fund to what
is raised There is a considerable ques-
ton whether the government subsidy
is sound When such a system is
started it ought to depend on itself
The French system which is under
consideration is one in which provis-
] ion is made for sickness during active
/ life, or a provision, a very scanty one,
is made for old age. Old age is fixed
at So years. If one franc (19.3 cents) is
deposited in childhood, it yields it's in
come at the end of the So years, or if
the person dies the accumulations go
to his heirs, the state having charge OF
the matter. If this is true of a franc
it is true of many francs, and the re-
suit is that many French people are
now depending on this system for their
! provision for old age.
This question of providing for old
age is a vital one. Present youth is
heavily taxed, often, to support old age.
The thinker sees that the old who
have done their work should be as well
taken care of as the young who are ex-
pected to do their work and are tender
comes the practical man and says why
worry about the worn out, put all your
money on the new, and when it gives
out get more new.
The French system of supplying a
pension for old age, fixing its date, is
a good one. We can say that we have
many organizations which do some
what similar things, which look after
the sick and the dying and also give
much attention to the out of purse liv-
ing. But organizations are things
which a good many people, foolishly,
fight shy of, and the Government in
France supplies the shyers with means
to protect themselves.
When it comes to matters of true
thrift the French can beat the Anglo
Saxon and the Teuton, let alone the
Muscovite, the Turk and Czech and even
the careful, hard headed, keen bargain
ing Yankee. If the French have evolved
a system such as the United States
Consul at Lyons, John c. Covert
claims, they have solved problem
which has been worrying honest and
dishonest people a good deal. But
summing up, system which proposes
a pension though very meager one,
and care for sickness under any cir
cumstances, is a very valuable PROPOSE
ton to consider.