Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1906-01-19


Has Accomplished.
The object of the penny savings system
is not to teach the children to acquire
a large bank account, but by practical
experience to teach them the worth of
their money and that more may be bought
with the dollar than the penny. The pur-
pose of the system is thus educational as
it tries to show that money goes farther
when spent in large than in little sums.
1t is both an attractive and practical
method of teaching thrift. The system
has been in operation in the public schools
in many towns and cities of the United
States for 20 years. established usually
through the efforts of charitable organiza-
lions or woman's clubs whose experience
has forced upon their attention the fact
that a lack of wise economy and fore
thought often brings restitution to people
of means as well as to the chronic poor.
All honor to the honest, thrifty, self-re-
speeding people who have solved the
problem of living happily upon small
means!
1t is mostly through these people that
wa learn what standard ought to be held
up to others who with the same means,
if not more, have made a corresponding
failure in life. This marked contrast
between the thrifty and the thriftless is
seen not only among people of small means
but in all ranks of life 1t is because of
this contrast and all 1t signifies that the
savings system has been undertaken in
the public schools, for IL in childhood
habits Of thrift are cultivated when the
age of maturity is reached the habit of
saving and of thrift will already have
been acquired. And as Youth is the
sowing end of the harvest time" let us
work with the children. Our savings
banks are good and many of our children
already have bank accounts, but the
banks do not reach children or parents
yhO cannot mako
whose spare money is in cents, not dollars,
and whose self control is in equally small
quantities.
But if the opportunity to save even the
occasional penny is brought to this class
they gladly avail themselves of 1t. It
has been observed that the children of
tho poorest parents, often parents who
at one time or another are helped by the
town, are the ones who spend the greatest
number of pennies. Many of the poor,
whether found in city or country, are tho
greatest spendthrifts often because they
feel that the pennies which represent their
all are not enough to get the better things,
and so they spend one, two, five or ten
cents at a time on worthless trash.
Through the penny savings system the
children from this class are shown that
pennies may accumulate to dollars II not
wasted and very often they can save
enough for school clothes and other things
that are worth while. The associated
charities of Somerville Mass, say that
the question of shoes for that city has
been almost entirely settled by the penny
savings system.
Many of the parents of these children
ara reached by the influence of the system
in the home, and some of them of their
own accord begin to save, going for the
first time to savings bank to lay by
little for rainy day. Wherever the
penny savings system has been introduced
into schools the results have far exceeded
expectations In Bellows Falls last year
2S7 scholars took out deposit cards and
the total amount of money brought in by
them was 1861. 05 More than half of this
aInodnt, s393.7S, was put into the savings
banks of that village. In Springfield.
Mass, where the system has been in oper-
alton ~ OF 13 years, the amount collected
last year from the sale of stamps was
S5407.11 and the bank deposits were
sSO96.57. In towns and cities where the
savings system is used the cashiers of
banks say they issue bank books in greatly
increased numbers and that many more
adults deposit than ever before. They
attribute the entire increase to the in
fluence of the penny savings system used
in the schools.
made a matter of statistics; the gain is
one of character. We cannot begin too
early to help children form habits Of
thrift and self denial by restraint of appe-
tte and self Indulgence, teaching them
that If they go without the useless and
often harmful things now, in the future
the better things of life may be theirs
in return for the self denial they exercise
today. The child who is spending his
pennies for cheap candy, chewing gum
or tobacco in some form is not simply
losing his money and injuring his health
but acquiring a habit of self indulgence
which grows stronger each year until in
later years when the will power has be-
come weakened by these childish indul-
gences he is easily led astray by the worse
attractions held out to him.
Many child3fn through the system are
stimulated to- earn money, many learn
to give up gum, candy, pickles. etc, and
boys who from ten years up have been
using tobacco stop doing so, while the
older girls give up the cheap jewelry and
other frivolous things in dress.
One teacher, an earnest advocate of
the system, says she sees a great improve
ment in her children that number work
is now interesting and easy. and the child
rem are more alert, that boys once so
stupid that they hardly knew enough to
go in out of the rain, as she expresses
it, now in the briefest time possible
march up to the desk, lay down the e&-
act change for two fives and a one"
take their stamps and give place to the
next in line The children are enthusi-
astic where the system is tried and the
ttdcISIS always IeSpOHu Mccarthy 10 any
thing that promotes the welfare of their
pupils, and so will do all in their power
to make the system a success. When
the children save their money in this
way it is to be hoped that they will be
able and wish to deposit the amount or
part of it in the savings bank, but, they
can do as they wish and it is also their
privilege to withdraw their money at any
time for anything they or their parents
desire.
How the System is Carried on.
The Brattleboro Woman's club being
impressed with the success of the system
in other schools in our state and wishing
that the subject OF thrift and the right
use of money might be made part of
the instruction in our schools, instructed
its educational committee to present the
matter before the school board. This
was done and the school board reported
IN favor of the movement and granted
permission to the Woman's club to es-
tablish and conduct the savings system
IN the Brattleboro schools in cooperation
with the supervisor and teachers.
Where the penny savings system is
used stamps are issued representing one,
three, five, ten and 25 cents These are
given to the children In return for their
money. Each purchaser has a stamp
book something like bank book in which
these stamps ara attached as fast as the