The Washington herald., 1907-09-07

Charlotte, y. C.. Sept 6.-saturday aft
ernoon one sees a big. pushing. jostling
crowd on the streets of Charlotte. Are
they ali intent upon spending the week s
wages on pleasure and dissipation? In
many towns that is all too true but not
so IN Charlotte. They are bound for the
offices Of the building and loan associa-
tons. White and black. men and women,
boys and girls. well-to-do mechanic
dressed up" the day laborer in his over
ais, the prosperous citizen in his every
day business dress-thousands are paying
the weekly dues 10 the association which
helps the people TO save their money that
they may build homes
The building and loan association has
reached a higher development in Char
lotte in proportion TO the size of the
city than anywhere else. Charlotte has
subscribed for one share of S100 for every
man. woman, and child white or black,
within her borders, and Of that 500 has
already paid S42 OF course this is not
distributed with absolute equality, but
the greatest amount paid into its build
ing and loan associations Of any State.
while New Jersey holds the record for
the highest per capita-S17. North Caro-
Ina as a State has but 81 per capita in
the associations Charlotte has S100 and
stands at the head OF the list.
Philadelphia has the greatest number
of workingmen living in homes which
they own. Baltimore, Md, and Dayton,
Ohio, are well up in the list All of
these things have besn accomplished by
the local building and loan associations.
These institutions are established in every
state in the Union, and have been de-
veloped In varying degrees in different
localities. The total amount paid into
them, however, is nearly SO0000,0o0. only
a little less than the total paid up capital
OF all the national banks. The Increase
for last year over the year before was
$iQO00.OO0
It is important that these local build
ing and loan associations, which are
nearly all purely mutual in their consti-
tuition. shall not be confounded with those
schemes which used the same name and
were operated as swindIing concerns a
few years ago. The sO-called national
associations were nearly always failures,
and too often were straight out swindling
schemes. The successful associations, in
nearly all instances. are those which have
a local field, which lend money only on
local property.
One Of the most prominent men in
Charlotte got his start in life by paying
q small weekly payment to a building and
loan association IN Bethlehem, Pa, He
was a mechanic then, in overalls. Now
he is one Of the best-kuown manufac-
turers of the South, and. naturally, a
firm believer In building and loan assO-
Citations The head of the largest assO-
citation here Is a man who came TO the
United States with one dollar, began life
as a clerk in a store and IS now "A
wealthy man. He has given his time
and attention for twenty-five years 10 the
fostering Of these associations, and has
not received one cent IN payment for his
work
The building and loan association rs It
IS found Eere is a purely cooperative
partnership. There are no emoluments OF
perquisites to any one and all Of the Off
GERS serve without pay except the secre-
tary and treasurer and the necessary
clerical assistants. The men who started
these Institutions We're moved by con-
siderations partly philanthropic. partly
patriotic, and partly selfish. They desired
10 help the wOrkingmen TO help them
selves by teaching them 10 save money,
and thus far It is philanthropy; they de-
sired to build up their home town 10y
auchOrlng 10 It citizens bound by ties of
home and property interest TO this ex-
tent they were patriotic; they were selfish
because they knew that a town filled
with workingmen who owned their homes
and are willing TO aid in the upbuilding
OF the community is a town in which
business men viii not fail TO prosper.
Take an instance down at the bot
tom. Cotton mill operatives are no.
madic, and are inclined to drift from
mill TO mill, from town to town. A
young man working in a cotton mill
for S1.25 a day falls in love with a girl
who works in the same mill for 81 4
day. They are married, and must face
the problem Of keeping house. The mill
company viii rent them a three-rOOm
cottage for $3.50 q month. The build
ing and loan association makes its Of
fer The young couple decide to buy
home OF their own. They get a small
lot on long time, and borrow $500 from
the association TO build a three-room
cottage, a little better than the one
rented by the mill company Each
month they pay into the association
$3.50. 81 more than the rent money
would have been. BY and by the man
gets his wages increased. and he puts
another dollar a month into the asso-
ciation and builds an addition to his
house, At the end Of six and a half
years he owns the house. and only has
to save 25 cents "A week to lift the
mortgage on his lot.
This takes a long time. one may
think, but It must be remembered that
this family has a total income of but
$50 a month, and II It had not been for
the association could never have owned
q home at all.
In the meantime. the association has
coerced him into saving. because he is
10 SzQ5 F1 nl frn f9s F m 20 40, co. st5. 70,