The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1908-10-15
POSTAL SAVINGS BANKS PAY.
Posfmaster-General Meyer Shows
That System Abroad is a Success.
Democratic Guaranty Of Bank De-
pOsits is Trickery.

PSS 10 iFckefY.
Washington, D. c., Oct. 9.-Post-
master-Ceneral Meyer has expressed
himself with vigor concerning recent
criticism of the postal savings bank
plank in the Republican platform,
Some of these criticisms have an
peared in newspapers ordinarily
friendly TO the administration or at
least supporting the Republican Ma
tionai ticket in the campaign.
In reply to an editorial statement
that postal savings banks have been
a failure In European countries. Mr..
Meyer said:
ITO assert that the system of DOS
tai savings banks has been an utter
failure abroad and therefore ought
not to be tried in this country, dis
plays surprising ignorance concern
ing the whole subject.
I'm England, where postal saw
ings banks have existed for forty-five
years. the system has grown so sub
stantially that according to the last
annual report there were 100000
deposits. The annual amount de-
posted has grown to be upward of
$215,000. From 1905 the interest
accredited to depositors aggregated
SIT, 100000. An addition of nearly
$2O,O00,00O was made in 1906 to
the amount standing to the credit
OF depositors, which, at the begin
ming of the present calendar year,
had reached the immense total of
$760,555,7OO, an average of some
thing more than SIS to each depos-
itor.
Explains Loss of Profits.
''It is true" continued the Post
master-General, that the profits of
the postal savings bank system in
England during the last few years
have not been so great as in the
years preceding, and there is even
loss in its management at the pres
ent time, but this is mainly due to
the decreased interest on consols, in
which the funds are largely in
vested.
Had the British Government
deemed it advisable. the rate of in
terest paid to depositors could have
been decreased, but owing to the
large volume of profits received by
the government previously it was
deemed unfair to the depositors to
make this reduction. The postal
savings bank system in Great Britain
and in other European countries has
been decided success, and state
ments to the contrary from persons
who are interested in having the.
growing sentiment in their favor
sQuelched in this country must be
branded as undeniably false"
Paying his respects to the resolu-
tions against the establishment Of
postal savings banks which were
adopted by the bankers in their re-
cent convention at Denver, Mr.. Mey-
er said that these sentiments were
not of the rabid sort which some of
the newspapers had denoted them to
be, but were only representative of
the protest which might be expected
from bankers who saw in the estab-
vi lu6 SOFCl odflhSo
scheme the disappearance of a share
of their own business.
Bank Guaranty is Tricky.
"'The postal savings banks system
can by no means be likened to the
proposition advanced by the Demo-
crats for the government guaranty
Of bank deposits" said Mr.. Meyer.
81 consider the last scheme an in
sfdious and tricky attempt to fool
the voters of the country into sup
porting a monetary plan which
would in its enforcement eventually
bring to the country more disaster
than the formerly proposed free
coinage of silver"
Postmaster-General Meyer is pre-
pairing himself with information con-
cerning the postal savings bank sys-
tenn, which he may use in series of
campaign speeches if it appears that
the government guaranty Of depos-