Bismarck daily tribune., 1908-10-02

to make small deposits with the
securely of the government promise
to pay principal and interest. Such
system will add greatly to the mon
ey savings of the country.
s.. .sThe fear by any class Of banks
that this would interfere with their
business the experience in sother
countries has Shown to be utterly
.unfeunded Where savings banks
are established, they pay higher
rate Of interest than the government
viii pay for deposits in the postal
savings banks, and confer privileges
on their depositors which it would !
be impossible to grant under a gov
ernment system. R$.3 - k2S.,
GA significant fact in connection
with the postal savings banks sof
those countries where they have
been most successful is that one
third of the depositors of the postal
savings banks abroad are miners,
and two-thirds Of them are working
men. ~
4: Z. = = 3 : = = = :: $ : :.
I. "The postal savings bank :.
:. would perform a most useful ::
!: function in case of panics be- :.
!: cause they are government in
!: stitutions with the whole credit :
!: of the government behind them :
!: and would attract the deposits =
I: Of those small depositors whose :
1. runs in panic times upon the :
$ banks produce such disastrous :.
= consequences. - -
: !: I. (: s !. : : !. = : :: =
| ssFhe deposit of this money in gov
ernment offices and the power OF
4 the government to re-deposit that
! money in the national banks in the
neighborhood would furnish means
Of meeting an exigency that no 9th
erg system proposed has thus far Of.
fered.
The Democratic System.
..This postal savings bank system,
/ however, does not meet the unqualt-
fed approval of the Democratic par
. ty. 1t has not sthe vote catching
4 quality and involves only the old
4 fashioned gradual movement toward
better things by means of industry
and thrift and saving. The party
under its present leadership must
have something which offers short
cut to reform at the cost of the hon,
q est and the Industrious. The Dem.
J, ocratic platform pledges the party to
n the support of system by which all
!, the national banks Of the country
! are required to guarantee the de
posits to the depositors in every bank
and this guaranty is. to be perform
ed by a tax upon each bank in pro-
Z portion to its deposits, the proceeds
: of the tax to constitute a fund from
which the depositors of any failing
bank are to be paid; and If the
amount of the tax is not sufficient
to raise the funds required, that II
is to be raised by subsequent assess
ment on all the banks Of the coun
try, and state banks are to be al
lowed to come in and get the bene
fit of the same guaranty under con
ditions to be imposed by law. Will,
the Democratic platform does no
elaborate the system, it is to be in
{ ferred from the fact that the pre-
: cedent in Oklahoma is relied upon
that the provisions are to be lik
the Oklahoma law, and these are a
above stated.
ssNo one can dispute the import
ance Of making the deposits in ey
tery national bank as secure as pos
. sible, provided the remedy adopte
is not itself worse than the evil
. be cured. The government has in
posed certain limitations upon ma
j tional banks which have alread
! tended to reduce the losses of dc
positors. 81
! Inc result mas been TO lnCroduc
, Into national banks, a class of me
|. of high character and great bus
: ness ability, and the losses in th
: : last forty years to depositors in nj
!. tional banks have been reduced
: an average annual loss of one-twel
j ty-sixth of one per cent of total d,
? posts. II the loss, even thoug
) small. could be avoided, it would !
9 OF great benefit and should 1
1 brought about for while the percen
Z age Is small, the individual upo
whom the loss falls may be heas
!. sufferers. The question is Wheth,
!. we are to bring about an avoidant
0 of this loss by the proposed Dem
2 cratic remedy, or in a more conse
3 yatiye and gradual way by perfec
9 ling the examination Of banks al
E by rigid prosecution OF all who vi
ri lo 4