Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1910-06-24
FRIDAY, JUNE "a, 1910.
POSTAL SAVINGS BANK.
Senate Accepts House Amendments
and Establishes System.

and Establishes System.
After voting down several amend
ments, the senate yesterday decided.
A to 25, to concur in the house amend
ments to the postal savings bank bill,
and thus took the last legislative step
necessary to the establishment Of a
postal savings bank system of the Uni
ted States. The measure was includ-
ed in the administration schedule and
its passage marks another triumph for
President Taft.
In accordance with the programme
agreed upon Wednesday, the voting
began at o'clock and the bill was
passed a quarter Of an hour after
wards.
Most of the "insurgent' Republicans
Joined with the regulars in supporting
the measure in the final action on it,
but Senators; Bristow, Cummins and
LaFollette refused to yield and cast
their ballots in the negative with the
Democrats. Senator Chamberlain cast
the only Democratic vote for the bill.
Previous to the voting there was
much discussion Of the general merits
Of the bill.
Mr.. Simmons of North Carolina de-
nounced the bill as an .abject and
humiliating surrender to ME banks"
and predicted that before the end Of
the next campaign the bill would be
the most unpopular law ever passed
by the Republican party, mot except
ing the spurned, rejected and trampled
upon Payne -Aldrich tariff law.
Declaring that the house had reject
ed every feature for which the senate
had made an endeavor, Mr.. Hughes Of
| Colorado read articles from newspa-
pers declaring that the president had
| threatened to veto the river and har-
Dor and public buildings bills II the
house postal savings bank bill should
fail of acceptance by the senate. He
demanded to know whether the con-
tents Of the pork barrel should be
more potent in influencing senators
| than the requirements of the constitu-
ton. Surely postal savings bank bill
| was not to be passed because of the
exercise of such influence, he said.
With Mr.. Bristow. he asserted that tho
party enacting 1t into law.
Mr.. Carter defended the bill. He
expressed confidence that the measure
| would prove an unmiXed blessing to
struggling men, women and children.
The postal bank bill, as IL goes to the
president, provides for the designation
Of postoffices as postal savings depos-
itory offices. The opening Of such de-
positories Is left to the discretion Of
board Of three trustees, consisting Of
the postmaster general, the secretary
of the treasury and the attorney gen.
eral. This board Is given complete
control of the repositories and their
funds. AS II will require considerable
time for the board to prepare its reg
ulations, it Is impossible at this time to-
predict when the postal banking sys-.
tenn will be in operation. .f
In these repositories any person over
10 years Of age may make deposit Of
funds amounting to 81 or multiples Of
that amount. Pass books will be is
sued to depositors and interest allowed
at the rate Of per cent per annum.
No person Is to be permitted to deposit
more than 500 in any month, nor to
be allowed to have exceeding $500 to
his credit at any time. The withdraw
al of funds is to be permitted at any
rate. The postal savings funds, thus
accumulated, are to be placed in state
and National banks in the communities
in which the deposits are made, and
the banks are to be required to pay q
per cent interest. Five per cent Of the
total deposits is to be held by the
treasurer of the United States In which
Is a reserve to guarantee the payment
of depositors.
Banks are to be required to deposit
security in the shape Of public bonds
to assure the safety Of deposits. There
is a clause for the withdrawal Of 30
per cent of the deposits for investment
bonds and depositors are permitted to
transmute their deposits into bonds
when they so desire.
Postmasters in fourth class Offices
are to be given additional compensa>
ton for their services. Postal savings
accounts In the banks are to be kept
separate from all other accounts. One
hundred thousand dollars Is appro-
priated to carry the proposed law into
effect and to establish tn, first Of the
repositories. 1t Is expressly declared
in the bill itself that the faith Of the
United States Is solemnly pledged to
the payment Of the deposits made in
postal savings depository offices with
accrued interest thereon as herein
provided"