The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1910-03-12
'THE Posr.. SAVINGS sANK BELL

WARHIN0roH. March li.-ln an address
delivered In Milwaukee on September ~
ioOo. President Taft urged en-. establish
nent Of postal savings hank system and
] declared his belief that it would AN IN
this country a long felt want From the
debate In tho senate. lasting from the
submission % a favorable report by the
COnmitiee on POst Ohices and Post Roads
on January - until tho passage OF the
bill on March S. IL 10 a fair Inference that
this alleged want 10 local rather than
national There 10 also fair ground for
an Inference that the bill ~as approved
from recognition Of IL as a desirable
political expedient rather than from recOg-
milton Of the long felt want 81 postal
savings banks OF because OF conviction
Of the merit % such an institution.
The history oT the system vas sketched
by senator Carter in his speech intro
ducing the bill. He said:
The question Involved In the pending blIl has
bern under consideration for over one hundred
years u has challenged the attention ~ philan-
ihropists nnAnciers. economists and statesmen
throughout the civilized world u was nrst put
IN the test OF practical experience In Great Britain
In lssl. aud thereafter IN other Countries In the
order IN vhich I name them: Canada. Belgium.
Japan, Italy, Netherlands. France. Austria
sweden Hungary. FINLAND. Russia and the colo
nics and dependencies Of such ~ them a. have
outside possessions.
Il will be noted that Germany does not
appear in the list. In that country a
substitute for the postal banks 10 found
IN . venerable system Of municipal saw
ings banks successfully and satisfactorily
operated. In France both systems are
employed. the municipal as well a. the
postal. Official attention was frat given
TO the question in this country IN 1871 by
Postmaster General Creswell. who recon-
mended the adoption of the system. The
scheme WAS officially Endorsed by sew era
% Mr.. CTeswell's succeasoru. among them
Mr.. Thomas L. James and Mr.. John wAna-l
maker. The record Of the HOUSE Of Rep
resentatives shows tho introduction 81
fifty bills for the establishment Of postal
savings banks. the first bearing the date
Of December ~. 1879 The record oi the
senate shows thirty similar measures. the
first dated March ~. 1875. Some have
been discussed and some have gone TO
pigeonholes.
In isss the Union Labor party declared
in its platform that postal savings banks
should h. establishsd.- In 1899 the ma
sionAl Peoples party demanded that pos
tai savings hanks ~ established by the
Government for the safe depoeit Of the
earnings IT the people and To facilitate
exchange This was repeated IN the
platform OF the Peoples party in Isss. In
Is0 and m ieO4. The issue assumed
larger proportions in Iss and had a
plac" in the platforms OF the Republican
party, the Democratic party, tho Pro-
hibitionists. the Populists and tho indie
pendence League. The Republican plat
form declared tho purpose % the system
10 10 the convenience Of the people and
the encouragement % thrift Tho Demo
cratic platform approved a postal hank
system u the funds reviewed couId be kept
in the immediate neighborhood oG the Of
fice In which they we're deposited and their
escape to the banks Of Wall Street made
impossible. rOmsWhat curio,iuly. this
limitation % the employment Of the de-
poSits was the determining factor in the
passage IL the bill.
section : Of the bill as il was introduced
provided for the deposit ~ receipts I'm
any solvent hank or hanks subject Ia
nearly az practicable in the immediate
neighborhood in which the funds are TO
c~iVed- In order to meet possible and
perhaps inevitable condition this section
further declared that in the event Of re-
fnsal II local banks TO receive deposits
on the terms prescribed said funds may
he deposited with the Treasurer - the
United states Tor investment in bonds or
other securities IN which the investment
Of the funds of savings banks ~ author
lied by the Law ~ the State or Territory
IN which such deposits were reviewed
The demand for concentration or loCali-
zatiOn ~ deposits Was plank in the Demo-
cratic platform. Section was . Rspub-
lican step in tho same direction. but II did
not 60 far enough to satisfy Western Re-
publicans. upon Whose support the pas
sage Of the bill evidently depended
Republican Senators submitted amend
ments whirh President Taft in his speesh
in New York on February 4; said we're
drawn apparently for the purpose NJ
having money deposited ~ savings in
Government post offices distributed
through the locality where deposited in
the banks state and national. and 80
0"ppsttel as W ftlahs " ifupOsrlnle Tor
the trustees ~ the fund appointed under
the law tn withdraw the money for invest
ment IN any other form He added that
he regarded such an amendment a.
likely tn defeat the Law on constitutional
and other grounds. The Republican pro-
ponents ~ these amendments appear no,
To have seen or else Ia have disreRarried
the fact that they were seeking 20 put into
effect n demand ~ Democratic national
platform in opposition 10 tho desire and
the Judgment ~ their own political chief
Moreover. although urging the establish
ment II postal savings hank zy-tem in
this country On tho ground oF the general
and s'Icce-~ful employment of the system
IN many other countries. they ignored the
fact that in practically all ~ those co,rn-
tries the deposits are invested In public
securities. The humor ~ the situation
evidently failed To appeal To them.
The uncOnstitutionAlity ~ the measure
was urged and ably argued On the Dem