Omaha daily bee., 1910-10-08
Postal Savings.

A discussion has been started over
the report that the postal savings
bank system authorized by the last
congress in response to President
Taft's urgent recommendation is to be
inaugurated by the establishment Of
only one bank in each state, the evil
dent purpose OF the discussion being
to make political capital against Sen
ator Burkett in favor of his demo-
cratic opponent, Congressman Hitch
cock. Mr.. Hitchcock's paper, 1t must
be said, disclaims verification Of the
rumor and furnishes the correct ex-
PLANTATION why only comparatively few
postal savings repositories will be
available at the outset by calling at
tention to the fact that congress lin
tied its appropriation to set this COM
plicated machinery in motion to the
small item of 100000. 1t goes with
out saying that with only 100000 to
work on the Postofice department
must necessarily be circumscribed in
its operations and must make selec-
tions for initial savings banks at
points that promise the largest meas
ure of success and also present the
largest variety OF conditions to which
the system when amplified must con-
form.
When rural free delivery was first
projected 1t was tried experimentally
in but a few places, and from the
small beginnings Of three or four rural
carriers the colossal institution of free
delivery, which carries mail to the re-
hottest corners of the country, has
grown under the fostering care and
efficient management of successive re-
publican administrations That the
gratifying record of rural free deliv-
cry will In short time find a coun-
terpart in the postal savings bank sys-
TEN, which the republicans have now
given to the people, may be confidently
predicted.
When II comes to awarding credit
for the fruition of postal savings as
between Senator Burkett and Con-
gresham Hitchcock 1t will be difficult
for the latter to assert valid claim.
True, Congressman Hitchcock made
four campaigns for congress on per-
sonal platforms pledging effort for
postal savings and introduced several
bills that found speedy Judgment in
committee pigeon holes. In none of
these campaigns was the subject a
party issue. But when two years ago
postal savings became a plank in the
republican national platform Mr..
Hitchcock renowned his fealty and
took up with the ignis fatuus OF de-
post guaranty injected by Mr.. Bryan
as a new paramount. Our democratic
congressman debated in public for de-
post guaranty, assuring his hearers
that it would make postal savings
banks unnecessary, and he finally
voted for the republican postal savings
bank bill as a confessed second choice
with first preference still for the fake
guaranty scheme.
In a word, II Congressman Hitch
cock and his democratic associates had
had their way we would not have had
even one postal savings bank in each
state, and It is only because President
Taft, backed by the republicans in con-
gress, including Senator'S Burkett and
Brown and the three republican con-
gressmen from Nebraska, forced the
redemption of their platform pledge
over the opposition of the democratic
minority in both houses that we have
postal savings banks coming with
eventually depository in every
money order postofflce.