The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-01-03
CHANGE IN POSTAL
 SAVINGS SYSTEM
New Postal Savings Card Con- tainS TransIationS in 24
 Languages

Postmaster R. S. Hickman of the Ensley postoffice received from the. department statement relative to the | new postal saving cards, which went, ! into effect January l. The Ensley of-l l flee has high rank in the postal saw 1 ings deposits, which are steadily grow | ing. The statement follows:
 The United States postal savings sys- l tenn on January 1 marked its tentn'
 anniversary by issuing new postal savings card which will displace the Decent postal savings card which has been in use since the establishment of
 the system on January 1, 1911
 l The new card will be furnished free , of cost, and when 10 10-cent postal say ! l ings stamps have been affixed to lt will be accepted at any depository of 1 flee as deposit of s1, or it may be re- deemed in cash. The outstanding fea- | ture of the new card is the translation | into 24 foreign languages of the state ment that the faith of the Unitel states is solennly pledged to the payment or 1 deposits made with the system
 | The service was first established at I 4S post offices, one in each state, on | January l, 1911, and. although ham pered by many restrictions as to rate off interest and maximum amount at | lowed on deposit it has shown re- markable progress. Postmaster Gen . eral Burleson announces that the amount on deposit today is more than S162, ,000 000 and it's depositors have l long since passed the one-half million mark.
 As predicted by it's proponents in
 the days before the passage of the 1 original postal savings act, our forcig,i 1 born vcitizens have been the principal patrons of the system. Taught in their native countries to look to the govern ment to safeguard their earnings, they naturally expect this government to do | likewise, In the present flood tide of immigration, each newcomer as he | leaves the port of entry receives d | leaflet in his own language outlining I the method of operation of the United | States postal saving system, and urg ing upon him the desrability of con tinuing in this country the practice of thrift which has been so necessary in l the country he has just left. The serv- ice is, therefore, one of the most po- tent factors in furthering the Ameri- canization movement.
 Many banks. usually savings banks, prior to the establishment of the sys- tenn felt that the postal savings system 1 would be strong competitor but ex- .perience has shown that the postal savings system draws it patrons not from depositors in established and well-conducted banks, but from among those who otherwise would not place their money in any banking institution whatever.
 The original act of Congress re- stricted the total amount to be placed on deposit at $500, and the deposit ol
 this amount was limited to not more than S100 per month. Later, the month ly limitation was removed and the max mum amount increased first to $1,001 and then to the present amount, $y500 | Postmaster General Burelson, in the annual report just submitted to Con- gress, recommends increasing the rate
 of interest to be paid depositors, and
 action by Congress win, no doubt, be
 taken along these lines within the near
 future.