Evening star., 1932-09-01
81 BILLION SAVED
IN us. DURING 1880
Sense of Thrift More Preva-
liant Than Supposed, Indus
trial Board Shows.
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
NEW YORK, September 1-Savings
of the American people totaled $57,-
900 900, 900 in 1880, according to a
compilation by the National Industrial
Conference Board.
This figure includes savings deposits
in banks. admitted assets of life insur-
ance companies, building and loan as
sociation assets and estimates of vari-
Gus miscellaneous items.
Few commentators on the psychol-
ogy of the American people" the board
comments. profess to see the quality
of thrift as national characteristic.
It has become the fashion to charge
ourselves with extravagances of all
kinds charge that can be sustained,
no doubt on numerous accounts.
Nevertheless, the available data con-
cerning individual savings indicate ag-
gregate accumulation of huge amounts.
while the forms in which these amounts
have been accumulated suggest that a
sense of thrift must be much more
prevalent in our population than is
commonly supposed"
1929 Total S54,3s5, ,OOO, 900.
AS an indication of the huge proper
tions of Americas savings reservoir,
the board compares the accumulation
in 1929 with various other totals of
comparable meaning. Total savings in
1929 were S54, 1875, ,000,0 600. National in
come at the same time was S85.200,-
100000 and national wealth 1851 800 r
100000. Thus savings were equiva Fnt
to about 64 per cent of the natioD2T in
! come and Is per cent of the nAtional
| wealth.
| The total volume of bank insurance
and building and loan ssN1ngs increased
from i1,700, 1000, ,000/in 1910 to nearly
s56, 200, ,ooo,o 900 i1ds3o, or almost 400
| per cent, RI
I Since 1910, despite depressions or
| Sther influences, total savings increased
keyerv year up to and including 1880
TAI bank savings declined slightly from
1881, but life insurance assets increased
considerably. Building and loan assets
tdncreased in 1880 over 1929, but statis-
ftics for 1881 are not available. The
board does not estimate total 1881 saw
Z angs, but a qualified economist believes
there was an increase in that year
sThis economist further believes that
kthere may have been further increase
thus far in 1882, despite larger than
usual Withdrawals, because of conver-
sion of active business funds into saw
tngs increased boarding and in other
ways.
Increase in Saving Rate.
The board notes that the rates OF
growth of the various forms OF savings
Increased during the period following
1919 over the nine-year period preced-
ing. Building and loan assets showed
the highest rate of annual increase,
lat per cent. Life insurance assets
came next, e8 per cent. Bank deposits
increased at a rate of 7.3 per cent. All
savings combined increased at rate
of 81 per cent.
The compilation also shows that un-
til 1927 new funds flowing into savings
paralleled new corporate security issues
fioated. In the, opinion of some econ
omists, f1otation of such new issues
should not exceed savings by great
margin, and when such fotation does
reach overly large proportions trouble
is in sight. In 1927 corporate flota-
tions went ahead of new savings, doing
SO especially in 1929, when new savings
fell of sharply.
Corporate bonds are used generally
for the expansion Of business. Econ
omists. holding that these funds come
largely, directly and indirectly, from
individual and corporate savings, believe
bonds sold beyond the new savings
reservoir disclose an unhealthy conoi'
ton.