14

POSTAL  SAVINGS

The  following  resolution  of  the  American
Bankers  Association  at  its  convention  of  1908  is
fairly  representative  of  the  attitude  of  that  association ­
  and  of  numerous  State  bankers’  associa-Savings
  Bank  bill  was  before  Congress,  the  committee  sent
a  letter  to  bankers  throughout  the  country,  urging  them  to
oppose  the  bill  through  their  local  newspapers  and  through
their  influence  with  members  of  Congress  from  their  districts. ­
  The  letter  was  accompanied  by  five  exhibits:  (1)  a
copy  of  the  Carter  bill;  (2)  a  copy  of  an  address  in  opposition ­
  to  postal  savings  banks  delivered  by  a  banker  who  had
been  a  Director  of  the  Mint;  (3)  a  copy  of  the  report  in
opposition  to  postal  savings  banks  adopted  by  the  American
Bankers  Association  at  its  convention  in  Denver;  (4)  a  copy
of  an  address  by  a  Nebraska  banker  before  the  Wyoming
Bankers  Association  and  (5)  “A  condensed  synopsis  of  the
arguments  against  postal  savings  bank  legislation  to  be
used  as  a  basis  for  newspaper  articles.”
The  extremes  to  which  this  propaganda  went  are  illustrated ­
  by  the  following  quotations  taken  from  the  address
referred  to  above  as  item  4  :
“The  postal  savings  bank,  that  scheme  which  has  been
the  dream  of  well  meaning  people  with  philanthropic  tendencies ­
  for  these  many  years,  in  the  belief  that  they  were
conferring  a  blessing  upon  the  race,  and  quickly  supported
by  the  great  body  of  the  American  people,  who  are  inclined
to  applaud  enthusiastically  anything  done  by  the  Government, ­
  may  be  engrafted  upon  our  financial  system.  Never
asked  for  by  the  thriftless  whom  it  is  desired  to  teach  thrift,
nor  by  the  Slavic  or  Latin  races  who  are  pictured  as  sending
so  much  money  home,  .  .  .  never  requested  as  a  personal
desire  by  one  single  individual  of  our  nearly  ninety  millions,
[that  scheme]  threatens  to  be  enacted  into  law.”
“.  .  .  The  Postmaster  General  naively  says:  ‘These
postal  savings  banks  will  not  compete  in  any  way  with  our
present  banks.’  He  thinks  he  is  stating  a  fact,  doubtless,
but  as  well  might  a  highwayman,  emptying  a  repeating