BANKS FOR SAVINGS. The institutions pointed out by this designation constitute a variety of in general, and, to a certain extent, partake of the nature of the class.
Of money-banks, in general, the end is to afford to the owner of money two advantages ; the first, safe custody for his money ; the second, a profit by it, under the of interest. Other advantages which banks afford, or are capable of being made to afford, it is not, for the present purpose, necessary to bring to view, The circumstances of the poor man lay him under many disadvantages, as compared with the rich. In this case, we find a particular example, The money of the rich man, being in considerable quantity, easi ly finds individuals who will perform for it the func tions of banking, because it yields an adequate pro fit.
The money of the poor man, being small in quan tity, can find nobody to perform for it the functions of banking, because it is incapable of yielding an adequate profit.
Let us consider the natural tendency of this situa-. tion of the labouring man. He can make no profit by money retained. He also lies under many chances of being unable to preserve it. The coarse and imper fect means for shutting his house, or any receptacle which it may contain, exposes his little treasure to the hand even of a 'clumsy depredator. Accordingly, we find, that persons in the lower situation of life, who ac quire a reputation for the possession of hoards, are al most always robbed. Ifthey are disposed to lend the fruit of their industry and frugality, their limited expe rience of mankind makes them yield to the man who takes most pains to persuade them; and that is often the man who never means to pay them again, and who has, therefore, the strongest motives to take the measures necessary for gaining their confidence.
Money is for two purposes. It is either for pre sent use, or future use ; and wisdom directs that it should be employed for the one or the other, ac cording as, in either case, it is calculated to contri bute most to happiness upon the whole. But the poor man is thus deprived, in whole, or in part, of the means of applying his money to future use. To this
eictent, therefore, even wisdom itself would direct him to employ it for present use, in whatever way it is capable of adding most to his enjoyments. Parsi mony in such a case is hardly a virtue.
The rich are commonly, we cannot say always, very severe observers of the conduct of the poor, and nearly as often unjust. How nearly universal among them are the exclamations against the im providence of the poor ! by which is meant the practice of devoting to present use the whole of their earnings, without reserving as great a portion of them as possible to future use. Amid these exclamations, the degree is totally forgot, in which the poor are deprived of the means of reserving money for future use, and the consequent propriety and prudence of devoting it wholly to present use.
If human happiness i8 prodigiously improved by reserving for future use a proportion of the command which, over and above the necessaries of life, a man may possess over the means of enjoyment, it is sure ly desirable that this great instrument of happiness should, in the greatest degree possible, be provided for the moat numerous, and in the same degree in which the.most numerous, the most important por tion of the race. To place it in the power of this portion of the race to secure a share of the good things of life for future use, a system of banking, adapted to their circumstances, is evidently, in the present state of society, in the highest degree desir able. It is one of the means, without which, or something equivalent, the end cannot be obtained.
The question, respecting the utility of banks, adapted to the circumstances of the labouring branch of the population, being thus decided, it only remains, as should seem, to inquire, what is the sort of institu tion by which the advantages of a bank,---safe cus tody, and profit for money, can be most completely secured to this great class of the population. When this second question is resolved, the subject, it may be supposed, would be exhausted. The supposition, however, would be erroneous, and the exposition would still remain very imperfect, and even superficial.