SCOTTISH THRIFT.

Gisborne Times, Volume XVIII, Issue 1447, 6 May 1905, Page 2

SCOTTISH THRIFT.

The Scotsman of January 10th states : The annual general,; meeting of the trustees and managers of the Edinburgh Savings Bank was hold on Tuesday at the head office, North Bank Street. The Bev. Dr Mitchell presided. Councillor Harrison, who submitted the annual report, pointed out the erroneous impression which had been formed with regard to the alleged decline of the thriftiness of the Scottish people. It was oommonly supposed tnat the young women threw their money away on flower hats, and the young men on cigarettes. They could speak of that part of the country comprising Edinburgh and Leith. Of 400,000 inhabitants, ' they had one fifth on their books, some of those names being in more than one department, as well as many friendly societies, and 19,000 who were depositors in penny banks, This gave them 25 per cent of the inhabitants of the two jftowns. As showing how very democratic an institution the bank was, 75 per cent of their depositors were working men and women, and 76 per cent of the deposits were sums under £5. He went on to compare the habits of the people forty years ago with the thriftiness of the present time.

I According to the oonsus of 1861, the towns of Edinburgh and Leith contained in a'l 200,000 inhabitants, la 1001 they numbered just under 400,000 —practically doubled in 40 years. While it wa3 likely they had altered in character ; they most

oertaiDly had increased enormously in wealth. Their deposits went up six-fold dnring the period in which the population doubled ; being .1254 5,000 in 1860, and about 3j- millions in 1900, In 1860 there was an average sum of 1218 to the credit of each depositor. In 1906 there was an average of 1235 16s—nearly double. In 1860 there were in the bank’s books 29,481 open accounts ; at the end of 1900 there were 80,126, or over 20 per oent on, a population of 4Q0.Q00.