POSTAI. SAVINGS BANK 69 



For this purpose the office delivers cheque books either to the owners 

 of accounts or persons authorized by them The owners of the accounts 

 are responsible for all consequences due to misuse, theft or loss of cheques 

 delivered to them and, in case of loss, must immediately advise the office 

 so as to prevent payment being made to unauthorized persons. Cheques 

 may not be drawn for amounts exceeding the total credit of the drawer. 

 If a person overdraws his account several times, the Postal Savings 

 Bank may notify the holder, and close his account. In Austria cheques 

 may not be issued for amounts of more than 20,000 crs., unless payment 

 is made by a simple transfer of credit. In that case there is no limit to 

 the amount. 



There are two kinds of cheques : cheques to hearer and inscribed cheques 

 payable only to the particular person named. The cheques to bearer are 

 payable on demand, the inscribed cheques are not. They must be for- 

 warded to the office, which, after the necessary examination, pa5^s them 

 indirectly by crediting the payee's account or by postal order, registered 

 letter, order for payment or otherwise. In Austria there are four ways 

 of paying postal cheques. 



1. Cash Payment (Barzahlung). — This is the simplest, when the holder 

 of the cheque resides in Vienna, where the Central Bank has its seat. The 

 cheque to bearer, but not the inscribed cheque, may be presented to the 

 Bank by any person, to be paid at sight, after due examination of the 

 signature and of the drawer's account. 



2. Payment by Postal Order or Registered Letter (Riickzahlung mittels 

 Postanweisung oder Wertbrief es) . — This course is taken when the holder 

 of the cheque, whether inscribed or to bearer, does not reside in Vienna. 

 He forwards the cheque directly to the Central Bank, with request for the 

 amount to be forwarded by postal order or registered letter. 



3. Payment by Transfer of Credit (Riickzahlung mittels Gutschrift 

 auf einem anderen Konto) . — This can only be arranged in the case of 

 two parties both holding current accounts. In order to effect payment 

 to his creditor the debtor writes an order to pay him the amount due, in 

 the usual form. Then, he draws a cheque on his account for the same sum. 



He will make the following note on it : To effect payment, in accordance 

 with the attached order {zur Einzahlung des Betrages auf beiliegendem Er- 

 lagschein). As soon as the Central Bank receives the two forms, it de- 

 ducts the amount indicated from the account of the drawer of the cheque 

 and enters it to that of the payee indicated, advising him of the operation 

 effected. The transfer of credit may, however, take a still simpler form, 

 when the debtor draws a cheque which he delivers or sends to his creditor. 

 The latter may then ask the Central Bank to enter the amount to his credit. 



4. Payment by Order for Payment (Riickzahlung mittels Zahlungs- 

 weisung). — If the payee of an inscribed cheque has not a current 

 account or if payment by transfer of credit is expressly excluded, the cheque 

 is paid through the post office of the place where the payee lives by 

 means of an order issued by the central management. 



