Show war bonds are your safest investment all you can hold what you have rumors whispering ring 0 of repudiation are vicious propaganda by WALTER A SHEAD staff correspondent approximately american citizens have bought war bonds that number is is almost twice as many as the total of voters in the last national election and that it seems to me is the best answer to the subversive propaganda that the government might repudiate payment of w war ar bonds its the best answer from a practical standpoint because repudiation must be voted by the congress and no congress in its right political mind would vote to nullify the 41 billion donar holdings of 85 million americans who have purchased individual and separate war bonds through january 1 1945 add to this 41 billion dollars in war bonds approximately billion dollars worth sold in other governmental bonds and securities over the same period of time to banks corporations po rations insurance companies and other large investors and you have another added and compelling reason why no congress will ever vote repudiation of these governmental obligations sold to aid in financing the war these war bonds and other government securities have behind them the security the faith and the integrity of the united states government exactly the same guarantee of payment as a dollar bill and if your war bonds should become worthless then your dollar bill will become equally as worthless and we have behind war bonds a tradition and record of the united states government of never having repudiated an obligation in the years of its existence and right here lets spike the fallacy in the minds of some people that war bonds are being cashed in at an alarming rate they are not being redeemed in any such amounts when someone sees a line of people at a postoffice post office window or at a bank counter cashing in war bonds the story is immediately spread that people are cashing in their bonds at an unprecedented figure only 12 per cent cashed when the treasury department publishes its statements for instance as last october when sales totaled and redemptions ons totaled the story was immediately broadcast that people were cashing in their war bonds at a ratio almost equalling sales As a matter of fact the redemptions ons last october were only per cent of the total bonds outstanding in october redemptions ons were unusually heavy for the reason that it was the first month in which banks were authorized to redeem bonds over the counter direct and many persons had the mistaken idea that the treasury was inviting these re dempt ions because it was made so convenient when this impression was dispelled redemptions ons steadily declined november redemptions ons were per cent december 98 93 and january redemptions ons went down to 89 per cent total cumulative redemptions ons ot of war bonds that is the series E F and G bonds as of january 1 1915 1945 amount to 1201 1204 per cent of the total bonds sold it means that out of the 41 billion dollars in war bonds sold about 36 billion is still in the hands of the people who bought them or in other words about 12 cents out of each dollar spent for war bonds has been redeemed money bloney tor for taxes needed certain months of the year such as the taxpaying months always s show how a heavier redemption percentage than other months the treasury policy from the inception of war bond sales has been that the whole remember this anyone who tells you that flint your government is likely to repudiate one dollars worth of these bonds or that the Arne american rican people are cashing them in faster than they are arc buying them is passing along propaganda inspired in berlin or al tokyo I 1 financing program should be voluntary and that persons wishing to buy war bonds should be able to buy them conveniently hence war bonds may be purchased at banks post offices theaters retail stores and at scores of other places then the treasury reasoned it should be equally convenient to redeem war bonds for emergency purposes so all banks who desired were authorized to redeem the bonds over the counter instead of the former longer more complicated method of sending the bond to the nearest federal reserve bank who are the war bond redeemers the men and women who cash in these 12 cents out of the dollar almost invariably they are families whose only saving has been the war bonds they bought and thus when an emergency arose their war bonds were their only recourse the war bond redeemer is in the low income bracket has an income probably less than per year and a larger than average family the chances are he buys his war bonds through a payroll savings plan at his place ot of employment chances are too that he overbought over bought according to his income cora since being patriotic he wanted to do just as much as his fellows investigation shows that many men and women in these families forced to redeem their war bonds were ten years ago on or the recipient of some community weli fare program they were not on that program willingly and neither are they at the bank window cashing in their bonds willingly today these bonds are their only liquid asset when an emergency comes death child birth hospitalization and temporary unemployment the treasury also has learned that the redeemer of war bonds does not necessarily cash in all his bonds nor does he close out his payroll savings account he keeps on buying and this is proved conclusively by the fact that war bonds purchased through payroll savings since the first war loan in 1942 have steadily increased each month from million 1 dollars in december 1942 to more than per month today every war loan has been marked by a rise in the regular allotment of workers for war bonds bond s as well as a steadily increasing rise in the national level of payroll savings as against total payroll savings up 56 in year during 1944 the withdrawals of deposits in savings accounts in the banks of the nation by individuals amounted to approximately 20 per cent and at the same time these savings accounts showed a net gain of approximately 56 per cent war bonds although showing an 8 per cent gain in redemptions ons over 1943 at the same time show an 85 per cent increase in sales while the cumulative rate of redemption to the amount of bonds outstanding is 1204 per cent the average redemption rate over the four year period 1941 through 1944 amounts to slightly less than 10 per cent per year lets take one year of war bond redemptions ons and compare them to insurance policy lapses in 1943 tor for instance total redemptions ons of war bonds to amount of bonds outstanding at the end odthe of the year was 63 per c ent cent in 1940 for all legal reserve life insurance companies the dollar amount of policy surrenders and lapses was 6 per cent of the insurance in force at the end of the year in 1942 the ratio was 4 per cent this tremendous voluntary program of war financing so vast in its ramifications is not only the greatest financing record in all history it has brought about the greatest pool of savings in liquid assets in the history of any people the six war loan drives in themselves produced more than billions of dollars from the sale of all government securities offered 28 billions more than the combined goals set for these drives the sixth war loan in itself exceeded the entire finance program of world war 1 I four liberty loan drives and one victory drive in world war I 1 grossed there were an esti abed 66 million subscribers but most of this sum was raised by individuals banks and business firms able to buy and upwards in liberty bonds in this war more than TOTAL SALES OF WAR BONDS IN BILLION of DOLLARS fin 1 I v u il i l af 7 2537 1941 1942 1943 1944 BUY BONDS REDEEM BONDS HERE I 1 larl HERE value of bonds cashed in 1 I is less than 12 per cent of ef bonds sold per month 21 billion dollars from 66 million persons were obtained in the sixth war loan drive alone people pay 60 per cent ot of war cost how has this voluntary program of war financing been used toward paying the cost of the war here are a few figures from may 1 1941 the start of the war finance program through december 31 1944 the government spent billion dollars of this amount 21 billions was used for expenditures including the interest on the public debt leaving billion spent on the cost of the war out of this billions billions or per cent of the total has been raised through net receipts of taxes so the excess of spending over tax receipts from may 1 1941 to january 1 1945 has been billions of dollars during this same period the government has borrowed billions of dollars through sale of governmental securities this equals the 41 billion sold in war bonds and the billion in other securities of this billion 75 billions have been borrowed directly or indirectly from banks the rest billions or per cent has come from non bank ing ng sources 42 billions of it from individual citizens the net ot of all this is that the american can people are buying war bonds and that almost go 60 per cent of the amount borrowed for the war cost has been paid by individuals and non sources they are buying bonds and holding 88 out of every they buy and the record indicates that they will keep on baying them so long as they arc a re offered for sale or so long as the nation needs their in money oney to help finance this war it is a pretty safe bet that the treasury department as a result of its experience with baby bonds before the war and with war bonds since may 1 1941 will continue in the bond business after the war is over ver people have the habit of buying government bonds and there is no indication now that there will be any concerted rush to the banks to cash in these bonds when the war is over the very great majority of them will be held to maturity and today bond buying is on a 24 hour basis not only on the home front but on every battle front where ameri i I 1 cans are fighting to maintain the freedom and integrity of a govern I 1 ment and a way of life of which these bonds are a symbol I 1 |