The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1903-09-22

always. People sometimes hide their
bonds and then die, or other accidents
happen, and, as a result, the documents
never turn I'D. If they are not found,
they remain unpaid, and the govern
ment is just so much in pocket. Every
now and then, however. a few such ex-
pired bonds are discovered in some odd
corner or hiding place and are sent in
| for redemption.
There seems never to have been loan
issued by the United States that has not
] had a hangover balance Of this kind.
Sometimes it has been very small. as in
the case of the loan Of 1882, which was
paid off all but $500, and the loan of '6S
which shows only a 800 bond miss
| ing. On the other hand, the largest out
standing claims of this nature against
the government are for $40 notes of
1862 equivalent TO bonds,) which ex-
hibit, on the account books of the treas
ury an unpaid balance of S215, $50
| What can become of all those $50 inter
est bearing notes is an interesting ques-
ton. Probably most of them still ex-
J ist somewhere. IF
Nearly all United States bonds nova
days are registered. and track of their
ownership is kept in such way that it
is hardly possible for one of them TO re-
main unpaid. OF the bonded debt of
the nation. at the present time, about
5000, 100000 is held by private individuals
and of this sum something like $780,
100000 is owned by 1000 persons, APP
proximately. If one could obtain list
of these fortunate 1000 men, it would
| be worth great deal of money, but
| the treasury keeps their names most
carefully guarded. ..t-.
1t is pretty we'll known that the
| largest owner of the bonds of our
government is Russell Sage, who finds
them a very convenient medium for
his financial dealings. While by no
| means the richest man in this country,
he is reputed to have more ready cash
| than any other person in the world. He
| is a lender of money and a dealer in
, money, and United States bonds are
always equivalent to cash. The Van
derbilts likewise are great holders of
| bonds, though they have not nearly
such vast sums invested in them as
| formerly. One of the largest blocks of
bonds in any single ownership is held
| by the heirs of the estate of Singer, the
| sewing machine man. /.
A list of the names of large owners of
| bonds would be exceedingly valuable to
| spectators who trade in these securi-
ties, for trading in United States bonds
| is recognized business, like specula-
| ting in wheat or corn, and men make a
living by buying and selling them.
| Every time they change hands they
| have to be forwarded to the treasury at
Washington and Cancelled, new one be-
| ing Immediately issued In the names of
| the new owners. This sort of traffic
| goes on at such rate that the office
Of the register of the treasury is obliged
to issue fresh bonds every day, worth
millions of dollars, A bond that arrives
from New York or Chicago in the morn
ing is replaced by another, returned by.
registered mail in the afternoon. so that.
its transfer involves the delay Of only al
few hours. ..:...
| A ledger account is kept of all holders
of registered bonds, and as these holders
buy or sell, they are credited or debited,s
as the case may be, just as in the busi-
ness of a merchant who keeps tab on fis
customers. It requires rs large ledgers
each containing more than 700 pages to,
contain the accounts of the owners OF
the 4 per cent loan of 1897. Yet, so ex-
pert is the bookkeeping that all Of
these books are kept by one clerk, who.
in addition, prepares the bonds for
transfer and reckons up the interest
to be paid to each holder each quarter.
Inasmuch as the holdings are con-
stantiy changing, the interest due FREE
quently alters in amount. ~
The most luxurious Of all occupations
is supposed to be the clipping of coup
ons from government bonds-an en-
ployment commonly attributed to the
envied multi-millionaire. AS matter
of fact, however, rich men do not
bother with coupon bonds. They pre-
fer to have them registered, inasmuch
as they are safer and equally negotiable
If you lose a coupon bond anybody can
convert 1t into cash as easily as If 1t
were treasury. A registered bond, on
the other hand, is non-negotiable except
by its proper owner, and If lost or stolen
will be promptly replaced by the treas
washington Letter in New York
Press.
1xY,I - r,axr r,y,,, u,r,N.r Il