Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1916-1918, 1917-06-19
LET'S HAVE FACTS.

l 49, ~ sVDN ~ ~
| Now that the campaign is ended and
the subscriptions to the 1917 Liberty
Loan have been found to exceed the
$4,000, 100000 for which the govern
ment asked, it can do no harm and
the method in which the appeal was
made and the mistakes which seem to
have been part of that method.
| This suggestion is not made as a
| criticism. 1t is born of loyal desire to
help and knowledge that other loans
must be floated in the future.
When the books were opened and
subscriptions were invited to the Lib.
erty Loan, enthusiastic announcements
were given to the press by the treas
ury officials and the country was treat
ed to a glowing word picture Of Wash
| ington's streets, in which telegraph
mess engers and mail carriers stagger-
ed under mammoth loads OF kilograms
and letters. each of which carried an
application for big block of Liberty
Bonds.
The treasury department was the
dumping ground for this accumulation,
and graphic descriptions were given
the newspapers Of augmented clerical
forces laboring night and day in a
futile effort to record the subscriptions
as rapidly as they were received
| For few days 1t was made to ap-
pear that Secretary McAdoo and his
aides were immersed in sea Of bond
applications. that they came up for air
only often enough to gasp out new
| assurance that the loan was being over
subscribed and that the offers Of
money were becoming burdensome and
almost Objectionable.
In view of the apathy that grfpped
the nation and the refusal Of many citi.
zens to realize that they and their
country actually were at war this
news seemed too good to be true--and
| it was.
But when Mr. McAdoo saw fit to ad-
nit the fact the damage had been
done. So he inaugurated rather
frantic campaign to bring the subscrip'
tons up to the mark.
Every community joined in the eff
fort. Local committees labored like
stokers: newspapers pleaded; orators
exhorted. Advertising tricks. old and
new, useful and useless. sensible and
historical. were employed. Mr. Nc
Adoo made speaking tours and talked
himself into good standing as bron-
chitis patient A loyal few in every
community attacked old General
Apathy in his ready-made line of
trenches and finally compelled him to
beat a somewhat reluctant retreat.
And now, as we wipe our brows at
the finish of the battle. doesn't it seem
likS the sensible way to have made
sure Of over-subscription would have
been to conduct a thoughtful campaign
of patriotic appeal, based on the gov
ernments need for the loan. the pat
riotic duty which the bond issue i'm
posed on every American citizen and
the undeniable fact that the success OF
the loan depended entirely on gen
eral awakening Of the public to the
seriousness of the crisis?
There is no lack of loyalty in Amer
lea. The difficulty is in rousing that
loyalty. 1t was not difficult task to
induce men TO subscribe to the Liberty
Loan when they had been brought to
a realization of it's Importance and
necessity. And to achieve that realiza-
ton each man had to learn, first. that
the money was necessary as protec-
ton for his country against war Of
ueStiuCtIOi
The members OF soliciting commit
tees found that they obtained the best
results in their campaign when they
employed the same arguments for the
Liberty Loan that they had employed
a few weeks previously convincing
their friends that CONSUMPTION was the
only proper and effective method Of
raising an army.
The draft is necessary because
America must have big army TO de-
fend the country against Germany.
Money is necessary because Amer
lea must have war chest to defend
herself against Germany.
The next Liberty Loan will be sub
scribed readily If the campaign for
bond purchases is based on an appeal
to the public to realize the nations
position as one of the principal par
Elephants in the greatest and most de-
structive war in world history.
EXtravagant claims are to be expect
ed in political campaigns and circus
heralds, but they cannot claim merit
in every sort OF undertaking.