The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1917-11-12
LIBERTY BOND
LESSONS
The Tie That Binds
BY HOWARD sPEER
Article No. 1

Liberty Bonds! Liberty Bonds!
When you stop to think about it there
is something contradictory about the
very words, isn't there? For liberty
means a freedom, lack of restraint;
but bond is something that binds
q chain, a rope, or hand cuffs. It's
just as though one should speak of
wet fire or sour sugar or warm ice
cream.
Well. the whole subject of Liberty
Bonds is zdll of contradictions. Every
SON there are any Liberty Bonds is
because we are in the war. But then,
we went to war because we loved
peace so much. We loved it enough
to fight for it and to make sure of
having it in the future. Then again
Uncle Sam comes along and tells US
to save our money. What for? So he
can blow it up, shoot it up, and other
wise spend it on lot of fireworks in
order to hold up his end in that big
long ,4th of July lover there" All our
lives we have been told to keep out
of debt. But here Is the government
trying to spoil all that. our parents
have taught US by telling US not to
pay for our Liberty Bonds, but to go
in debt for them and buy them on the
installment plan. Then, too, Just think
of last June and the first Liberty
Bonds. On the last day people just
tumbled all over themselves and jam
med the banks to buy bonds before
IL o'clock so they wouldn't be too
late. And at 10 minutes past twelve
the very people who had bought were
selling the bonds by hundreds at the
same price they paid for them. Queer
isn't it, this whole Liberty Bond bust
ness?
But the Queerest, strangest. most
contrad ictory thing of all is that you
and bought Liberty Bonds. and not
only you and I, but your next door
neighbor, the policeman on your beat
the young barber who shaved you last
night. the woman who almost ran
over you with her limousine yester-
day, her chauffeur, your newsboy, the
president, Of that big bank across the
way, the bank itself, John D. Rookie
Teller, the solemn faced Cb;namar
who does your collars, the lodge you
belong to, the Ladies' Aid Society OF
your church, and that poor, tired
looking waitress who came near spill
ing the soup down your neck last
week.
Yes. you say, but what's queer o,
contradictory about t It? Just a min
ute and you will see. Now all those
people bought Liberty Bonds, but dc
you know who else bought them
Well, not to mention any names. an6
not to get too far away from home
you may be interested to know thai
by actual count there were just thir.
lty thousand men and wol.-en worker.
| in Bridgeport factories alone who
! bought one or more of the Secont
Liberty Bonds. Now just think a mo.
ment about the other Bridgeport buy
ers, the workers in stores and offices
on trolleys and jitneys, the doctors
lawyers. dentists. minister's teachers
nurses, and the women at home. No.
body counted all the bond buyer.
from their ranks, but If the factories
furnished thirty Thousand, do 20,
doubt that at least ten thousand more
came from all these other walks o;
life?
| Forty thousand owners of Libert,
Bonds in Bridgeport alone-the poo,
and the rich, men, women and chill
/ dren, speaking many languages do
ing every kind Of work, seeking man,
4 ends-but each one having Libert!
Bond.
And now comes the queerness of 1t
We have had a slang phrase here il
America-'.the bloated bond holder
"a phrase that we love to use tt
show how democratic we are and how
little we care for the rich man or hi
bonds. And yet here we are, all O.
us, every fanilyAin Bridgeport. turned
bloated bondholders almost Owe
night. Was anything ever more con
| Trajectory? Don't you want to rul
your eyes to see whether you ar,
awake and really yourself?
But you are awake. It is becaus,
We are awake. that we have all be
come ''bloated ibondholders'' in nev
and splendid sense And what ha
taken place in Bridgeport has take1
place all over this liberty loving LAM
of ours. We. the peop1e,-you an.
1 I and our neighbors,-have. bough
our bonds and in the buying have dis
4 lowered g. mighty bond between us al
IA band, strong as Steel, that bind
us all together in a great and nobl
lcause-the cause of Liberty And s.
Iyou see the term Liberty Bond is no
contradictory at ALL. but beautifully
Expressive of the state of mind of tn
American people today.
So much for the first lesson, whfcl
is meant only to lay a sort of founda