Evening journal., 1917-12-21
NEXT U. 5. LOAN TO Be
FOR SS,000.O0O,OOB
To Be Greatest Financial
Drive in History Of
the World
4 IL PER CENT.
WILL BE RATE

WASHINGTON, Dec. 2i-The next
loan the people Of the United States
will be asked TO purchase to aid the
Government in winning this war will
be for ss,OOOOO0OO0; the bonds win be
a i-2 per cent. issue and the offer
Ing VIII be made on March s., 1915
These are the tentative arrangements
which have been agreed upon. and al
ready the thousands Of agencies to as
sist In the tremendous task are being
lined up in readiness for the formal an
nouncement 90 launch the most tre-
mendous financial campaign ever at
tempted In any country.
Governors Of the twelve Federal Re-
serve banks OF the United states left
their home stations a week ago and
quietly dropped into Washington In
formal meetings with Secretary McAd0o
were held daily FOR almost a week
Prominent fnanciers were called into
consultation The men who handled the
last loan were asked specific questions
Before them the Secretary OF the Treas
ury and the Federal Reserve Bank
Board and The governors had formal re-
ports on the nrsl two loans suRees-
lions as 30 subsequent loans. reports
on Tie conditions Of the country and
the financial conditions Of the people.
This mass of documentary evidence was
tackled The problems were taken un
one by one. carefully weighed and dis
cussed and then tentatively agreed
upon. u may be taken as authoritative
that the next loan viii be OF ss000o0o
600. that its interest rate will be 4ik per
cent and that 10 will be offered March
i5 Formal announcement OF the plans
will probably not be made before The
turn Of the year.
The opinion Of the confcrees as TO
these main details OF the next Offering
10 finance the loan Is reported to have
been almost unanimous. In some Of
the minor details there were differences
Of opinion, but before the conferences
ended an OF these had been smoothed
out and the Federal Reserve oflcials
and the prominent nnanciers Of The
country who have been querled for
their opinions viii be found solldly be-
hind the next loan
There were many important problems
10 be solved IN deciding on tho loan
and It's terms. Principally they were
It's size and The rate Of interest 70 viii
bear In connection with It's size the
problem which confronted the govern
ment officials was whether one large or
several small loans would be better 70
finally became the unanimous decision
, that 10 would be much more advan-
iageous 90 float one large loan. There
Is no legal authority at present for att
p tempting such gigantic financing. "A
r. devOlNes upon Secretary McAdoo 10 So
\ before Congress and obtain auihoril,
\ FOR the new credit. The change IN the
b. interest rate from q per cent. in ihc
, last loan 90 iis in The approaching one
. must also De authorized by Congress.
Another tremendously important
D. problem which was solved. accordmg
I 10 report, was the rate of interest
which the bonds viii bear. 70 may De-
taken FOR granted that the rate viii
be az per ccnt-no higher and mo-
lower In This detail the members of
the Federal Reserve Board and The
governors Of the reserve banks are re-
ported to have won over the secretary
of the Treasury. who has always been
an exponent of low interest rates.
10 Will be remembered that In the
second loan he held out a long time
for repetition of the 3ia per cent.
rate. His contention was that another
loan could bc noaied al per cent.
In this the most prominent bankers
and students of finance differed with
him. Hc conicnded that the placmg Of
loan at iih per cent would brlnc
another readlustment such az has been
recently Witnessed in securities. These
readWsiments. of course would affect
the securities held hy banks, savings
banks. insurance companies and thous-
snds Of other corporations thus more
or less disturbing the economic fabric
Of the country.
The Secretary is now reported 20 be-
favorable 40 the q - per cent. rate
since ne has been convinced that
$1,000 100000 worth OF as cannot be sold
In this country without subsequent
disturbances. which, many bankers
argue. win be considerably less II thr
rate is increased.
what shall the new loan be called
was another question, and one Of the
few discussed which was not tents
lively settled 10 was held by several of
the governors that II would be unwise
20 call 10 the third Liberty Loan. The
Victory Loan" was suggested es
good name, one used successfully in
Canada. In the campaign which has
lust closed Several other names have
been suggested. but the final decision
Is problematical. 70 is probable. how
ever. that the new loan will not be
called a Liberty loan.