Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1918-10-10
HERE'S THE COST or
JUST A LITTLE BATTLE
Liberty Bonds Furnish Munitions and
Supplies That Win Battles and
Save Lives of Fighters.

fFehch naval Statisticians have care
July inquired out the cost of a modest
little naval battle. The sea fight at
Jutiand IN 1916, when the Germans
thought to prove the inferiority of the
British war fleet, supplies plenty of ma
terlal for such computations.
The battle in the Skagerak lasted 40
minutes.
1t cost England and Germany COM
bined S30O0OO.OOO.
Each minute of fighting cost $685.
666.
we nave some new war financing in
the fourth Liberty loan. The United
States wants to borrow enough money
to carry on the fighting. All our prep
arauons up to the present time have
been cared for by the first, second and
third loans. The fourth is the Eight
ing loan"
The fourth loan may seem large
when stated in terms of billions. The
amount is not large when considered
in terms of fighting. Just to illustrate:
At the rate of expenditure shown dur
ing the naval battle of Jutland the
United States wants to borrow on the
fourth Liberty bonds enough to sup
port only 16 hours and 40 minutes of
fighting.
The question is, will you be one of
25,0O0,0QO loyal Americans to put up"
your ratable share of fighting the Ger
mans for 16 hours and 40 minutes?
Will you lend the government your
trivial pro rata?
1t is a small thing to ask. Let's look
into the arithmetic of it.
Your personal share of the
national wealth ........... 50, $4,000
Your personal share in the ma
tiOnal annual income ..... 1000
That is to say, you get dividend"
of about So per cent on your pro rata"
of the national wealth.
You are asked to be one of 25,000,000
loyal Americans who will consent to
lerd about a third of that "dividend" to
help fight the German for IS hours and
40 minutes.
The United States isn't passing
the hat" The United States isn't ask
ing anybody for a "hand-Out." No more
is the government asking you to ''stand
for a touch" Just the reverse of that.
The government asks to borrow one
third of the 'velvet" that comes in
to your bank account annually as your
dividend" from the business opera
lions that are possible only because
the United States protects your life
and property on land and sea. And in
evidence of its borrowing the govern
ment merely takes the kind of money
you have in your pocket and gives you
another kind of money as security for
the loan.
To make 1t clearer: The United
States issues 'promises-tO-pay-on-de-
mand"-without interest-and that's
the kind of money you have in your
purse. When you lend that kind of
money to the government you receive
as security Liberty bonds, which are
United States prOmiSes-tO-pa -at-ma-
turity" = with interest. In other
words, you only swap one kind of
money for another kind that is better
-$4.25 better on each 500.
However, the upshot of the matter
is this:
We are fighting a war-and it is a
real, bona fide war, without any "stage
business" or imitation. It is known
(on the authority of President WILSON,
that the war is to a fnish-no draw"
''stalemate" or "lie down." 1t may run
into a cost as heavy as $6,66G,0 900
minute if it gets to the scale of the lit
tie battle of Jutland. The United
States must be ready for anything and
everything.
Therefore you and everybody else
must lend the government every free
dollar that has been saved or can be
saved as we go along. We must take
all the fourth Liberty bonds that we
possibly can pay for.