Dickenson County herald. [volume] (Clintwood, Va.) 1939-195?, 1947-01-02
War Bonds Will Yield Huge
Flow of Cash for Many Years

HE president of small bank in
l. rural midwestern town, here
to attend bankers meeting, told
your Home Town Reporter the other
day that interest on war bonds and
U. S. savings bonds held by the de-
positors in his little bank alone
would average almost 100000 a
year for the next 10 years.
To me that is an amazing revela-
ton, for it is the answer to the
confusion in the minds of many per-
sons throughout the country as to
why the treasury department is con-
tinuing it's drive to sell U. S. saw
ings bonds although the fighting is
over. Also, the treasury's working
balance and anticipated tax revenue
are enough to meet government ex-
penditures for some time to come,
and they have been sufficient since
the close of the Victory Loan in De-
cember, 1915. The government actu-
ally does not need the money it is
obtaining from the sale of savings
bonds.
Then why sell bonds? I asked
Verne Clark, director of treasury's
savings bond division. for the an
swer. It boiled down to the fact
that the government policy was to
have the people collect the interest
on the public debt.
Said Clark: ''Wise management
of the public debt is an important
function in which every citizen must
be vitality interested until that debt
is paid. Purchases of savings bonds
directly by the people are definite
part in that management of
keeping ownership in the hands of
the people and add another
privilege to American citizenship,
the privilege of sharing in the pay
ments on the debt"
Enormous Buying Power
Here are some amazing figures:
According to treasury statements,
war bonds now outstanding, includ-
ing all series, total $40, 700, 900 900.
If these bonds are held to maturity
the interest to be paid on them in
the next 10 years will total approx
mately Is billion dollars, or an aver
age of about $1,000, 10000 a year.
That is purchasing power! It al
most equals the total national in
come from banking in 1913; it is
approximately the equal of the ma
tional income from insurance in the
same year; it is more than the
average annual national income
from bituminous coal; it adds up to
a new national spending power. And
remember, this is interest only, not
the $40, 700, 100000 of principal, much
of which also will be paid before
the 10-year period is up, because
some of these outstanding bonds are
already five years old.
Bringing this new purchasing pow
err down to that little midwest town,
that 100000 a year in interest alone
is more than the annual payroll of
half the industries in the town, and
if those industries shut down for any
reason, folks there would look upon
the fact as dire calamity coming to
the community. The only factor
which can shut off this annual in
terest is redemption of the bonds
before maturity.
Here are some more amazing COM
parsons: In Texas, the people hold
approximately a billion and a half
dollars of war and savings bonds
on which the 10-year interest would
be 1915, 1000, 900 or an average of
$37, 5000 600 year. That total in
terest amounts roughly to third
of the total value of Texas farm
products in 1914, given by the bu-
reau of the census as $1,115, 669, 1876.
Large Part of Income
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