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NATIONAL BANKS AND LIBERTY BONDS The comptroller of the currency has made an interesting statement of the part the national banks played in the three Liberty Loans LoansHe He reports that 6000000000 a little more than half of the aggregate of the loans passed through national bank channels By far the greater part of this was absorbed by individual subscribers On June 29 only about 400000000 of Liberty bonds constituting less than 3 per cent of their assets were held by national banks At the same time the national bank loans on Liberty bonds were only 457000000 or 2 per cent of their assets These figures are taken by the treasury depart ¬ ment to indicate that Liberty bonds have been taken largely by individual investors and are being held by them Die comptroller of the currency has no jurisdiction over and makes no reference to the banks of the country other than the national banks but it is Iwlleved that an investigation would show that most of the other banks were equally active in the theSecretary Secretary McAdoo in speaking of the work of the banks for the various loans made no distinction l etween national and other banks in praising their pressed the hope and belief that in the coming loan they will continue the policy which has been of such tremendous service to the treasury and the country It is well here however 1o quote further from Secretary McAdoos statement regarding the hanks The loan must have the support of the peole of America The support of the banks great as their Mipport is and welcome as it is and spleiidid as it lias been is not enough alone to carry the burden The only true way to finance tills Avar is to sell the Liberty bonds to the people of the United States The more r eonle who buy 50 bonds 100 bonds 5000 bonds the better it is for America and the more discouraging it is for bur enemies
