62 
WAR BORROW UNKjt 
In the absorption of the certificates for themselves 
and their customers, the banks of the New York 
District have taken the leading part and this tend 
ency has continued with the progress of the Treas 
ury’s short-term borrowing. Of the $868,205,000 
certificates issued in anticipation of the First Lib 
erty Loan, the banks of the New York District 
took $459,962,000 or 53 per cent.; and of the $2,- 
320,493,000, issued in anticipation of the Second 
Liberty Loan, $1,467,543,000 or 63 per cent, was 
so taken. Of the final issue of this series— (11) 
$685,296,000 bearing date of October 24, 1917 — 
the New York banks took no less than $543,683,000 
or 79 per cent., and even of the next succeeding 
issue — the first of the series of 19x8 tax antici 
pation issues— (12) $691,872,000 bearing date of 
November 30, 1917 — $494,070,500 or 72 per cent, 
was so taken. With the systematic efforts of the 
Treasury to establish a wider subscription basis for 
the results of valuable inquiries, along the lines laid down 
above, made by Mr. Frederick H. Curtiss, Chairman of the 
Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, as to the absorption of cer 
tificates of indebtedness in the New England District. It ap 
pears that the assumption made in the foregoing computation 
that certificates have been taken by the trust companies in the 
same proportion as by the national banks does not hold, at 
least in this District, with respect to more recent certificate 
issues. To the certificates issued in anticipation of the Third 
Liberty Loan the national banks in the District subscribed 
11.94 per cent, of their total resources, while trust companies 
took only 7.13 per cent. To the certificates in anticipation of 
the Fourth Liberty Loan the national banks subscribed 15-33 
per cent, of their resources and the trust companies only 11.97 
per cent. It appears further that of the certificates sold to 
banks and trust companies in the District between June 25, 
and August 31, 1918, there were retained by such institutions 
up to the latter date, approximately 41.9 per cent, of the 
amount .taken.