﻿THE PAST

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tify the amplest financial provision—is a proper
time to review our borrowing policy and to study its
effects, fiscal, economic and social.

A notable feature of the present war financing of
the United States has been the large part played by
Treasury certificates of indebtedness. In outright
volume the gross amount of such certificates thus
far [November i, 1918] issued has been greater than
the principal sum of the first three Liberty Loans
and will soon exceed that of the first four. Emitted
in short maturities, the actual amount of certificates
at any time outstanding — now authorized to a max-
imum of $8,000,000,000 — has, with a single brief
exception (July 30-August 9, 1917) been consider-
able since our first entry into the war, and since
August, 1917, has never been less, at the close of
any month, than $1,250,000,000, rising as high as
$3)936,339,500 (April 30, 1918), with an amount
nominally outstanding on September 30, 1918, of
$4,ioo,ooo,ooo.3 The Treasury has made use of
such certificates to anticipate the yield of war loans
and war taxes for national defense and for Allies’
credits, and has prepared for continued reliance
upon the same expedient. Finally the certificates
have been deemed capable of exerting important
influence upon the money market and upon the price

3	Monthly “ Financial Statement of the United States Gov-
ernment,” formerly issued as “ Statement of the Public Debt ”
(Division of Bookkeeping and Warrants, Treasury Depart-
ment). No statements were issued for July, August, Septem-
ber and October, 1917, and for these months, as well as for
September, 1918, the nominal aggregates of the outstanding
issues have here been used.