﻿pation issue was “ to relieve any possible congestion
or disturbance of the money market such as might
be caused by the payment of taxes due between
June 15 and June 25, estimated to amount to over
$2,000,000,000.”19 But such precautionary meas-
ure of relief was not imperative seven months in
advance of the assumed occasion, the less in that
important loan operations involving heavy requisi-
tion upon the nation’s credit supply were inevitable
in the interval. It is more likely that at the time
definite provision was made for the plan, neither
the volume nor the composition of the over-pay-
ment of the loan installment of November 20, 1917,
was fully anticipated, and that the Treasury de-
sired to be in comfortable state for meeting the
$1,385,296,000 certificates maturing in mid-Decem-
ber.

On November 20, 1917, the Treasury gave notice
that subscriptions, at par and accrued interest,
would be received through the Federal Reserve
Banks for “ a limited amount ” of four per cent.
Treasury certificates of indebtedness, dated Novem-
ber 30, 1917, and maturing June 25, 1918, and
issued in denominations of $500, $1000, $10,000
and $100,000. Certificates of indebtedness then
outstanding might be tendered at par with adjust-
ment of accrued interest in payment of the new
issue. The new certificates were receivable at par
and accrued interest at or before maturity, in pay-
ment of income and excess profits taxes, when pay-
able, but were not available in payment of Liberty
bonds or on account of bond subscriptions. The
19 Federal Reserve Bulletin, December, 1917, p. 918.