loaned at 6 per cent., the profit on the issue of circulating notes will represent the difference between the interest on the amount invested in bonds and the net receipts from the interest on bonds purchased and the amount received by loaning the circulating notes." National Bank Report. See "National Bank Call." National Debt. In this country, all outstanding obligations of every kind of the United States Government; not only the bonds of the Government, but such other indebtedness as paper money, which the Government promises to pay, less the amount of gold in the Treasury available for the payment of the same. (See "United States Public Debt.") National Gold Banks. See " Gold Banks." National Weather Bulletin. This is issued by the United States Weather Bureau of the Department of Agriculture, weekly, from April first to the close of September. From October to March inclusive it is issued monthly. It was formerly known as the " Weather-Crop Bulletin," but early in 1906 was changed to the above title. The Bulletin no longer gives information regarding crops, as formerly, but devotes its attention to meteorological conditions. NB. The "ticker" abbreviation for "new bonds." Negotiable. A security which can be transferred from one person to another either by directly passing from hand to hand, as in the case of money, coupon bonds, a check made payable to "bearer" or "cash," etc., or by indorsement, as in the case of a note, check, or draft, payable to the order of a person, etc. An instrument or security which cannot be passed from hand to hand or is not good in the hands of any holder except the one to whom it was originally issued, unless by the consent of the person or corporation issuing the same, is "non-negotiable." A mileage book, issued by a railway company, in the name of John Smith, is for his special use alone, he having no right to sell or transfer it to any other person. It is, therefore, non-negotiable." Many railroad tickets, made out in the names of the holders and sold at a discount price, are "nonnegotiable." The ordinary railroad ticket, bought at the regular rate, is "negotiable," so is the theatre ticket, but a return check given to the person who leaves the theatre during the performance, permitting him to re-enter, is not supposed to be "negotiable." A note made payable to William Black with the words" or order " omitted would not be "negotiable," because William Black would not have the right to transfer his rights to any one else. To him and him only was the note made payable. From the standpoint of finance, the formal requisites of negotiable paper are concisely put by Francis M. Burdick as follows: "(a) It must be in writing and signed; (b) it must contain an unconditional order or promise to pay a certain sum of money; (c) it must be payable at a determinable time; (d) it must be payable to order or to bearer; (e) a bill of exchange (including check) must name or indicate the drawer." Negotiable Instrument. See "Negotiable." Negotiable Securities. First read "Negotiable," after an understanding of which "negotiable securities " may be defined by stating that they are all forms of commercial paper, bills of exchange, drafts, municipal, Government and corporation bonds, and, in fact, anything that may be termed an investment security which has the requisite attributes of negotiability. Negotiate. To sell, dispose of, transfer, barter, accomplish a transaction. To "negotiate a loan; " to make a loan, borrow money. An instrument is "negotiated" when it is transferred from one party to another in such a manner as to constitute the person to whom transfer is made the holder thereof. Net. A thing is said to be "net" when all possible deductions have been made from its totality, and it is at its lowest terms. This is more specifically set forth under "Net Earnings." Net Avails. As used in the discounting of a note, it is the amount which the borrower obtains after deducting the " discount." (See "Discount.") Net Cash. Cash (payment) on delivery, as distinguished from "cash," which in the mercantile world is often taken to mean payment in a short time, generally ten days. "Net cash" permits of no discount being taken from the face of the bill, as is often allowed when goods are sold for "cash." If the term were used, "net cash ten days," it would be understood that the payment was to be made within ten days, but no discount was to be taken from the bill. Net Debt. See "Net Indebtedness." Net Deposits. The "net deposits" of a national bank upon which to figure the reserve (see that subject) requirements, is obtained by deducting the checks which a bank holds drawn against other banks in the same place, exchanges for clearing-house and national bank notes. Net Deposits of National Banks. The total deposits in all these banks, less the deposits of one bank in another, and any other duplications, so that no deposit will be counted more than once. Net Earnings. The divisible income applicable to interest upon indebtedness of all classes, sinking fund, and dividends. upon stock of a corporation or business industry for any stated period of time. The method of bookkeeping differs in various corporations, and unless specially noted, so that the investor may not be deceived, such items as taxes and insurance should be deducted before the amount of "net earnings" is derived. It is generally conceded proper to deduct such items and give the "net net earnings" as a divisible income as noted above. Net Income. After all costs of operating and fixed charges of every kind have been deducted from the earnings of a corporation, the balance, which is the amount available for dividends, may be called "net income." Net Increase. "The net increase in bank note circulation last week was $668,308;" meaning, that there was $668,308 more circulation taken out than retired. Net Indebtedness. The laws of Massachusetts, relating to the investment of savings bank deposits, give a very good definition of this term as follows: "The words' net indebtedness' shall mean the indebtedness of a county, city, town or district, omitting debts created for supplying the inhabitants with water and other debts exempted from the operation of the law limiting their indebtedness, and deducting the amount of sinking fund available for the payment of the indebtedness included." Of course, this would not apply in all cases, although the usual meaning, in reference to a municipality, is the deducting of the amount of water indebtedness, if any, and sinking fund. In the case of a State, as a rule, the sinking fund is about all that can be deducted to determine the " net indebtedness." The net debt of a corporation would be the total debt less "sinking fund" or money on hand specially set aside for the payment of same. In bookkeeping it would be considered. the difference between the assets and liabilities. Net Price. The lowest price; the price less all discounts or other allowances. Net Profits. This is used rather more in a commercial sense than "net earnings; " the latter being applied in reference to railroads, telephone companies, etc. "Profits " have more the reference to the gain arising from dealing in commodities, and is the gain in any business undertaking of the above nature after taking into consideration the capital invested in such an undertaking, all its expenses incurred in management, and losses sustained, if any. Again" net profits" and "net earnings" (see that subject) may be used to mean one and the same thing. Or, in some instances, both terms may be used in the same system of bookkeeping, as, for instance, "net profits" to mean the earnings of the business before any losses for bad debts or such like have been deducted, and "net earnings" after such deduction. Net Return upon the Investment. The proportional rate which the income upon any investment bears to the total cost, interest excepted, of that investment, taking into consideration the time which the investment may be outstanding before being paid off. Stocks, ás a rule, have no definite date of maturity, although there are exceptions to this; therefore, stocks are usually figured as perpetual. Bonds and most other classes of investments have a fixed time to run. In the former case, a simple illustration would be that of a stock selling at $200 per share, and paying dividends at the rate of 8% per annum; in which event the ratio of the dividend, $8, to the total cost, $200, would be 4, or, in other words, the net return to the investor would be 4%. If the stock sold at $100 per share and paid $4 per annum in dividends, the net return would be 4%. In the case of bonds having a fixed date of maturity, the problem is somewhat more complicated, and special tables are in use to which investors usually turn to ascertain what the net return is upon an investment of that kind. It will do to take as an example a bond bearing 5% interest, and which has exactly ten years to run before maturity. If it is sold at $108.18, that is to say, $1,081.80 for each one thousand dollar bond, the net return to the investor would be 4% per annum, which is 4% for each of the ten years, and is 4% upon the entire sum $1,081.80- invested. This brings up the point that, although to use the above example the bond costs $1,081.80, at the end of ten years, when it matures, the holder will only receive $1,000. In the meantime he will have received $50 yearly in interest. All of this $50, therefore, should not be considered as income, for a sufficient amount of it should be set aside each year to liquidate the $81.80 premium paid for the bond. Some such expression as this is often seen: Yielding 4% for the first ten years and 5% for all the time thereafter which the bond may run." This means that the municipality or corporation issuing the bond has the right to pay it off any time after ten years, but may not absolutely be obliged to do so until some later date, say twenty years. These are called 10-20 year bonds, or 10-20's, meaning that they are absc lutely due in twenty years, but optional on the part of the issuing party to pay any time between ten and twenty years. It is not safe on the part of the seller of this bond to estimate that it will run longer than ten years. The greater the length of time which any form of indebtedness, with a fixed rate of interest, and selling at a premium, may be outstanding, the greater the percentage in interest return to the holder, at a given price; therefore, in the case of this 10-20 year bond, the seller figures the net return on the basis of its being outstanding ten years only, and, in the case cited, returning 4% to the investor. But should it run twelve years, for instance, before being paid off, the net return to the investor would be 5% per annum for the two additional years; or, in other words, the full rate of interest which the bond bears. The shorter the length of time which a bond has to run when selling at a discount, the greater the interest return to the investor, prices being equal; just the opposite from a bond selling at a premium. In the selling of bonds and figuring the interest return, or yield, the following rule must always be observed, if the issue is "optional," so-called, as in the case of the 10-20 year bond just mentioned. Rule For Computing the Interest Yield Upon Optional Bonds For bonds selling at a premium, the interest return must be computed upon the shortest possible time which the security may be outstanding. For bonds selling at a discount, the interest return must be computed upon the basis of the greatest possible length of time which they may be outstanding. In buying an issue of "serial bonds" (see that subject) many bidders make the mistake of averaging the life of the issue, and then, by the use of a table of bond values, basing the bids upon this average maturity; whereas, a separate bid should be computed for each maturity and then an average price taken. If bonds are bought by the first method and retailed by maturities, either a loss will result, or a lesser profit than expected. How to compute the average life, or maturity, of a lot of bonds falling due at different intervals, is best explained by the following example. To find, on March 1, 1907, the average maturity of |