I worry more about the return of my money than the return on my money.

The earliest located appearances were in 1920 newspaper advertisements for bonds and other financial products, using the “return on” vs “return of” wordplay to stress safety of principal over higher yields. Later, Eddie Cantor used a similar line in interviews and ads in the 1930s after suffering losses in the 1929 crash. Attributions to Will Rogers appear later (from 1938 ads onward), and Benjamin Franklin is credited much later (e.g., a 1966 financial ad), making those attributions doubtful.

The saying warns that preserving the original capital matters more than chasing high interest or profit. It highlights that a high percentage gain is meaningless if the investment itself is at risk of not being recovered.

When we talk of the 100% soundness of Prudence-Bonds, we have in mind, not only the return on your money, but the return of your money.

See that you get not only a good return ON your money, but the return OF your money eventually.

It’s to look not so much for a return on your money as for a return of your money!

The first thing I learned was to worry about the return of my money instead of the return on my money.