Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1873-12-31

OF the United states. The SIX months
war with Germany resulted IN doub.
ling the national debt. adding nearly
$500, 000 900 year to the public taxes
forever, and the loss OF two fine prov
inces, containing 1900. GOO inhabitants;
yet France has withstooa those enor-
nous losses, and recovered her strength
with rebound that is
ASTONISHING 70 CONTEMPLATE.
1t is quite true that the cost of the
war, aside from the German conEisca-
tion, was expended within France, aud
is not lost to the capital Of the nation,
except to the extent that it represents
property consumed and destroyed by
the war. But the German fine, levied
on the nation (and on Paris), amount
ing, with interest, to nearly S1,l00,
900, 900, had to be raised and sent out
of the country. As the whole gold and
silver coin in circulation III France, at
! the time of the conclusion of She war,
was supposed not to exceed 5000, 900,
| coo, or little more than half the in
denanity, how was France able to hand
over to Germany, in two years and a
half, 81, 076, 00G, 600 in coin; for it was
| pdIt LII SI1ll KUN, CNC1,y IIah0 NA Io-s
shall try and explain.
HOW THE FEAT WAS ACCOMPLISHED.
! In the first gsgace- When the Gov
eminent borrowed from the Bank of
France $500, 600, coo, aad authorized
| the Bank to issue like amount of
notes in addition to its former
circulation, it liberated from clrcula-
ton an equal amount Of coin which
was no longer required fol the trans
action of business, as the new notes
performs it's functions.
Second-The Government not only
made the notes of the Bank legal
tender for everything, including inter.
est on the national debt. anal for duties
on imports, but authorized the bark
to suspend specie payments. The ef-
| feet of this first act was to enable the
Bank to part with half it's usual stock
of coin and bullion. and this set at
liberty $3.50, 600, 900 more gold and sill
ver.
Here, then, was a double fund of
specie, amounting to $3.50, GOO, 900,
which could be spared without de
ranging the finances of the natiou, and
sufficient to extinguish more than 40
per cent. CT the fine and interest there
on.
Ihsr@-The money was procured by
PUBLIC SUBSCRIPTIONS,
in two loans of about $40, 600, 600
EACH The bonds issued are called
Rentes, In England they would be
called Consols There being no time
fixed for their redemption, they are
interminable bonds, and can only be
extinguished by being purchased liz
the open market for whatever the hold
ers are willing to accept for them.
They draw 5 per cent. interest, and
were sold to the highest bidders, and
realized all round SO per cent be-
ginning at so, and advancing to 80 be-
fore the loans were closed.
F6urth-The whole subscription was
taken by the
FARMERS. sHoPKEEPERs AND BANKERS,
the latter purchasing on speculation
for rise, and then re-selling to the
farmers. The great bulk of these
Rentes have found their way into the
pockets of the French farmers. It was
found when the temptation was placed
before them, that nearly every farmer
in France had secret hoard of gold
Napoleons F." and 5-franc silver coins,
of the existence of which there was
suspicion, but of the fact or amount
little was known. The common people
of France rarely deposit their money in
the savings banks or anywhere else ex-
cept in an earthen crock in tue ground.
But every Frenchman, no matter what
his politics or religion, whether he
be Royalist, Republican, OF
Communist; Catholic, Protestant,
or a Skeptic, has absolute confidence
in the solvency Of his Government, and
IS willing to loan his last franc, shirt,
or pair of sabots. The subscriptions
for the national loan 10 liberate
France from the occupation of
the hated and abhorred L'Alle-
mango Germany amounted to
FOUR OR FIVE TIMES
the sum required: and, at all places
where the books were opened to receive
proposals for Rentes, there were great
crowds, much excitement and conten-
ton, and scrambling rush first to
reach the books. For twenty-four
uOuTS LII duFduco Oh the Clm6 Tor open
ing them, long lines of women held
their places, regardless of rain or heat,
wind or weather, and impatiently wait
ed FOR the signal for the procession to
move upon the books and make their
offerings Of SO many hundred or thou
sand francs each for, in making these
subscriptions, the women managed the
business, as they do pretty much every
other business in France,-the men
standing helplessly idle, and watching
their spouses with that feeling which
the
IEFERIOR HAS FOR THE SUPERIOR.
FStth.-It was demonstrated by the
result Of the offerings, and the facts
that came to light, that the French
farmers alone had more gold and silver
boarded away and secreted in unknown
spots than would suffice to discharge
the whole German fine and the cost of
the war besides. It had long been a
mystery what had become of the steady
stream of the precious metals which,
for the last fifty or sixty years, had
poured into France. Some said they