Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1878-05-10
War and England'S Resources.

Thereis something of lull in the storm
mutterings in the East. The Marquis
of Salisbury signalized his entrance into
the Foreign Office as Lord Derby's sue
cessor by firing off columbiad in the
direction of St. Petersburg, and the con-
tnent is now holding its breath in ex
pectation of what may come of it. If
the Gar shows fight, it is difficult to see
how another step can be taken through
diplomacy, unless it be through the in
tervention of other powers. The lion
and bear would have to be Gagged, or the
fur would fly.
1t may be said that England has the
advantage of being fresh, while Russia
has been somewhat exhausted by war
with another nation. To fight two in
succession is hard But if Russia had
known in advance that war with Eng
land was inevitable, she could not have
done better than to crush Turkey III
Europe and establish virtual protect
crate over it. The advantage Of the po-
sition now occupied by the armies of
Grand Duke Nicholas more than com
pensates for the expenditure Of life and
treasure Of the late war. Of course, it
the jaded soldiery could rest on their
arms few years, and the nation could
recuperate it's general resources, that
would be preferable, but it is precisely
what England must guard against. If
conflict must come, the sooner the
better for the British Empire.
The fiscal year in England begins
April 1st. The exhibit for the last one
shows the revenue of the government to
have been 100000 sterling in excess
of the expenditures, pretty good nest
egg" to begin the year with. An En-
glish statistician, Mr.. Giffen has just
presented some very encouraging figures
touching the increase of capital in
Great Britain during the last ten years
Mr.. Giffen calls his figures bewildering,
but enormous and past comprehension
though they are, they give some idea OF
the immense contrast in power between
the pauper Turkey-who was indeed
'as poor as Jobs turkey" and the pleth-
oric England. The figures are thus sum-
marised
In the ten years between 1863 and
1875 the capital of the country was in
creased by the enormous sum OF f2, 40O,-
100000, or about twelve thousand mil
lions of dollars. In 1865 the capital OF
the Empire was f6, 100, 100000. In 1873
it was fS.5O0,O00000. In other words
England has been adding to her capital
lied wealth or her national estate at
the tremendous rate of f240,OOOOOO a
year And whereas the gross assessed
income of Great Britain at the begin
ming of the century, when she was car
rying on her great wars with Napoleon
l., was but els, 100000, and in 1885, at
the time Of the Crimean war was but
s40, 600, 900, it had risen in 1865 to 1896
0O0, 900, and in 1875 it rose to f57l ,OOO,-
600.
Clearly Great Britain has nothing to
fear so far as concerns the sinews of
war" Russia, on the other hand, with
all her vastness of territory, is short of
funds, "land poor" in fact. More de-
pends, however, upon the attitude OF
the rest of Europe. 1t is hardly pos
slble that the other Powers could keep
out of the war if it should once com
mence. Russia and Turkey were next
door neighboas, and needed not to tres
pass in this conflict, but all the other
nations of Europe are between the two
nations now seemingly on the brink OF
war.