The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-12-24
Large Amount of American Money
Loaned in London Likely to BE
Drawn Back in "a Short Time.
INTEREST RATE INCREASING
AND FOREIGN EXCHANGE GRADUAL
LY WEAKENING IN NEW YORK.
Plan Adopted by Mr.. Gage to Prevent
sion Not Offered to Gen. Foster.
Special to the Indianapolis Journal.


WASHINGTON, Dec 23.-The statement
issued to-day from the office of the secre-
tary of the treasury, intended to quiet ap-
prehensions of disturbance in the money
market in consequence of heavy bond re-
demptions during the next fifteen days, has
directed the attention of experts to the ex-
istence of favorable financial force whose
operations are beginning to be noted and
felt. 1t is observed at the Treasury Depart
ment that, coincident with the advancing
interest rates in New York, foreign ex-
change has been and is still weakening-a
circumstance which they construe as an in
dication of a renewal of gold imports. 1t
Is well-known fact that a large amount
of American money, as high as $40 600, 900
or 100000 600, has been loaned in London
during the past thirty days on account of
the high interest prevailing at that center.
With the money market Tightening up on
this side, it is considered as only natural
that American banks which have been
sending their surplus abroad should be
drawing it in again. 1t is also natural, un-
der conditions as they are now found to
exist, that London should return this
money in the form of gold. There have
been considerable Withdrawals of gold from
the Bank of England within the last two or
three days, and it is thought that the coin
was for shipment to this country. Any i'm
portant move of gold from Europe to
America beginning at this season of the
year would be out of the ordinary, and is
construed as being very healthy symp-
tom. There is no way of forming correct
estimate of the amount of money which
the old world is now owing us in the way
of loans and credit extended on transac-
tons in food stuffs, buFthe balance in our
favor is undoubtedly very large.
There is very little substance to the story
that the President was going to tender the
Chinese mission to Colonel John w. Fos-
ter, of Indiana. The colonel was pressed
to take the Turkish mission, but declined,
with thanks. He is doing better at home,
serving the administration as general coun-
sell for his government in negotiations re-
curing special knowledge of international
law, personal acquaintance with diplomats
and familiarity with controversies in which
the United States has been concerned For
eign missions have no attraction for
Colonel Foster.
In writing OF the situation in China and
the possible dismemberment of that empire,
Charles DENLY, jr., who was secretary of
the American legation at Peking for twelve
years says: .'Selfishness has carried the
day. A field which could not be monopo-
lized by commercial methods is being seized
by force oflarms; and instead of the spec
tacle of China being lifted up, civilized and
developed by the wholesome process of
peaceful competition, we to see her
ports turned into mutually hostile fortresses
and her provinces become the campaign
grounds of alien soldiery'
Representative Crumpacker, who has been
counted among the strong civil-service
members of the House, is thus quoted in an
interview to-day: THE din for spoils comes
from a very small body of men. Although
there is great unanimity of opinion that
many offices now under the classified serv-
ice ought to be out of it, the mass of the
people are not interested at all, save that
the government and its various departments
shall be honestly conducted Not one voter
in seventy-five wants to hold public office.
The men who make politics a profession,
hold places on committees and do the actual
hard work of carrying wards and cities,
want federal offices. They are the men back
of the agitation against the civil service"
The Judge doubts whether public sentiment
in Indiana has been educated up to the adj
vanced position on currency taken by Sec
rotary Gage.
The broken Chestnut-street National Bank
of Philadelphia has long been known in the
Quaker City as 1.-The mugwump bank" 1t
was organized by Governor Pattison and a
group of admirers Of that gentleman and
President Cleveland headed by w. M.
Singerly, proprietor of the Philadelphia
Record. Its bankruptcy is the direct re-
suit of large loans to a paper mill owned
by Mr.. Singerly, which turned out to be