The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1898-05-11
Aiacchus' Advice.
INSOLVENCY OF SPAIN.
From the Philadelphia Record.

From the Philadelphia Record.
Threatened with insurrection at home,
and with war already declared against
her by this country, Spain is now placed
'Detwcen the devil and the deep sea-
Bankruptcy, moreover, stares her in the
face, 50 that her position is at once des-
perate and ritiable. The campaign IN
cuba has cost Spain more than 1850 OOO,
900; the expenditures during the past
three years alCne on this account have
amounted to 500, 900 900 per year, ana the
pay Of the troops in Cuba is in arrears
more than SGOGOO,OOO. The annual re-
Ceipts of the Spanish treasury are less
than $l500OO,0OO and the deficit has
reached stupendOus proportions-some
where about $4,000, 900 per annum. The
debt has increased from 81. 1906 $50, 900 in 1890
to $l.CG0, 900 in 1897. Interest charges
on this great sum amount to nearly $780,
100000 per annCm, or about 20 per cent.
of the total revenue. Exclusive of the Gu
ban charges, the army and navy eXpen-
| ditures prior to the extraordinary eX-
penses consequent upon the recent prep
arations for war with the United States
exceeded $50 900 per annum.
O.
In addition 20 the enormous cost of the
! Cuban campaign in money, the loss of
| Spanish soldiers killed in desultory fight
| ing, or who have died from wounds and
disease. has teen extraordinary. More
| than fifty thousand men have been killed;
! an equal number We're on the sick list in
! hospitals in Cuba a few months ago, and
| as many more have been sent back to
! Spain as invalids. The desperate straits
| to which Spain has been reduced in or
| der to meet her financial obligations in
! the past few years are we'll known to
! fiuanCiers, and further loans cannot be
| obtained except at ruinous rates, If at
ALL Although the numerous loans have
met with enthusiastic reception from the
people, the Bank of Spain has mad 20 find
most of the money for the subscribers,
| who promptly paWned the stock as soon
| as il was allotted because the interest
it yielded was higher than the terms TGid
for advancement
A recent issue of Fairpay contains a
lengthy and exhaustive review of Span
ish Insolvency" in which the following
| interesting account Of the Bank of Spain
and the government loans appears: "That
institution has a total ,paid-up capital OF
GG,OOO0O0, and is a creditor OF the gov
ernment for G3G 100000. In other words,
1t has lent TO the state not only the whole
of its capital, but $4,000 900 besides, most
of this last being money it holds for. its
private customers. Since February, 1895
its holding Of treasury bonds alone has
risen from Gl $50 900 TO G12000, Goo 1t is
therefore, hardly surprising that its note
circulation has in the same interval gone
up from G3I00O0 200 to over 10000, 600
while its took OF gold has only increased
from Gs, 900 600 to go 900. on the other
hand, the government has forced on II
silver in a perfect food in order to make
a profit on the transaction, Since 1892 M
less than G260O0,OOO of gold out of a tota
stock of, at that date, G3i, 100000 has beer
shipped abroad by the government to pur
chase silver at low price, which was pu
into circulation at its full currency value
In this way the national money has beer
degraded to a terrible extent, and the 20
sition OF the bank has become correspond
ingly impaired. To show how intimat,
are the relations between the bank anC
the treasury il is only necessary TO poin
out that of the gross profits made las
year amounting to G2450,OOO no less thar
2 G1,S6l 900 was derived from the bank
= investments in the national funds and IL
discounts and advances to the state
During the last few days the bank ha
undertaken 10 make a further advanc
(. Of cS0O0 900 TO the government on the sc
? curity of customs bonds. 1t is, perhaps
after this exposition, hardly necessary 4
suggest that in the event of the treasur.
collapslng the bank will go with IT, an
: ! that Ia VisW Of the Ananoial HAHitia" .