Omaha daily bee., 1899-10-17
ENGLAND FACING A CRISIS
United States the Only Country that Has
Gold to Spare,
CONTINENT TIeHTtNS PURSE STRINGS
Prices of Loans Decrease During
the Past Week, but opinion Is
that the Rate IN Ger
tain 10 Advance.

NEW YORK, Oct 16.-The Times London
hDancial correspondent cables. Our markets
moved much as anticipated last week. In
money ease increased daily until call loans
were down to 3 per cent and sometimes less.
Loans Tor week are now barely 3A to SIs
per cent and this cheapness will probably
continue for another eight or ten days. Dis
count rates, too. have receded, until the
ooider operators gave out 43s per cent as a
working quotation for ninetyday bills. But
most banks have all along refused to buy
from brokers under Az per cent and the
leading houses therefore only worked at that
ngure When in position to keep bills.
usually, therefore, 45s per cent was the
minimum rate and toward the end OF the
week a disposition was shown to hold out
for 4s4 per cent.
II was felt that the ease was deceptive
and on Thursday the hank return revealed
the unpleasant fact that the Bank of Eng
land had retained only e65,000 of the week 6
net import of $S33,OOO in gold. 1t was said
to have gone into circulation, but that is
hardly the truth. TIE me al Is being hoarle
by other banks, not before it was time, in
view of possible credit complications ahead
The Bank Of England must consequently
calculate on having to cope with both in
ternal and export demands for sovereigns at
the same time that the most important sup
ply of gold is cut off.
Money for the War.
This week Parliament meets to vote money
for the African war. The estimated re-
qulrements vary from s5,O00,0O0 to s1O
100000, but it is improbable that the ex-
treme amount will be asked for at first.
Whatever money is demanded must be bor-
rowed and the proceeds, to the extent prob
ably, of e5OO,OOO week, exported in gold
to the Cape. 1t is a question where this
gold is to be found. About 92,0OOOOO has
lately been swept up in open markets on
continental opening but these are now be-
lieved to be almost bare and no state bank
abroad is willing to spare a single ounce
About week ago the German Reichsbank
told the Hamburg bankers that If they dis
counted bills for people wishing to take
advantage of the favorable exchange on
export gold to London it would stop their
credits. Therefore no gold is coming from
Germany after the market sweepings are
used up. The Bank of France blocks the
way, either by refusing altogether to sell
gold, by raising the premium on the metal OF
by paying light napoleons. The Russian
government and bank have just surmounted
crisis. The Austro- Hungarian bank has
quite enough to do with domestic complica-
tions and poor Italy is struggling now with
one more bad mess There remain Holland
and Belgium, both of whose banks have
raised their rates in self protection. II
these circumstances, unless you will oblige
| US with few millions, the promise is thai
we shall be hard put to it to pay our way
in I
help from vou is too good to hope for. L
follows that the present slackness of rates
in our market is transitory.
In other respects our position is strong
Our foreign trade for September shows mos
encouraging totals, but the gains are due
| more to price than to quantity, and oul
business with the continent is not, as
| whole, progressive. High prices are telling
severely on the consumption Of copper ant
| the exports of machinery are stagnant. In
| deed, but for the navy demands, the iroI
and steel trades would be backward, fo
| foreign demands are slow In almost ever,
| direction.
stock Market Calm.
! The stock markets have taken the out
| break of hostilities with singular calmness
Even in the Kaffir circle prices have gon
up, not down, partly because the bears hav
| come in close, but much more because tn
whole nation is possessed with the idea tina
the war will be an affair of three months
Sir Redvers Butler expects to be in Pre-
| toria at the --latest by January 81, and hi
estimate is fully trusted. So steady strear
of small buying orders poured in afte
Wednesday for all Rand mine shares Of re
pute, but most other departments were rathe
neglected, your railroads not more conspicu
Investment
yielding from 2& to 4 per cent continue t
suffer by the dearness OF money The bank
lent little below per cent for end OF tn
month accounts and borrowers often pal
5A These rates will be deadly to thos
who haya borrowed on such things as CO