The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-03-19
TIGHT MONEY.
England and Europe Generally
Again in a Close Place.

New York, March 19.-The Times Lon
don financial correspondent cables:
Perfect happiness is denied, even to
the money markets. Here have we been
beating the record of your war loan last
year, with one subscribed for eleven
times over, and every dealer in credit
IS grumblng like a bear with sore
head.
And the cause it patent enough when
the Bank of Englands return is exam
ined. Before the applications for the
loan began the market owed the bank
about $4,000. 600, and it now owes fully
G13,000,000 in spite of disbursements by
the treasury. with the consequence that
every shilling of application money costs
the market per cent. The bank lends
and discounts freely at per cent and
thinks It's action liberal. but the market
grunts why should the bank be allow
ed to hold our money!" and demands
the instant issue of allotment letters
This IS easier asked than granted, since
the number of applications is about
forty thousand, SO money discounts
We're tight all last week, quite per cent
for both, and for two days brokers ask
ed AZ per cent on sixty day RENTED
paper.
There seems to be no immediate or
approximate chance for the better in
prospect, because the market resources
are fully engaged even without q loan
And we cannot increase our currency
credits from the state bank for in
creased means. At a point undeter-
mined the bank must check its ~ad-
Vances, because the more it distends
credit the more our stock of gold is
imperiled. Should. however, the gov
eminent money be disbursed mostly
within the United Kingdom, we may
see a more comfortable state of mat
ters by the middle of April. The true
point to bear in mind is that until
the bank is paid off the market can
not go much below 4 per cent.
The last government Gazette an
nounces that the Bank of England has
decided to increase its fduciary circula-
its charter which gives it the right to
replace 1apsed note circulations of Eng
/ lish provincial banks up to tWo-thirds
their amount. Slight influence will be
produced by this step, as our banking
/ depends on checks far more than on
notes. AS matter of fact, the active
note circulation of the bank down to
1897 tended to decline. and has gone
up since then merely because of the
rapid increase in the number of small
| branches opened of other joint stock
banks. AS the bank buys government
securities with extra notes, and re-
ceives interest thereon with little de-
ductiOn it naturally makes the most OF
its privilege. and these past three years
the note circulation has swollen to
about &4,0O0,0O0.
The stock market has failed wholly
to respond to the news from South At
RIGA. The fact is they are paralyzed-
/ partly by dread of what the Beers NAV
| do to the mines and partly by the enor
nous hidden speculation for a rise al
/ ready existing in Kaffir and copper
shares. Also 4 per cent chills adven-
/ lures in the market and clogs every
I form of gambling. New enterprises are
/ putting forth their wares once more.
/ but meet with scant encouragement.
1 Our railways themselves fume for mon
/ ey. far from readily forthcoming and
the Colonial loan of $1,000 600 offered
last week was laboriously UNDERWATER
| at 115 per cent below the price al which
| it was offered to the public. How can
/ fresh capital be found when the market
/ is overheard and ears in debt2
| All over the continent. also except in
/ Paris, where strenuous efforts are being
made to keep things smooth. credit
| again is becoming dearer and the Ger
man government is finding the sale of
1 the new loan of 8120 200, 600 that it re-
| quires by no means easy except at a
price it is naturally not willing to CON
/ cede.