The Meeker herald. [volume] (Meeker, Colo.) 1885-current, 1907-04-27
VAST WEALTH OURS
UNITED STATES RICHEST couN-
TRY ON EARTH.
outstrIppino Anything That Ever HISS
Been Known In History 10 the
Measure Of Uncle Sans
Affiusnee,

The United States is the weaithiest
country in the world. In the brief
span Of Its young life this infant ma.
ton of ours has broken all records re-
lating to the accumulation of riches,
and we are beginning to think Of bill.
lions instead of millions. Take 1t any
way you like. and the measure Of our
afnuence outstrips anything that has
ever been known before, says the New
York Sun.
Our country has more actual money.
more gold. a larger volume OF exports.
greater banking facilities. richer
farms. more productive mines, more
millionaires. more well-to.do trades
men. more independent farmers, more
highly paid laborers and greater dis
tributlon Of the luxuries which riches
bring than any other nation has ever
enjoyed since time began.
One day last October Uncle Sam
had gathered into his money store
house In Washington the greatest
amount Of gold ever collected at one
place in the history OF the world
gold representing ,S93.899. This
was indeed a high-water mark. We
had there in one little room more gold
than was in circulation in Great Bril-
tain.
The largest receipt ever given. the
greatest money trust ever undertaken
in history, was when the present treas.
Flrer of the United States. Charles H.
Treat, went into ONCE. He receipts to
ELLIS H. Roberts, the retiring treas
lrer. for all the money and securities
IN the vaults Of the treasury. total
Of $1,259, sos, 2Ts5s. It required from
July to September to count the
money. and at the completion Of the
task the accounts balanced to = frac-
tion.
The cost1iest governmental estab.
bishment in the world Is the British
navy, upon which billion and half
has been expended within the last ten
years. Yet three individual Ameri.
Carnegie and Clark
rcould have paid the whole bill and
stiil have some pocket money left
The United States is now spending
about a hundred millions year on its
havy, and we are new at this kind Of
Expenditure. That we are not invest
Ing more than We can afford is shown
by the fact that our display-lovine
women spent s10O.0O0.000 for dia
monds purchased in foreign lands dur
ing the last two years. In fact, we
hre so rich that the sales Of produce
Ind manufactured articles that we an
bending abroad each year ID equal tc
} sum suficient to support all the
havies in the world.
When 1t comes in individual wealth
we have a dozen citizens who are
lxorth more than all the kings and
rulers of the world. taken collectively
pr severally. The car of Russia il
feputed to have a greater income than
hny other living man, but his private
fortune Is so mixed up with the gov
ornamental revenues that it Is impossi
BILE to separate them. II distinction
could be made John d. Rockefeller
could undoubtedly make a comparison
with the weak-spined Nicholas. and
show the biggest pile. The Russian
monarch's wealth ia the accumulation
bf an empire, centuries Old In the max
ing, while the Ohio oil magnate can
remember when he had nothing.
To say that the total valuation ol
the wealth of the United States is
e107, 0O0, 900. 900 is not understandable
"A hundred billion dollars is such q
pile Of money that the simple mind
cannot grasp its meaning on the in
Btant. 1t is more than twice the total
amount Of the wealth of the United
Kingdom, of France. or of Germany;
and over three times that of Russia
pr of Austria-Hungary. Probably the
best way of illustrating the actual ex.
tent of Uncle Sans riches is to state
that If he could convert all his assets
Into money he would have nearly four
times as much as would be required
10 pay OF the entire national debt OF
bill the governments in the world, in
fluding his own.