The Colorado statesman., 1907-02-16
VAST WEALTH OURS
UNITED STATES RICHEST coUN-
TRY ON EARTH.
Outstripping Anything That Ever Has
Been Known in History Is ths
Measure of Uncle Sans
Affuence. -

The United States is the wealth
country 10 the world. In the br-
span of its young life this infant
ton of ours has broken all records re }
lating to the accumulation of riches,
and we are beginning to think of bill; J
lions instead of millions. Take IL any
way you like, and the measure of our
affiuence outstrips anything that has
ever been known before, says the New
York Sun.
| Our country has more actual money,
more gold, 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
tribution 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 $S71 ,S93,s99 This
was indeed high-water mark We
had there in one little room more gold
than was in circulation in Great Bri-
tain.
The largest receipt ever given, the
greatest money trust ever undertaken
in history, was when the present treas
urer of the United States, Charles H.
Treat, went into office. He receipts to
ELLIS H. Roberts, the retiring treas
urer, for all the money and securities
in the vaults Of the treasury, a total
of 81 ,259, ,598,27S 1t required from
July 1 to September 5 to count the
money, and at the completion of the
task the accounts balanced to a frac-
ton.
The costliest governmental estab-
lishment in the world is the British
navy, upon which billion and a half
has been expended within the last ten
years Yet three individual Ameri-
cans-Rockefeller, Carnegie and Clark
| t-could have paid the whole bill and
still 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-loving
women spent $100,0O0,000 for dia-
monds purchased in foreign lands dur
ing the last two years. In fact, we
are so rich that the sales Of produce
bnd manufactured articles that we are
sending abroad each year is equal to
b sum sufficient to support all the
havies in the world.
When it comes in individual wealth
we have dozen citizens who are
worth more than all the kings and
tulers of the world, taken collectively
or severally. The car of Russia is
reputed to have greater income than
hny other living man, but his private
fortune is so mixed up with the gov
ernmental revenues that it is impossi-
BILE to separate them. If a 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 is the accumulation
of 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 of
the wealth of the United States is
s107 900 .0O0,0 is not understandable.
A hundred billion dollars is such a
pile of money that the simple mind
cannot grasp its meaning on the in
stant. 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
70 pay of the entire national debt of
all the governments in the world, in
eluding his own.