El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1913-01-25


1925, OOO, 600 and more. If the people
should pay it in fun they would have
to be assessed $3.50 per head, or about
$3.50 per family, a thing which evil
IDENTIFY out of the question when we
remember that many Of them work for
only a few cents day
Do you wonder that Honduras Can't
pay its INTEREST," The bulk Of its debt
was contracted more than 40 years
ago, and it has paid no interest what
ever since 1872. Indeed, the most of
the debt is interest. The original
but the interest has climbed until it
is now more than three times the
amount Of the original loans.
Nicaragua has a foreign debt of nine
or ten million dollars, the Salvador
debt is about eleven millions, and that
Of Costa Rica in 1910 was more than
fifteen million, of which or seven
million dollars was interest In ad-
dition to these vast sums every eoun-
try has its internal debt and in most
OF them the currency IS Tar below
par.
Where Uncle sam Comes IN.
And now let US see where Uncle Sam
comes in. In the first place he is in
terested in the present situation on ac-
count Of the Monroe doctrine. We can
with affairs in southern North Amer
lea, and especially now as we have the
Panama canal Nevertheless the most
of this debt is owing to Europe, and
the. powers there intimate that Il we
make them keep their hands of we
ought to see that they get back the
money they have loaned The for
eign- bondhOIder in many cases would
be glad Of the return Of the
they say the United States should
make the credit of Central Ameri-
ca good This can only be done
by treaty arrangements which VIII give
US the supervision and application to I
the foreign debts of the customs col
lections, IS was done in the case of
Sapto Domingo. resulting IN the Wlp-
ing out OF revolution and putting that
country on a good business basis. This,
in short. is the proposition Of the
United States government
The Honduras Debt
For the ordinary man to understand
the financial situation In these Central
American republics is not easy rake
this matter of Honduras, where q
country about as big as New York
with a population Of about half mil
lion, owes S126, O0O,0 600. The loans were
made between 1867 and 1870, and upon
them for 20 years no interest has been
altogether about S27,0O0,00O, and fif-
teen millions OF this bears interest at
10 percent per annuml while. over
70 millions the interest rate MS Is
bonds are largely owned in Eng
land, and the British bOndhold-
ers proposed. an arrangement about
three years ago to settle on certain
Among these was one pro-
vision that the debt was to be lien
on the customs and another was that
the tariffs were TO be raised. They
also proposed to bring the chief rail-
roads under foreign control, and to do
other things which would seriously al
feet certain American investments.
To this the United States objected,
and Honduras then asked our state de-
partment to arrange for loan This
]. P. Morgan & Co 1t was proposed to
settle with the foreign bondhOlderS at
Is cents on the dollar, and to this they
agreed. The security for the loan was
% be the customs receipts OF the gov
srnment, and the loan was to be big /
enough to settle the foreign debt adj |
ust the domestic debt and TO give |
unds for railroad construction and |
,ther internal improvements as soon !
IS the country was in condition for /
hem. The loan was to consist OF /
ponds, which were to be sold at SIS I
.ents on the dollar. This arrangement ,
vas made at washington but it failed
10 be ratified by the HOnduran gov
arnment, and since then arrangements
have been made with New Orleans I
bankers who are associated with the
bankers OF New York.
One reason for the rejection Of the
Morgan proposition was the selling of
the bonds at So. which the, financiers
han is usually paid for Central Amer
can bonds.
The Assets of Honduras.
The question as TO the payment Of
any debt depends on the assets Of the
debtor. / an told here that Honduras
has resources which will enable it to
pay any debt of this kind it might
contract If the customs receipts be /
properly handled and the people kept
free from revolutions the country will {
develop rapidly, and. with funds for
Internal improvements and railroads,
viii soon be about the richest of all /
Central American republics
Honduras is rich in timber. including I
and dye woods. and It has !
great agricultural possibilities. Cocoa
cotton, sugar cane, coffee. tobacco and {
other tropical and sub-tropieal pro-
ducts can be grown on the loWlands,
while farther up there are immense /
pastures fit for grazing
There are good coffee lands through |
put the hill country at attitudes of \
about 1900 feet and upward, and lower 4
down are sugar lands so connected /
with mountain streams that their re- /
-1ner1eS could be run with water power.
As to mines, Americans are largely
Interested IN them IN different PARTS of i
Honduras, and some Of the mineral 4
properties are valuable. Altogether, |
700 mines of various kinds have been
denounced, and there are placer depos-
its in the beds of the rivers from 1
which the native women are taBir0
gold washing 1t out through a sieve 4
The Rosario mine, not far from the \
capital, has been operated for over IN I
years, and from it alone has come gold /