Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1913-10-26

BY WILLIAM C. DREHER,
Special Gable to The American.


BERLIN, Oct 22-The famous
princes Trust Is in difficulties. 1t
has been for several years
Recently it saw that the time had
come for drastic remedies. SO 1t
called in the aid of the Deutsche
Bank, and the latter is now trying
to unsnarl the tangled financial web
in which the two princes had involved
themselves.
Just now a new thing In German
finance is happening. Prince Max
Egon zu Furstenberg. the intimate
friend of the Emperor Git is even as
serted the latter wanted to make the
Prince Prime Minister) has recently
obtained authorization to hypothecate
his great entailed $4,000 acres estates
IN Baden, as security for $4,000 900
roam. At the same time. Prince, Chris
tian Kraft zu Hohenlohe- Oehringen,
the other member of the princes
Trust" has raised a loan of $4,000
900 on his Hungarian estates.
Needed More Funds.
They needed apparently even more
than these sums, to carry through the
liquidation process.
1t is the most interesting, and GER
tainly the most complicated story in
recent German flnance-this rise of
the princes Trust" and its mis-
fortunes.
Prince Hohenlohe and Prince Max
Egon Joined when the noble capital
lists discovered they had a common
taste for finance.
Hitherto the German nobility had
stood apart from all contact with
business-for medieval family tradi-
ton is proudly adhered to in this
money making twentieth century.
The two princes had the money
and they thought themselves the men
ia. break that tradition. They would
ttxe a leaf out of the book of the
British aristocracy.
So they founded the "Handels-
Vereinigung" whose mission, accord
ing to its charter, was ito amalgamate
the industrial and commercial enter
prises of large private fortunes into
Joint stock companies and manage
them
The concern was known In stock
exchange parlance as the Princes
Trust"
Annexes a Bank,
II needed banking house OF its
own and attached the Palestine Bank.
founded some time before to do busi-
ness within Palestine-largely on re-
ligious sentiment. 1t soon became
well-known house for the flotaton OF
stocks and bonds, particularly those
of the Princes Trust"
The Handles Vereinig1ne began at
once to unfold great activity" a the
Germans fitttngly express II.
Ii went into potash mines, steam
ship companies, two hotel companies,
two big department stores. wholesale
wine companies. a printing house. and
took the leading building company OF
Berlin and amalgamated It with the
Berlin Real Estate and Building Com
pany
Department Stores Lose.
In this transact ION. and especially
In the department store venture. the
Deutsche Bank and another bank as
ISOLATED with ii In the transaction lost
almost 100000. That came out
early in 1912
1t was growing visible to the pub
lie that The trust was getting short
of ready cash. For example Hohen-
lobe some years ago had converted
his great zinc works into a joint stock
company, which was to pay him
$4,000 a year for life he remaining
also the largest stockholder Now.
within a year or two, he has had the
company capitalize his annuity and
buy itself free with cash payment.
July Brings Crisis.
In July came the critical turn In
the affairs Of the trust. II was an
nounced that IL had entered into re-
NnAa a.