New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-08-10
Tension RelaXeS When
War Measures Demon
Strate Their Efficiency.
PROBLEM STILL TO
OPEN THE ATLANTIC
Progress Made in Restoring Life
to International Banking
Ships the Great Need.


Exchange to put financial and CONNER
cial business upon war footing, the
emergency oecasioned by the whole
sale declarations OF war in Europe was
deprived Of its most menacing aspects.
The famine of money that might
easily have come. If there had been no
resource TO Clearing House certihcates
and emergency currency, WAS alto,
eether prevented. With the individual
institutions, the Clearing House Asso-
citation, the State Superintendent OF
Banks and the administration at WASH
ington all cooperating freely, precau-
tionary measures we're adopted whose
practical character has been amply
demonstrated
Progress has been made, but there
is vet a great deal TO do. All europe
cannot 90 TO war in single week ana
the United States be expected to re-
cover from the shock before the iol-
lowing Monday. Even If peace were
to be secured tomorrow and every
nation spent its best efforts to repair
the wrecked fabric of international
commerce il would yet be long time
before our foreign trade could regain
its pristine strength. A business with
Europe of over $4,000, 100000 year
means an intricate and delicate machln.
ery a break in whose continuity OF
action is certain to spell the loss or
tens, if not hundreds, of millions OF
dollars. And so far there Is neither
peace nor prospect of peace.
War Affects Business Here.
The war in Europe has already been
so widespread in its effects IN tels
country that it must be difficult Ior
business men to realize at times tha'
the United States is not itself IN arms
Laborers, turned again into military
reservists at the. call of the fatner-
lands. have left the fields and the lac
tories; mills, dependent on Europe LOT
their supplies of raw material, nave
reduced their forces; copper mines
their production. The railroads, con-
fronted with the prospect OF congeS-
tion at their seaboard terminals, have
placed a partial embargo on shipments
from the interior, and of all the BUSY
steamships that crossed the Atlantic
crammed with foodstuffs and American
manufactures but few are left IN ser
vice. Germany, which took over $780,
100000 worth of our goods last year
and sent us S1s9,000,000 worth OF her
own, is completely isolated, and the
rest of Europe is as good as cut OF
from our commerce for the lack OF
American ships.
If there is one advantage in STU
alton so seemingly desperate it is that
il provokes its own remedy. Congress
is already at work endeavoring TO ere
ate a new mercantile marine, and 5usl-
ness men all over the country are pre-
pairing to capture trade in places whcre
IL never was Americas before, or not
since the years when the American nag
was the most familiar sight in every
port of the world. There is no idea OF
giving I'D the trade with Europe that
has proved so lucrative; but If the
war should be long continued and IL
should be found at the end that new
commerce with South America and the
Orient had been built up, carried in
American bottoms and financed with
American money, there would be no
great surprise in this country over
the discovery that trade between the
United States and Europe would be
more of Europe's fostering than our
own. A month ago the idea of over
coming London's advantage as the
financial centre of the world might
have been preposterous, but now the
idea is no longer so in the light OF a
war that is engaging nearly all of the
Oldest nations in Christendom and
daily destroying tens of thousands of
workers and hundreds of millions OF
dollars.
To Get Ships the Difficulty.
II cannot be said as yet that any
thing of moment has been done in
this country to derive permanent
advantage for the United States out
of the calamities of Europe, but there
is much in the making. So far the
work has been to construct temporary
bridges, so TO speak, between the
United States and France and the
United States and England, for the
passage Of credits and the goods that
will create other credits. The ar
rangement whereby j. p. Morgan &
Co. and the French government make
credits available for each other on
opposite sides of the Atlantic spanned
the gulf created by the destruction OF
the foreign exchange market. The
work has been supplemented by the
action of the British government IN
taking over the risk on shipments of
grain from here, which will be FOL
lowed in course of time by the as
sumption of risks on cotton and other
desired commodities. II is reported,
too, that France will follow the eX-
ample of England, and other Euro
pean countries, 1t is 20 be supposed,
will do the same. That should pro-
vide a fairly satisfactory solution OF
the foreign exchange problem, il only
a wav can be found Of getting ships
TO carry the commodities. And that
is the real difficulty.
Opening the Atlantic.
The Senate has been for number
~ DAYS i'm discussion of a measure
ALREADY passed by the House designed
10 hermit the transfer to American
registry of foreign built ships Of any
age when they are purchased by
American citizens; that is, they may
exceed the fve-yesr age now named
as the maximum in the case OF such
transfers. But, as several Senator'S
have pointed out, practically every
Iii seeking TO give American regis
trv 10 ships which might be pur-
cbssed from citizens Of belligerent
on1rtyies carries with il the posi-
bilitv of offending other belligerent
countries. Until some way can be
found of overcoming that difhculty'
there is not likely to be much Of an
export movement.
Upon the opening up OF the ocean
"a American commerce depends the
.ostoration Of practically every in
dustrv which has suffered through
,bc outbreak OF war-eyen stock
Fading II open and unhsmpered
trsde with Europe could again be,
come fact, there would be no need