Semi-weekly herald., 1915-11-18
BRITISH TRADE IN WARTIME

creased $82,000,000 of which the chief
increase was food, s15,000,O00 how
ever, it happens the official figures
show no reflection of our exports of
war materials. Perhaps they were
concealed under the heading "raw
materials" which increased 100000
900, including cotton, $l5,00O,00O
England's exports also increased by
nearly $17,000,O00, chiefly in manu-
factures of textiles and metal. There
is nothing surprising about this in
crease Of both exports and imports.
1t has been the rule of every month
regarding imports, but it is only since
August that the exports have shown
increases over last year. British ex-
ports used to range above S200,000,0 900
monthly. With the declaration of
war they fell below $150,000,000
monthly, but now are about as much
above that figure.
There is military and financial sig
nificance in these figures. They are
the best possible answer to the Ger
man query and taunt, "Where is the
British fleet 2" 1t is doing its duty
in policing the seas, and thereby is
contributing no small share to the
campaign on land. England has a
better claim to ask, where is the
Gearmn fleet?" that it allows Eng
land to increase its imports of food
above the peace level, while bread
licenses are issued in Berlin and meat
is allowed at all only on certain days.
1t has been the dream of England's
enemies to have peace dictated by
bread riots is London. 1t is the
British fleet which makes food plenti-
ful in London, with the assistance of
the German fleets declination to in
terfere with British commerce. The
longer these conditions continue the
worse for Germany, which has mag
ined heretofore that starvation was
the fate of islands and that CON
tinental nations, with neighbors on
every side, were safe from dis
graceful peace through the necessities
Of noncombatants. The theory was
good for duel of nations, but not
for an international mele in which
no ordinary rules of supply and de
mand hold good. Unless Germanys
fleet undertakes the duties of fleet
the fate prepared for England threat
ems Germany.
The financial significance of Brit
aims trade in wartime depends upon
the total rather than on the current
account. During 1915 England's i'm
ports have totaled e396,620192
against exports of s194, 4,76S,S03. OF
caurse the world is not paying tribute
to England at the rate of billion
dollars in ten months. England is
running into debt, not collecting
tribute. 1t is only a coincidence that
the credit balance of the United
States for nine months is somewhat
larger than England's debit balance
for ten. During 1919, ending with
September, our excess of exports was
81 ,230, 0,390,3S1. Englands difficulty
has indeed been our oportunity, and
we have been balancing the account
chiefly with England by taking some
$500, 100000 in gold and approaching
a billion of obligations We don't
want more gold and England can
hardly spare it without embarrass-
ment. We are manifesting no par
ticular appetite for foreign bonds on
any scale commensurate with the
necessities of the case. There is one
bank in this town with deposits ex-
ceeding the Anglo-French S500,000.-
900 loan, and there is another with
almost that sum, which is only a
counter in items of billions The
idea that this is difficulty for
England is capable of conversion into
appreciation that the trouble is
jointly ours with England. For if
we do not take the British bonds there
- Pi'op'NI VI tutll DtillB lShutu
TO Englishmen in exchange for their
holdings of American securities, which
then will be exported to this country
to balance current merchandise ac-
count. This subject has been be-
fore parliament in the shape of a
proposal to commander British owned
American securities for such an ex-
change, said the chancellor of the
exchequer promised to consider it.
The member who proposed the bill
calculated that for a trifling loss OF
income the holder of such Americans
would get n British trustee security,
while England would get the power
of buying in America. The trouble
is that England dislikes financial
conscription as well as a military con-
scription, and that there is not yet