The evening herald. [volume] (Albuquerque, New Mexico) 1914-1922, 1915-05-24
INDUSTRY
Of NORTH FRANCE
RUINED BY WAR
Three Hundred Millions Said
to Be Lost In Raw Material
and Manufactured Products
Taken by Germans.

49, ~
faris, May It.-Three hundred
million dollars lost by the textile in
dustries Of northern France In raw
materials and manufactured products
taken By the Germans an booty oi
war-that IL the estimate given the
Associated Press by an authorized
member Of the most influential tex
tile corporation In France ana an au-
thority on Industrial subjects.
What the total loss. including dam.
ages To plant and to buildings. may
amount TO, there are no indications.
Tor many rumors Of the transferrlng
% valuable machines 10 Germany
have not been confirmed. The above
estimate ~ based on confirmed facts
only. u more than bears out the
estimate OF tho German publiciHt.
Ludwig Gnnghofer. Who after u visit
70 the German front told the
Mucnchner Ncustc Nachrichten that
the war booty sent from northern
France TO Germany Ia the form of
cereals. metals. wool. leather,
etc. amounted Ia Ave hundred mil
lion dollars during the first six
months Of the war. II is supposed
that his figures were based on the
rcquisition price, said to be very in
ferior To the market value. ON he
latter basis the actual total would bo
far In excess ut the German figurcs;
the estimate FOR the textile Industries
g'nnc would 80 Indicate.
II Is known that the Germans took
nearly an the raw material and I'm
ishcd goods In the great wooden man
ufacturing ccntcrs Of lie Coteau,
itoubaix and TourcoIng. where Amer
lea buys heavily Of the finer wooden
fabrics. They also cmptied the linen
factories with the exception at those
at Armentieres. where they were
driven back too soon, and al Lille,
whecr they have recently begun 10
rcquisition these products.
The territory occupied by the GER
mans contains more than so per cent
OF the wooden n linen Industries OF
France; the consequence 81 "a short
age Of all these products. The army
is seeking hundreds OF thousands OF
yards Of canvas FOR tents that these
Industries are unable To- supply. Cot
kton. tried ~ "A substitute. proved un-
satisfactory.
"The financial problem resulting
from this state Of things" according
60 this authority, will require most
serious study after the war. a com
mcrcial and Industrial activity such
as We have never seen will be wit
messed In France. but the setting IN
motion again the Industrial machine
viii be attended with great difficult
ties. one manufacturer In the occu-
pied territory has lost raw material
and finished goods to the value OF
Ave million to ten million francs. The
hanks had advanced him a half mill
lion francs, The security for that
advance Is gone. That man will say
after the war. 4 am not played out.
! wan Co put my industry on It's feet
again. but where will he find the
means, since he has already hanging
over him "a debt Of half "a million
frances and the goods that secured u
are In Germany Il Is "a serious
problem, but It viii he solved.
Another great difficulty Is In the
restoration Of our plants, the rcplac-
ing OF our machines. Under existing
conditions Il seems likely that II viii
take two years for machine construc-
tors to furnish what We shall require.
Perhaps We shall have to call upon
the American ingenuity TO help us IN
working out the q. 'hcult problems.
but they viii be solved. for never
was the spirit Of our manufacturers
and workers 20 strong as today