South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1915-03-01
NO SUDDEN BOOM
IS LOOKED FOR
Business Will Continue to In
prove Gradually Says Fore
cast For March Issue BY the
First National Bank.

Denial OF a sudden boom in bust
ness is made in the business forecast
for March just issued by the First Ma
tional bank of South Bend. The fore
cast says that a steady and consistent
growth in business conditions can lie
expected during the next few months
but that there viii be no sudden flare
OF prosperity. The employment stu
alton viii 5e alleviated To a certain ex-
tent and there will be noticeable de
crease IN the amount of wages paid
to labor according TO the report,
part OF which follows
Diplomatic exchanges passing be-
tween this country and England and
this country and Germany are Great
ing some business unrest and doubt
Ii Is not remarkable that during the
progress of such a gigantic war the
business men Of neutral countries
should keep an ear to the ground con-
stantly. This is merely business eau
ton but the scout who keeps his ear
To- the ground all the time will not
reconnoiter many positions or make
many reports. A reasonable caution
IS 10 be commended but a constant
listening for the thunder of trouble
is unnecessary.
The anticipation of trouble is al
most always more serious than the
realization. Fright over the cotton
situation caused the creation of the
cotton pool fund The pool was dis
solved because applications for loans
were SO few, demonstrating that the
pool was probably unnecessary.
Creating Credit Balance with Europe
The financial editor of one of our
leading metropolitan publications
stood before an audience some time
ago and tremblingly and fearfully out
lined the possible consequences of a
demand on the part of Europe for
immediate payment Of our entire in
debtedness TO her AS less than > per
cent of that entire Indebtedness was
due only that amount could have been
demanded and such fears were
groundless. We passed through the
period of settling our current Obli-
cations without serious consequences
and we are creating credit balance
with Europe at the rate of more than
/ a billion a year.
If the foreign trade conditions for
the remainder of this calendar year
should continue as they have started
Europe viii either pay us during the
ear or owe us at the end of the year
more than a billion dollars To offset
this, she may. if we force the prices
of American securities high enough
unload those securities on which she
has the opportunity to take a profit
Otherwise she must settle with US in
gold careful following of stock
market operations and of large private
sales of securities during the past few
months gives no indication that Eu
TOpean investors are dumping their
American holdings and it is not rea-
SOnable to suppose that they Will sell
them until prices reach a higher level.
The leading financial journal of Eu-
rope states: Instead OF being a debt
or for immediate payments, America
is rapidly becoming, if she has not
already become, a creditor for imme-
date payments
Reduce Number of Unemployed.
THE number of unemployed is be-
ing rapidly reduced but with the re-
iucton in unemployment will come
wage reductions and, unfortunately,
the workers of the country must &C
cept a reduced wage as the investors
of the country must accept a reduced
return on their investments in the
form Of dividends. on the whole, the
labor world is at peace with the en-
ploying world and the number of Sc
rious strikes is very small. Wage re-
auctions have been put into effect by
some concerns, notably in lumber,
cotton steel. paper and embroidery
lines 1t possible there may be
few wage increases but the tendon
cy for the remainder of the year VIII
naturally be toward lower wages in
those lines where wages have already
gotten beyond a point justified by
present conditions.
THE talk 10y thoJ Shtless persons of
a tremendous business boom and of
a carnival of railroad buying should
not be taken seriously. This pres
ent situation is decidedly no carnival
and is far from boom. As our wisest
men see it. we are experiencing a
steady and dependable Improvement
i'm conditions and the end of the year
should find US enjoying normal times
and reasonable prosperity