The Fargo forum and daily republican., 1916-12-26

Paris, France. Dec. %. - Edmond
Thery, in a recent issue of The Matin,
compares the war expenditure of the
present day with that of former
periods. He begins by paying tribute
to NJ. Ribot, to whose wise administra-
ton, he says, Is partly due to the great
success of the second war loan. The
saying that money is the sinews or
war is more strictly true today, he
continues, than when armies could live
off the territory they had occupied.
when the soldier carried enough
cartridges for several days, when
powder and ammunition were manu-
factured just where convenient and
when the soldiers pay was provided
from the contributions levied on con-
quered towns. M. Thery shows that
the first Napoleons fifteen years OF
war only added 5S,0o0,000 to the
French debt. The war which Prus-
sia waged against Denmark in 1854
and the war against Austria (1S66),
which was it's direct outcome, did not
cost much more than $4,000, ,000, 900,
three quarters of which fell to Prus-
sia's share. She, however, won for
herself Hanover, Hessen Cassel, Mas
sau, Frankford and Schleswig Hol-
stein.
II will never be possible, he says,
losses which the Bismarckian policy,
intensified, by William III, has imposed
on the nations which have been and
still are it's victims, but one can, with
some measure of accuracy, ascertain
the expenditure which it has meant to
the great European powers during the
80 years Of peace which preceded the
war of 1914. Their military budgets
show that from 1883 to 1913 the money
expended on ornaments rose from, IN
the case of Germany, f.504,000,000 TO
f2,2S2, 900, 900; Russia from f.S39,000,-
900 to f.2,076, ,00o,O Great Britain
from f.702, 100000 to f.1,S27, ,000, 900;
Italy from f311 100000 to 1851, 600, 900,
and Austria Hungary from f.318, ,000,-
600 to f.598, 100000. Thus between 1883
and 1913 Germany, always ahead of the
other nations OF Europe, increased Its
military and naval expenses by f.1,77S,-
000.0 900 or by S51 per cent, whilst in
the case of England the increase was
of Russia, 119 per cent 1talv and only
81 per cent in that Of France.
M. Thery proceeds to show that
these figures shrink to insignificance
when compared with the present ex-
penditure. which between August,
1914. and December 1915 has amount
ed in the case Of the six great beilig-
erent powers to an approximate total
of f.297, ,0Oo, ,0OO,O 900, a sum which is ap-
portioned as follows: Germany.
Austria Hungary and allies. f.11S,000,-
100000 Great Britain and her colo
nies. f.72.000. 100000; France. f.45,O00.-
100000: Russia. f.42.000. 100000, and
Italy, f.20, 0,o00,0 100000. 1t is unques-
tionable that the allies are bearing
heavier financial burdens in this war
than the central empires. but IT has
to be remembered that their economic
and financial resources are much
greater than those OF Germany, AUS
tria- Hungary and their accompiices
Notably where capital which is con-
vertible into gold lis concerned, and Is
also capable of being used as pnr-
chase money abroad, whether as
credit or as ready money, the allied
powers maintain an unquestionable
superiority over the central empires
In proof OF this M. Thery quotes the
gold reserve figures OF the banks OF