The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1916-01-29
OVER ssOo.Ooo,ooo WORTH OF
GOODS SOLD FRANCE ANNUALLY
lRY Associated Press !

American are selling us immense
quantities of supplies-some good,
some inferior-at high war prices,
but you do it honestly; you tell us
what you're going to deliver" said
Monsieur l.. Almond. head of the
Senate Finance Committee, reviewing
the present condition of exchange for
The Associated Press.
I'VE are buying perhaps more than
S600,000000 worth of goods a year
from you now, while, aside from silks
and satins. we are selling you little
of nothing" he added. "That tremen-
dous balance of trade, with the war
still going on, explains why the
$3.50, 100000 you loaned us was in
sufficient to equalize exchange.
"rhe balance Of trade was always
in your favor, but you, yourselves,
maintained the parity of the franc by
spending your dollars in travel
tIioNBH
"A billion francs--two hundred mil
lion dollars-is what we are losing
annually since Americans are spend
ing at home the money! they former
ly spent here, making difference
against us of something like four bill
lion francs, which, of course, bill
lion and quarter loan canot offset
Exchange between London and
New York is easier because English
investors hold American securities to
a far greater amount than we. The
payments of interest and dividends
on those investments relieves the sit
America the fifteen billion francs she
has loaned Russia, the interest pay
ments would go far to equalize ex-
change.
Exchange between Berlin and
New York suffers from different
causes. The franc is at discount in
New York because the money is
continually going that way Germany
has no big payments to make; she
is unable to assure transatlantic
transportation and can buy in only
limited quantities of her adjoining
neutral neigbors. She produces her
own steel. coal and chemical products,
while we must buy them in America.
With us the depreciation may be con-
sidered a material and accidental
After the war or as
soon as we have bought all the steel
and other war supplies we need
from you, the franc will go back to
par.
"The war is now costing us two
and half billion francs (S5000O0, ,OOO)
a month. of which one billion 500
million francs are spent in France"
said Monsieur Almond, leading up to
the question of Frances financial re-
quirements.
"At that rate we shall have to is
sue another loan in the near future,
The six and half billion francs in
cash produced by the loan issued in
December will be spent by the month
Of April. BY that time nearly five
billion francs of the money distribut-
ed throughout the country will be
available for another loan that will
be foated under far more favorable
The Saloniki situation,
which was acute at the time of our
i've per cent loan, unquestionably
frightened big capital. This is well
known in financial circles and is
borne out by many facts connected
with the loan. For instance, the
number Of subscribers was greater
n proportion to the total amount |
than of any government |
oan issued in France.
Three and half million subscribers |
.oOk fourteen and a half billion in
bonds, or an average of about 1000
rancs each. The average of former
oans was from 10000 to 10000
francs each. This proves that it
was largely the small capitalist, tn