The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1917-02-19
World d of Finance finance

country are being rapidly absorbed by increased expenses and the huge demands of new loans. War IS now costing the various be1ligerents over 0,000,0O0 per day, nearly all or
 which is pure wastage except expen- ditures for food and clothing, which would have to be bought and paid for under any circumstances. Since August 1, 1914, the cost Of the war
 must have been approximately $10,- 900, ,O0O, ,0O0. The approaching spring
 drive will increase expenditures, and if we join in the melee the figures will be additionally swollen. Rumor already intimates that a war loan of
 $500 ooo. 900 three per cent. bonds is contemplated in this country for our own purposes. There is no doubt whatever that it will be promptly taken Should we enter war, and if it continues longer than anticipated, other similar amounts will follow. With such demands and the conse- quent imitation accompanying war, 1t is not surprising that time money
 should show a hardening tendency. Great Britain. however, is likely to do her utmost to keep down rates in this market for the purpose of facili-
 tating her transactions in foreign ex-
 change. Gold is again coming in lib- eral sums from Ottawa.
 Unsettling as the general situation
 may be there is one fact to be borne
 in mind, and that is we can face war
 with perfect equanimity. Our con-
 science will be clear, for we have
 tried to avoid war almost to the point
 of humiliation. In this hour of crisis
 let us not forget that. there is sil-
 yer lining to. every cloud. We are
 seeing today an exhibition of patriO-
 tism- that has not been equaled since
 the Civil War. It is we'll to remember
 one thing, that is, that our, country can take care of itself, come what
 will, better than any other nation on earth in time of peace or in time of war. Thanks be to Almighty God
 for giving us a superabundance of everything for self-support, even though we were walled in. The en- tire nation views the situation with composure, confident in the wisdom and strength of our government, as well as in the resources and patrio- tism of the American people. Our
 banking system is in unusually good position, and soft spots such as might be expected after recent experiences are remarkably few. Moreover. there
 has been a greater degree of prepar- edness for this contingency than gen. orally supposed, and our bankers, can-'
 not be taken by surprise The same is true of our industrial plants. Many of these are upon or nearly upon a
 war basis, and not a few could take
 on big war orders at, once without fur- ther preparations. The shock of war will. therefore, be relatively light if it comes-and easily borne; a fact that has already been partly discount ed As for military preparations, these, too, have been perfected more
 thoroughly than usually realized the government having wisely kept such
 movements as quiet as possible. There
 is no reason why this country should
 not do as other countries have done; take this crisis calmly and suppress all unnecessary excitement. Foreign they conduct themselves quietly. our, government having already assured them that neither their persons nor their property will be put under con- straint so long as proper conduct is complied with. The German element in our population has long been con- sidered a desirable one, and the Am erican people have no animosity
 against the Germans as such; their hostility being confined entirely to it's governments policy of submarine ruthless" warfare, in violation of our existing treaties.