The Kadoka press and Kadoka reporter. [volume] (Kadoka, S.D.) 1910-1923, 1917-09-21
WAR COSTS SWISS
An IMMENSE sum
Loss Of Tourists Business
Means S45.OOO.OOO a Year
to Little Nation.
UPHOLDS ITS NEUTRALITY
All Belligerents Contribute to System
Of Compensation for Maintenance
County Really Struggling
for Existence.

Geneva.-War has killed the tourist
business In this country, where the en-
tertainment of foreign visitors was
the principal and most profitable ma
tional industry. Ii is estimated that
the gross receipts from tourist bust
ness in Switzerland amounted In 1913
10 over S45,0OO0O0, Of which almost
S10,WO,OOO represented the net profit
of this industry, in which the capital
invested exceeded $2OO,Oo0.O0O The
1000 hotels specially built for the ac-
cOmmodatiun of foreign visitors, con
employing about $4,000 servants, are
now mostly closed or empty. II Is
true that some of them have been used
for prisoners of war hoSpitalized in
Switzerland but the profit thus made
is only nominal.
The loss of tourist business is by no
means the only one suffered by Swift
zerland. While other neutral coun-
tries prospered owing to the war,
Switzerland, surrounded by belliger-
tlll lluAlpliN- DtllllullN vi Nllf ll'l Nll'
Austria on the east, Italy on the south
and France on the west-and com
PEELED To keep her army on Il war foot
ing to defend her neutrality and watch
her frontiers, paid the penalty of her
special geographical position. But
besides increased military expenditure
which the war rendered Indispensable,
Switzerland, despite her neutrality, ls
exclusively dependent on her neighbors
for food Without their help she Will
starve, and she needs help both from
the allies and the central empires.
Help for Switzerland.
Both groups of belligerents admitted
that the case of Switzerland was es-
sentially an exceptional one, and after
laborious negotiations they consented
to the adoption of the so-called system
of compensatlOns. This system is fur
| from perfect as besides benentlng
as well, but not to the same extent. II
| follows that the allies and the central
empires complain that their goods are
| being re-expOrted TO the enemy, anC
both are continually blaming the Swiss
government of partiality and threaten
/ ing 10 break off commercial relations
Switzerland only exports natural
products TO the central empires, prin
cipally live stock, milk, butter anC
cheese, and she gets in return coal
iron, artificial manure, sulphate OF
aluminium, benzol, zinc, straw. chem
ical dyes and potatoes. Swiss exports
to Germany and Austria are supposed
to compensate the imports from these
two countries. and in order to preven
that goods Of ally origin should be ex
ported TO enemy countries, the Societ!
Of Swiss Surveillance, generally knowr
as s. S. s., has been formed under th'
auspices of the allies 10 control Swis!
exportation to the central empires.
The allies export wheat to SwitZer
land. or rather allow II TO be exported
from neutral countries, and grant spe
cial facilities for IT'S being landed AM
discharged at Cette In France ant
conveyed to destination. Rice, corn
sugar and other foOdstuffs as well a
raw materials, are also exported b.
the allies TO Switzerland, which com
pensates them by exporting In re
turn machinery and semimanufacture'
| l.. - -. Co. hn