The Washington times., 1917-10-21

Time In Sh
that the manufacturers would do this.
provided that II were only question
as to how much of their profits they
would be allowed to keep. But IL the
government had attempted, he said.
to fix prices so low that there would
have been q doubt as to whether the
manufacturer could make a profit OK
not, the production of articles re-
Quired for war would never have
reached the high mark that 1t had In
Germany.
Tax on War Profits
As a matter of fact, about the only
tax imposed in Germany since the
outbreak OF the war has been the
tax upon cost or war profits. It
has been the policy of Germany TO
pay for the war by great loans raised
by popular subscription, after au-
thorization by the Reichstag. I cal
culate that the amounts thus raised,
together with the floating Indebted
! ness, amount to date to about eighty
! Billions of marks.
For a long time the Germans ex-
pected that the expenses of the war
would be paid from the indemnities
TO be recovered by GermAny from
/ the nations at war with r.
Helffrich shadowed this forth in
| his speech In the Reiehstag on Au'
gust 20, 1915, when he said:
II we wish to have the power
to settle the terms of peace ac-
cording to our interests and our
requirements, then we must not
forget the question OF cost. We
must have in view that the whole
IL
far as this ts at all possible,
shall be free from burdens. The
leaden weight Of billions has
been earned by the instigators OF
this war, and they, in the future,
rather than we, drag 1t about
after them.
OF course, by "instigators OF the
war" Helfferich meant the opponents
of Germany, but 1 think that uncon-
sciously he was q true prophet, and
that the '1eaden weight Of the bill
| lions" which this war has cost Ger
many will be dragged about after
the war by Germany, the real instiga-
tor OF this world calamity.
Voiced Comfortable Plea
In December. 1915. Helfrerich voiced
The comfortable plea that, because the
Germans were spending in Germany
the money raised by the war loans. the
weight OF these loans was not a real
weight upon the German people. He
said: I'VE are paying almost exclusive
Iy to ourselves the money, while the
enemy are paying abroad their loans
a guarantee that in TIE future we shall
maintain the advantage"
This belief OF the Germans and Helf.
ferich is one Of the notable fallacies OF
the war The German war loans have
been subscribed mainly by the great
companies OF Germany. by the savings
banks, the life and fire insurance and
accident insurance companies. and SO
on.
Furthermore, these loans have been
pyramided that Is TO say, a man who
subscribed and paid for one hundred
thousand marks OF Loan No. l could
when Loan No. 2 was called for. take
the bonds he had bought Of Loan No
/ to his bank. and. on his agreement to
spend the proceeds In subscribing to
Loan No. ?, borrow from the bank
eighty thousand marks on the security
Of his hrst loan bonds, and so on.
There is an annual increment. not
easily ascertainabls with exActness. but
approximately aScertainable, to the
wealth OF every country In the world
| Just as, when a man is working a farm
there is in normal years an increment
or accretion of wealth or income to him
above the cost OF production OF the
products Of the soil which he sells, there
is such an annual increment to the
wealth Of each country taken as a whole
Some experts have told me they calcu
lated that, at the outside. In prosperous
peace times the annual increment OF
German wealth Is ten billion marks.
Prospective Moral Bankruptcy
Now when we have the annual interes,
to be paid by Germany exceeding the
annual increment OF the country. the
social and even moral bankruptcy OF
the country must ensue. II repudiation
of the loan or any part OF It is then
forced, the loss naturally falls upon
those who have taken the loan. The
TorkinKman or small capitalist who putt
all his savings in the war loan Is with
out support for his old age. and so with
the man who took insurance IN the In
surance companies or put his savings in
a bank becomes bankrupt through repu
dIation OF the war loan You then have
the country in a position where the able.
bodied are all working TO pay what they
can toward the interest OF the govern
ment loan. after earning enough TO keep
themselves and their families alive. and
the old and the young. without support
and deprived Of their savings. become
poorhouse burdens on the community.
Already the mere Interest OF the war