Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-12-22
GERMANS STRIPPED
POLISH INDUSTRIES
Materials and Machinery
Taken Away During Army's
Occupation.
MONEY IN USE CCNFUSES

WARSAW, Wednesday. December
IS (by the Associated Press).-Poland
was stripped of all materials ana
machinery during the German occu-
patton, which ended November IL. on
that day a few thousand soldiers OF
the Polish legion, aided by the popp-
lation of Warsaw, disarmed more
than 10000 German soldiers VINO mao
planned a revolt against their own
officers. All food and all telephone
wires were removed by the Germans.
All industrial plants were robbed and
dismantIed, with the result that 70
land will have hard job to start III
again even if financial and politlcal
conditions were of the best, observers
say. Discussing the economic sltua-
ton in Poland. Stanislau Larlowskl'
director of the Commercial Bank or
Warsaw, said to the correspondent
today:
1T will take nearly 100000 to re-
pair the damage done curing INC
German occupation, and to put us on
our feet properly and to develop our
sre., natural resources. Our oil PROD
ucts return 100000 marks annu-
ally and we are rich in coal and sait
mines, potash, forests and agrlcul-
tural products.
Rubles, Crowns and Marks in Use.
eat the present time the economic
situation is confused because RUSSIAN
rubles, Austrian crowns and German
marks are in circulation. The marks
are a heritage of the German occu-
patton.
I'm April. 1917, the Germans issued
. 900 900 900 marks, which they called
Polish marks. The issue was made
through a special bank with the an
nouncement that after two years 70
lish marks would be redeemed by Ger
man marks. By this scheme the Ger,
man reichsbank was not compelled
to issue extra money and therefore
did not injure its own credit
"At the same time the Germans re-
fused to accept the ruble as legal
tender. The Austrians accepted the
ruble in Russia and Galicia and also
introduced the crown. Thereafter all
sorts of complications arose. with no
one knowing the precise exchange
value of any money. This bank SIM
ply has ceased to pay dividends until
we establish new money standard,
probably the franc. for the three Po-
lands.
First. we must establish a sound
government, which will have the con-
eminent must have money to run it
self, but it cannot get money with
out confidence. When such govern
ment is established we will put out
foreign loans for the purpose of buy
ing materials and starting up fac
tories. 1t is even necessary for US to
obtain loans in order to buy clothes,
also machinery and locomotives.
Everything in the country must be
rebuilt along new lines.
Looted, Then Fired Kalicz.
'The Germans transported home all
the machinery from the industrial
city of Kalicz and then set fire to
the city. This was one of their great
crimes in 1914. They did this, although
there was no battle fought there.
They drove out the people by bomb
ing the city and then robbed it me-
thodically.
1.-THE Germans also requisitioned all
the factories and machinery in LODI,
which is the Polish Manchester, with
it's vast cotton and wooden mills.
During their entire occupation they
continued to loot LodZ. Even last Sep
TENDER they carried away all the iron
plates and fioorings from the facto-
ries.
They stole our vegetables and
fruits. They took by requisition
everything they wanted.
while they did not rob our banks.
on the third day of the occupation of
Warsaw. in 1915, the director of the
Deutsche Bank of Berlin came to me
and demanded my cash balance of ru-
bles. the surrender of which. he
claimed, would regulate our debts
to his bank. The Germans did the
same thing in Rumania after the
treaty of Bucharest.
1T will take 100000. 900 to recon-
struct us industrially. without count
ing the other sums We must spend
gradually for improving the railways
and cities and rebuilding houses ruin
ed during the war"