The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1918-03-06

nent attributed to Count Won Posa-
lowsky Wehner, former German vice
in cable dispatches that the
}erman debt was now about l24 ,000,-
100000 marks somewhat more than
,300OO,000 at the normal rate of ex-
.hange) aroused considerable surprise
among financial experts who recalled
the statement made in January, 1917,
by Oscar King Davis, special cores
pendent of the New York Times, by
quoting Rudolph Havcrstein, president
Of the reichstag, to the effect that Ger
many could not stand debt of more
than 100000 100000. Herr Haverstein
followed this statement with a prompt
But Germany will never reach that
point"
Germany s debt before the war began
was about 5,000000,000 marks, and
some German fnanciers looked upon
this with certain amount of appre-
hension as inconvcniently large. At the
time Mr.. Davis wrote the funded war
loans had reached 1900 ,000. 900 marks.
and he estimated that various floating
debts, the existence of which the Ger
man authorities had tried to conceal
without q great deal of success, would
reach some 25,0O0,0OO more. Bat since
then there have been heavy credits
The first seven German war loans GOV
cred 75,000000,00O marks, and on Nov
80 Chancellor Won Hertling asked the
reichstag for $4,000, 100000 more.
But the sum was already 10000, 900,
600 marks short of the credits voted
and at about that time Dr. Paul Mich
aclis, writing in the Berliner Tage
blatt, said that with the 100000,
600 marks recently voted by the reich
stag the German war debt has reached
the immense sum OF 100000, 200, 600.
This apparently did not include tbs
100000, 900 Of obligations piled up il
time of peace. So At the present tim,
a debt Of 1000, 100000 marks is by
no means surprising.
In addition to these obligations tn,
municipalities Of the empire have in
cured heavy expenditures, largely 70
relief of families OF soldiers, and tn
various states have also gone deepl,
into debt. DIR. Michaelis, in the artiel
mentioned, says:
owe may assume that if we max
| only one more loan, III the most favor
able case we shall have after the wal
with some of the debts paid back,
national debt of s0000.00 .000 mark
ut > per cent In addition, we mus
| take into account the sums which W
shall laXe 10 spend in reeonstructin
all destroyed property, in providing f.
those affected by the war, in procurin
+. the necessary supplies, in purchasin
the war materials in which we are lael
ing, and in rebuilding our industrie
Il may safely be said that tae figure
too low when we estimate that ii
country = debt at the close Of the We
will amount to 100000, zoe, 900
Aside from the extent OF furtht
German borrowings, which obviousl
cannot be predicted, the question of Il
possibility of German finances holdiu
together is bound up in the problem
Of meeting the interest during the wa
, of providing for some disposition {
q the principal. and of harmonizinz
nancial difficulties with popular fee
: ing.
Five per cent is fair average inte
est for the German dcht.-so taken |
DR. Michaelis in the article rcferrt
20, and by the financial authorities 60
suited by Dr.. Davis. This would NAL
j the annual interest on a debt such
Count von Posadowsky-W ehner me
tions more than 100000, 600 marks
about $500, 100000
The annual increase of Germany
I IL ~ ;,,,o
/, at 10000 100000 marks by DR.. Ia
0 Hclfferich, former imperial minister
: finance and vice chancellor, and
( 600 100000 by the more conservati
e Haverstein. But since the war, wi
: The destruction of foreign CONNER
i and the almost total cessation of nc
- war industries, i has shrurl, enormol
: ~. More than year ago Herr Have
stein estimated II ut 5000 000,0
d marks. in conversation with Mr.. Dav
t. but presently admitted that this figr
!. included munitions and war suppl
2. Since manufactures of nonmilita
: goods had reached a negligible poi
J il Is permissible to assume that mu
tions and war supplies therefore rt
&c resented almost all of the increase
<. wealth. In other words, Germany
. wealth hardly increases at all.
s So interest must be met from capi
already on hand. Germany has levi
5: heavy taxes, to be sure, and ch
Y. 2moug these the sapcrtax on war pr
n, its, of which German financial writ
l., are very proud. ''On the whole - 81
H. Or. Michaelis in the article quot
= 'our war taxes have done their tas
n. they have even done more than '
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