The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-10-06
HALF DOZEN GERMANS.
WRECK BR|T|SHM|NES
TO CRIPPLE NAVY
BY HORATIO BOTTOMIEY. NJ. p.
Editor Of John Bull" which has
more than 2.5OD 900 circulation,
one OF tho most powerful organs
i'm Great Rrttofu


London. Oct. 4.---Economics are a
dull thing, and the ordinary plain
man Is bewildered at the learned dis
questions on the International value
OF money. But the meaning begins to
come home when he is told that the
English pound is today worth only
seventeen shilliugs and a few pence in
America, whilst before the war IT
could be exchanged for more than Its
face value in dollars; for he has also
heard that whereas before the war
You could get only twenty German
marks (the equivalent of our shilling)
in return for the English pound. you
can today obtain about one hundred.
The meaning Of these figures is SIM
plicity itself Money, even gold. hos
no real Intrinsic value--it is merely
what the economists call "a medium
of exchange
The bulk of the worlds money
really consists neither of gold nor Of
silver nor OF copper--but of paper;
which Is simply the 1. 0. u of the
country which issues IL. Consequent
ly the value of such paper depends
| first. and to limited extent only, up
| on the amount OF gold and silver be-
hind it; and. secondly, and mainly
upon the credit and solvency of the
respective states.
rubbish T,riccso For Marks.
Thus Germany being broken and
bankrupt, nobody will take her paper
money except at rubbish prices:
whilst Britain--being no longer the
center OF commerce and finance, her
coal output diminishing and her ex-
ports decreasing. and being conse-
quentiy more dependent than pre-
vious upon supplies from other coun-
tvsa I1s- xtr
her paper currency at discount
The balance OF trade is against her.
and therefore there Is more of her
money IN foreign circulation than
| is wanted, hence, in America, She is
told that she can have only II shil-
lings' worth of dollars or goods for
| her pound.
Full Production Speed.
There is one remedy only--and that
| Is that we must get our mines and
factories working at full speed, so
that we may be supplying America
and other countries with coal and
| manufactured articles In exchange for
| food. cotton, wool and other things
we are compelled to purchase from
| them. And then we should find that
| the balance either way was SO small
that we may be supplying America
and other countries with coal and
manufactured articles in exchange for
food. cotton, wool and other things
we are compelled to purchase from
them. And then we should find that
| the balance either way was so small
that the British sovereign would
again be at its face value.
Britain bankrupt Never!
As Ii Is. we are making headlong
for disaster. And here l would say
a word to our workingmen friends.
1t is they who will be the first to
suffer. Once let the dry rot set in
with British credit and our mills and
factories are doomed. Shake conf
dence in the security OF British CAPT
tai, hamper individual enterprise, set
up one dead level OF state control
and you will be marching through
the streets with mo work to do"
Politicians Initiate Ostrich.
The sad part of the whole thing is
our politicians are burying their
heads in the sand--keeping their
future trade policy locked up In a
| mysterious box which they are APP
parenuy afraid TO open, The other
| day in the house OF commons Lloyd
| George did no more than insert the
| key in the lock~--fearing to lift the
/ lid But now the president of the
!. board Of trade is telling us of the
| wonderful things the box contains
| Well, let's open it---when. IL my fears
/ are justified and We find nothing but
+ copybook naxims and textbook tlati-
| tudes. we will throw the wretched
thing away and call together a dozen
men of business experience IT, coun~
| teract the American hustlers who are
I suprianting US in, all the markets of
The world. and even look like oaptur+
| ing our own markets at home.
| But. while I see the dangers and
| realize how wrong 1t would be to
! minimize the perils which confront
i us certain recent events have given
| my incurabfe optimism. I never yet
despaired of the PATRIOTISM snd COM
mon sense OF the workingman.
/ Patriotic Workers.
| Could there be more hopeful sign
! than the decision of the workers in
the shipbuildirg and engineering
trades to wage their immediate de-
mands for further reduction in hours,
or the courageous advice OF Mr.
Brace. NJ. p, that the miners should
return to the cldtime practise Of
piece work?
II we are speedily to recapture our
| trade and commerce, we want more
ships and more machinery. Those
who toll in these Industries had bal
| loted In favor of forty-four hour
week. Then occurred a display of
sweet reasonableaess wholly credit
able to the men. The masters pointed
10 the serious effect on output under
the present fortv-seven hour week
and to the disastrous results which
would probably accrue from further
| reduction.
Did the men rave and threaten a
ct IL xx,ft al to 10
They came 70 a sound and business
like decision--tc Join in conference
to investigate the relation of hours
| and production. What could be more
common sense than such a decision
Mr.. Brace Is the finest type OF par
| liamentary labor leader; he has been
a minister OF the crown---under-sec-