The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1919-12-12
FINANCE IS FANTASTIC
How, Switzerland Finds
Herself At Present
OASIS IN MONEYDESERT
Clearing House Where Peoples
OF Other Countries Can Get
Their Balance
HENRY WOOD.

sy-turvy the worlds basis of values,
especially in the matter of foreign ex-
change. Switzerland has become the
seat of the most fantastic finance the
world has yet seen.
BY not paving participated in the
war, Switzerland's financial, indus
trial and economic condition at the
present time IS one to be envied-no
matter how the Swiss themselves may
deplore 1t. Especially rs the result of
not having contracted any war debts
or expenditures and Of not having
made any unlimited issues OF paper
currency with which 10 tide over the
war period, Swiss currency has re-
NAMED almost unaffected by the cri.
SIS of foreign exchange and the CO.
probation OF currencies from which
all the belligerents are now severely
suffering.
Five francs OF Swiss money today
are worth just about 81 the same as
they were before the war, where from
eight to ten or twenty francs of other
countries are necessary 10 purchase
a single greenback OF the minimum
denomination.
As a consequence Switzerland, the
only country in Central Europe which
retains something of it's normal fl
nancial standing, has become a sort OF
an oasis in a desert of financial dis
aster 1t is a sort of clearing house,
or solid financial rock where the be-
wildered people of other countries
can come for the time being and get
their financial balance readjusted and
their sense of values reestablisbed
before embarl:ing on new financial
enterprises.
The resulting operations are often
wierd and fantastic to the extreme
degree, resembling something in un
expectedness the high finance adj
ventures of America and yet always
with different note. These finan-
cial Odessys happen by the score in
Switzerland daily. Here are. q few
that will give some idea OF what they
are like and some idea of central
Europe's shipwreck.
Recently Czecho- Slovak deputy
had occasion to come down 10 Swift
erland for a few weeks 10 take care
of a number OF important affairs con
corning that ambitious but financeless
republic. To meet his expenses on
the trip he brought with him 30,0GG
Czecho- Slovak crowns, the nominal
value of which is about the same as a
Swiss franc.
Money Is Deprecated.
However, with the money OF his
own country exceedingly deprecated
by the war and the lack of any solid
standing TO date of the new republic,
the deputy was obliged to change his
1000 native crowns into-Unly 10000
Swiss francs.
The deputy stayed at Berene for
about two months stopping, as his
position rendered necessary, at the
principal hotel in the city. the prices
at which have not been decreased by
the war, and paying his expenses out
of his 10000 Swiss francs.
Eventually, however, his business
was completed and he was ready to
return to Prague. He paid off what
he still owed in Berne out of the orig
inal 10000 Swiss francs and then
what was still left he had changed
back into Czecho- Slovak crowns.
But in the two months which he
had been at Berne. Czecho- Aovak
currency had gone down further with
the result that when he got what was
left of his original 10000 Swiss francs
changed back into his native cur
rency, he received total of $4,000
Czecho- Slovak crowns or $4,000 more
than the original 10000.
Here is another-and which is
matter of official record
Several months ago a company was
organized at Berne for launching a
big illustrated political weekly mag
azine at Vienna. Swiss capitalists
who had made fortune out OF the
war and Switzerland's neutrality
backed the enterprise and paid no the
capital in advance-namcly G09,cOo
Swiss francs.
|. The total amount was deposited IN
a Bernie bank to be changed into Aus
trian crowns for meeting the expenses
of the new magazine at Vienna as
soon as the latter could be launcned.
Shortage of Paper.
In the meantime the prospective
editors. publishers and business man
ayers began meeting with consider
/ able 0lU1cutly III SSttlnS tAso AAi"NN
cry together for the plant, in making
sure of an adequate supply OF paper
etc.
Foreign exchange on Austrian mon
CIV has since decreased TO such an ex
tent that the 100000 Swiss francs now
on deposit in the Berne bank will
bring 10000 more Austrian crowns
than al the moment they were PAID
in for launching the magazine.
This Is believed to be the only case
on record where a magazine or news
paper has made money by not pub
iishins-or in any event has made
more money than il could possibly
have hoped to make by actually doing
business. And the longer 1t keeps
from starting up. the more money IL
makes-in Austrian crowns.
The only way to avoid this fantas-
tic finance now going on in Switzer-
land is to do business by direct par
ter and without the interchange Oh
money. As a matter of fact this also
! is being developed by the force OF
circumstances to an astounding de-
gree. Here is perhaps the most re-
markable recent example:
Official of German Navy. Is
A former high official in the. Ger
man navy has just completed the Dip
lomatic negotiations necessary with