The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1920-02-04
REFUSING TO TRANSMIT NAMES
OF GERMANS ACCUSED BYALLZES
UON LERSNER GOES TO BERLIN
THE FINANCIAL SITUATION.
United States Economic Affairs Bound
Up With Europe.

Up With Europe.
Or imports from Europe alone III
the II months ending with November
last amounted to $360000,000; they
came chiefly from Great Britain,
France and Italy and were classified
mainly as luxuries. The whole year
1919 saw our imports from Europe
easily doubled over those of the pre-
ceding year, but the increase was not
large enough to have an appreciable
effect upon the excess trade balance or
to check the fall in exchange, which IS
now a phenomenon causing something
like hysteria in some English newspa-
pers.
Official figures now being available,
this is what happened last year IN our
foreign commerce: Domestic merchan-
disc exports reached the unprecedented
valuation of 1922 100000, while the
imports. with December providing
1881 900 900, set a new precedent at
So. .g04. 600. 600 for the u months peri
cd. The 1919 excess of exports over
Imports rs more than $4,000. .0O0, 900,
which is not only s900o00,0o0 greater
than that of l0ls, but is by far the
largest on record.
With such "a trade balance against
them, Europeans cannot be expected
10 see the continued slide downward OF
leArhange rates without developing a
nervous dread of the consequences. III
their imports from America continue IN
1920 on any such scale as in 1919, the
fall in exchange must make their posi-
ton a wear from now worse than ever,
assuming that their exports do not
very substantially increase. II TINS
process is "bleeding Europe white" as
la London paper expresses 1t, whose
fault is it Distributing the blame Tor
such situation Is hopeless job, II
there is blame to be distributed, The
lcurrent American view, fight or wrong,
is that United States government cred
it's to European governments are no
longer expedient and that even private
credits need to be safeguarded almost
as a banker would safeguard his loans
to a customer headed toward insoi-
vency.
Whatever the effect upon our export
trade may be, Europe's only way out
lis thrift and production, rs has often
lbeeu stated, and endless borrowing or
the everlasting accumulation of foreign
lcredits. necessary as they are to a GER
tain extent, do not make people live
within their means and pay their
debts. Actually the extreme fall in
exchange may prove TO be the only
thing that will force Europe TO limit
imports to the most necessary raw ma.
lteriaI. stop paper currency imitation and
90 TO work with the purpose of in
creasing real weaNh and exporting
goods that win reduce their obliga
tions abroad. How much lower ex-
change will have to 90 70 produce this
effect is still to be determined. In tAe
meantime. America cannot escape ITS
share of the consequences of whatever
of a disastrous nature happens TO Eu-
rome. for the economic interests OF the
two continents are closely knit, In our
interest, it viii be necessary to render
all possible help of legitimate char
acter.
Prices of commodities continue TO
rise. Iron and steel men are even won
dering if they will not have a rum
away market this spring, for steel
tends to become scarcer if anything
The everyday needs OF the regular con
suming industries have proved much
larger than expected. As TO railroad
buying. there is some that cannot wei
be postponed and that viii probably
occur in any event, coal and coke are
higher and the anticipated raise IN
freight rates after private manage
~ ~ on
, steel prices. The only force now at
work to keep down price levels is the
banking control of money and discount
: rates. and the indications are that an
other increase in the federal reserve
rediscount rates will be necessary. The
faction of the United States Steel cor
poratio in raising wages no per cent
shows that the influences making fol
high price levels are still uppermost
Curiously, just year ago American
business was under sharp restraint be
cause of the widespread feeling that
prices and wages were about TO fai
and no one wanted TO do more bust
ness than he was obliged TO on falling
market. To-day the opposite feeling
seems prevalent-that the high price
leNet VIII ldSl loI ctNSidt ftdlH- Al tiA'
> remembers five or six years back TO th'
outbreak of the war, he must be i'm
= pressed with the interesting fact thai
whenever a general feeling or opinion
about the business and financial future
became widely and strongly held, 4
soon proved to be wrong
In the stock market last week. there
was q sharp advance IN some indus
trial specialties in spite of high none,
rates. but the general market was de
cidedly irregular, with business mostl,
for professional account. Cau none,
advanced TO 20 per cent, the highes
rate thus far this year. According L
rumors heard in Wall street, the gov
ernment is now in the market buyin,
Liberty and Victory bonds for sinking
2 fund purposes. At last weeks low
prices the income return on govern
e ment bonds ran as high as 5A pc
e cent. Opinion Is divided as to the fu
ture course Of Liberty bond prices. Tn
= governments purchases viii help SOM
; to sustain the market. r Springfield
Republican.