Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-04-13
vienna N P|T|ABLE
PLIGHT SINCE THE WAR
Once Fastest City Of the World
Entering Upon an Era of De-
cay; Seems Doomed.

Vienna, April 5.--The former capita
and imperial city of the once Austro-
Hungarian monarchy comprises do
main of 81 900 hectares, of which 2,7OO
hectares are laid out in public garde ms
and parks. "a hectare equals 10000
square metres or 247 acres. So each
of Viennas 100000 people enjoys a
generous open space). Besides, circle
of woods, a wonderful forest of beech
trees, which comprises $500 hectares
forms part Of the citys area. Because,
of the great shortage Of coal and the ex-
orbitant price of wood this winter
which fortunately happened to be mild
the poorer classes of the population
were forced to cut down a great part
of the fine beech trees for fuel.
Ii is as difficult to leave Vienna now
adays as to get out of a besieged city
The shortage of food here, the closing
of many factories and offices which had'
become supernuous in the former I'M
perial city, as we'll as the scant oppor-
tunity to earn livelihood, have made
many people in Vienna anxious to emil
crate But this tendency is opposed by
the people living in other Austrian ci ties
and towns and indeed in the rural dis
tricts. They have enough TO do to find
food and keep n roof over their heads,
for dwellings are scarce everywhere.
Once the gates of Vienna are opened
her population will diminish. Then the
problem of paying taxes will confront
those who are left. 1t will be beyond
their financial ability to pay taxes enough
to maintain the citys public buildings,
/ the monuments of art, the educational
and public institutions, the fine streets,
| beautiful parks-in n word, all that had
! made Iinena one of the handsomest
and most convenient cities in Europe.
| To give an idea of what 1t costs TO run
this city, one may quote the city budget
/ for the year before the war:
| The city administration cost 10000,
| 600 crowns Ia crown, normally, Is worth
! 20.26 centsl; the police guard, 100000
| crowns; the fire guard, 100000 keep
/ ing the streets, 10, ,000,0 900, charitable IN
| stitutions, 20,000000; common schools,
/ 10000 900 Besides 495 common schools
/ there are in Vienna a university, poly
| teehnic academy and 10 other higher pro-
| fessional Schools 40 middle schools for
| boys and l6 for girls, 10 training col
/ leges for teachers, IL industrial schools.
| 10 commercial schools and 10 schools of
| art. There were 2,200 teachers in the
/ common schools and the pupils num-
| bered 10000. Every good Nlennese will
mourn If such an admirable educational
system should deteriorate But, as has
4 been said, unless conditions improve
/ soon il will be impossible to raise enough
/ money in taxes to maintain the city IN
ANYTHING like its former state.
/ Before the War Vienna was one of
/ the livelist as well as healthiest of cities
/ for it enjoys a good climate. Foreigners
/ knew this well, for 1900 of them came
1 here each year. lt was easy to get around
! the city; there were 229 kilometers
/ tahout 2S5s miles, OF street railways;
1 they carried 300.000,000 passengers a
/ year One could live here cheaply, If he
! pleased; beef cost 2 crowns kilo (2.2,
/ pounds. Beef costs now 100 crowns n
/ kilo, and -four has more than tripled in
price.
But even then people complained of
the reaction of international politics on
the common economic life. Although
| the iron industry was undergoing sane
and quiet development, and the engine
/ and electric industries were IN a salts
/ factory state, there were To be noticed
unfavorahle conditions for production
/ and sharp competition by foreign coun-
/ troes. The increase in price Of raw ma
| terIals began 10 press heavily, especially
| on the leather and linen industries. The
| commercial balance was passive because
of the increasing lack of raw materials
/ The import of agricultural products was
/ SOC, 600, 900 crowns; the export, 600,-
/ 600: products of the mine and forge,
import, 900, 100000 crowns; export, 49,
1000; other industries, import l200-
100000 crowns; export, I,500, 900 600,
showing a good favorable balance.
And these industries would form a
fine basis for Vienna's economic life
were ii not for the lack of raw materials
and coal. OF these il is impossible to
buy sufficient supplies because of the
greatly deteriorated value of the crown.
Added TO this is the eever-increasing scarcity
of food, which cannot be obtained in
sufficient quantities either in the prov
inces which were lost to Austria by the
war or in those which still belong TO her
The provinces which have been de
tached show a tendency to completely
for sake Austria, to forget Vienna. If
Austria, if Vienna is to be saved and
redeemed it must be by international
help.