The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-08-22
Europe Occupied Center
 of World Stage During he
 Past Week Of Much Unrest
Great Britain Now So Loaded Up With Trouble and Turmoil That Lloyd George Asks for Triple Asii-
 ance, Consisting of America England and Japan

a more eleaeborate exposition of this view l take the liberty of referring to an article entitled, Can We Be. Prosperous Without the Aid of Eu- roper" written by me and publish ed in the American Magazine for Sep tember now on sale
 Briefly, there is some improvement in the demand for iron, steel and copper, Coal is also being more freely bought though the winters re- quirements are still very poorly pro. vided for.
 Cotton in Bad shape
 Continued impairment in the con dltion of the cotton crop is reported and the market would have beer higher if conditionA abroad had been less dlscouraging. The textile mar kets are steady and the turnover good. Railway revenues and traffic continue to pick up but railway se- curities are still sluggish in the stock market as result of congress sional hesitation in authorizing the war finance corporation to advance the 5000, .000 that the President and Eugene Meyer are anxious the roads should have because they be- heve 1t would stabilize financial com ditions. start the wheels of industry moving, and bring about the re-em- Iloy HltHl Oi LHG uHelnDlOg gu.
 The unemployment Is, however, probably exaggerated. Based on re- turns from industrial establishments and other organized employers of la bor the department of labor estimates that 5,7S5,000 persons were out of work in July, but these figures take no account of the fact that many who were formerly employed in fac. tories and cities are now at worl; upon the farms.
 Although the railroad men defend it, the interstate commerce commis sion has not enhanced its popularity by refusing to allow MT. Ford to re- duce rates on his railroad because the "rAte structure" would thereby be disturbed. People think it strange that it is easy to get rates up and so hard to get them down.
 Demand for Lower Rates Meantime demand for lower freight and passenger rates is being heard from all over the country. It Is daily becoming louder and unless the railroads and the commission heed it the President and Congress may be forced to act as election day comes nearer. Hope deferred maketh the heart sick and while small favors are thankfully received the reduction in taxes promised in the bill now be- fore the House has not been greeted with great hilarity. The public mind has been somewhat indurated by un- fulfilled promises of financial relief and most taxpayers are now like the man from Missouri. For them seeing is believing.
 The most definitely stimulating news of the week is to be found in the statement of the federal reserve The ,I vancd from 65 to G5.S per cent and the supply of gold shows further gain of S24,300,000. It now stands at s2,600 100000 as against $1,966,- 000.o00 year ago. This increase Of s6S4,o00, 900 is about one and one -hali times the worlds gold production in the same period.
 Unless those who frame and control the policy of the federal re.erve banks are determined to deny the American people the reduction in the cost of credit to which this abundant gold supply entities them we shall have much easier money market soon !, with the increase of business activity | that always follow when enterprise can obtain the capital upon which development depends.
 l That the well informed are confi- dent that decline in interest rates | Is not far off is shown by the grad ual advance in liberty bonds, the hardening market for other interest bearing obligations and the ease with which new issues can be floated. An advancing bond market has always ] been the precursor of a broader ac- tivity in business and there is every reason to believe that this rule holds 1 goodA
 l That the well informed are confi- | dent that decline in interest rates is not far off is shown by the grad ual advance in liberty bonds, the hardening market for other interest | bearing obligations and the ease with which new issues can be floated. An advancing bond market has always been the precursor of broader &C., tivity in business and there is every reason to believe that this rule holds ! good.
 | With lower interest rates. cheaper railway rates and some real reduc- tion in the tax burden a return of genuine prosperity would not be long delayed.