The New York herald., 1921-11-13
Berlin Shops Still Selling
Goods on 100 Mark Basis
Instead of 300.
SHELVES GETTING EMPTY
Spells Disaster for Middle
Glass When Food Must Be
Imported.

Special Gable to THE New York HERALD.
Ccptri0ht, 1921, by THE NEW YORK HERALD.
New York Herald Bureau,
Berlin, Nov. IL.
II is like a fairy tale what the
owners of dollars can get for their
money in Germany to-day. Here is an
instance:
Last night Fritz Kreisler played
with the Philharmonic, charging. in
cidentally, double prices. because. first
he is Kreisier, and. secondly, because
ne was playing for a children's benefit.
had two seats in a first row box. Be
lore the concert used taxicab to
get to little tea room near the CON
cert hall, where / ordered an excellent
luncheon Of ham, cheese. rolls, batter
and tea. I heard the concert and went
to my home in q suburb of Berlin all
for the equivalent of Sc cents, divided
this way: Automobile 20 marks: tea
for two, with tip, A marks: concert
tickets, 80 marks; programme and
check room, 6 marks; car fare home.
marks; total. 152 marks.
That Is one side OF the story. 70
which. eventually. there Will be added
a gloomy calculation. Just now is tho
interim between the collapse of The
mark and its translation into prices.
The shops here are still selling goods
at costs reckoned when dollar was
worth between seventy and n hundred
marks. instead of three hundred as IT
is to-day.
Last month the minimum for sup
porting wife and two children In
Berlin was at the rate of a little moro
than 10000 marks year, which is to-
day about SO.
Even for the foreigner the dollars
fairy tale will be of only brief dura-
ton, for the shelves are already empty
in most of the shops and new stocks
are costing considerably more than the
cid. Eventually, when Germany has to
import more food as she will have to
do late next spring, and has to buy
raw material, the process will 20 back
again to the general level OF last
month. Then what is now a fairy tale
for the foreigner here will be grim dis
aster for the German middle classes
and only slightly better for German
labor.
Many salaries in Germany are now
only four or six times greater than the
peace level. while wages paid to labor
ers are about fifteen times higher than
before the war. On the other hand,
gold is seventy times higher.
In this fact lies the certainty that
Germany will witness tremendous con-
flict between capital and labor over
wages this winter or next spring.
The Government. which derives p
greater part of the tax revenues from
German production. also VIII be hard
hit, because 1t will be unable to collect
an amount commensurate with it's needs
owing to the decline In values.
Women brokers in the Stock Exchange
will be a new feature in democratic Ger
many II measure legalizing their em-
ployment I'm this capacity passes the
Reichstag. The bin has already passed
tho Relchsrat.
The Government Is looking for the
owner of S6,00o.00 worth of gold bars
hidden under coal in locomotive being
shipped across the frontier into Den
mark. The gold becomes Government
property by confiscation and viii be
paid out IN reparations unless the owner
of II proves II was only inadvertently
laid In the coal aboard the locomotive.