The Washington herald., 1921-09-06
FEARS GERMANY'S
PROSPERITY WILL
RESULT In CRASH
Ste ady Initiation Must
Have Reaction, Says
John Moody.
SAYS FRANCE SAFE
Believes Policy of Retiring
Currency Only Sound
One.
SAYS FRANCE SAFE

"Germany's paper prosperity is
leading to a crash" says John
Moody. But France is following
the path of safety in all her gov
ernmentaI finances and has turned
her face definitely away from the
imitation mania"
Mr.. Moody president of Moody's
Investors Service of New York, has
just returned from an extensive
tour of Europe, where he made an
extensive investigation Of eco
nomic and financial conditions
He visited all the European cap
itals and the important Industrial
sections, interviewing more than
100 leading bankers, hnancierS
public men and economic experts.
All Germany Busy.
The most interesting thing in
all Europe today" says Mr.. Moody
.1s the remarkable situation In
Germany. The Germans are at
work from one end of the country
to the other. They are producing
goods in enormous quantities
extremely low costs as measured
m dollars Their crops are gooo
tIhis year. and the whole population
appears to be fully employea' Vast
n nhmbers of men in the industriai
districts working twelve or Tour
tsan hours a day. But TINS Ger
nstn prosperity Is unreal; Germans
Is carrying on a program OF
fatson and speculation whlcn
leading her to a financial cra
lateF on.
cb.,.gs wall, Germany is forced to
dev,.lop intensive trading acs
amcng her own people ohlE IN
the East can she trade with otner
countries on anything IKE an eauai
basis. The marx has fallen SO lo".
the IprInting presses are reEolNInS
80 nsst as to make the marx ,i.
less valuable, that the one thousn'
Of esyery German is TO get hioie
and more marks for his goods or
labor and then exchange his marks
for A.al property with hgn'nihs
speed
s-. penation ComIsE.
The successful man in Germany
in the ume who converts his money
into property with the greatest
rapidity. This situation is forcing
the imitation of prices and wages
with Ereat rapidity. Thus the
present advantage which Germany
enioys of being able to flood the
world with cheap goods is already
becinning TO be curtalled. frlces
md wages, as measured in marks
are certain to soar higher ana
higher, and the time is not tar dls-
tant when Germany will no longer
he able to undersell other countries
in the way is now doing. Then
will come the complete collapse OF
her imitation bubble, and general
h,ousecleaning of her finances.
The French situation is also eX-
trefeIy interesting. Much loose talK
il indulged in in this country re-
.rardinE frances ability to sur
mount her financial difficulties. But
7 come back with the firm convic-
tion that the future of France Is
absolutely secure: that her credit Is
sound ind steadily improving: that
great as are her financial problems
she is strong enough to solve
them all.
France More Conservative.
France. unlike Germany. has
turned ner DdCh OH lhldNiOh'
already making progress in retirlns
her redundant currency, and TINS
progress will continue French
bankers and hnanciers appear to
have a clearer idea of what they
are doing. and how to do it, than
the financiers of any other country
that I visited. The French are con-
tinuinE to justify their long-hon-
ored reputation of being the best
bankers in the world.
To-day there is absolutely no
danger of Bolshevism spreading
outside of Russia" says Mr.. Moody.
The enormous failure of the Rus
sian experiment has proven to be
the biggest kind of an object lesson
to the people of every other coun-
try. Today 1 do not believe that
there is as much Bolshevism in Ger
many as there is in America, and
certainly there is practically none
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