The Washington herald., 1921-06-23
GERMANY READY TO
UNDERSELL WORLD,
DECLARES DU BOIS
Western Electric Head
Makes Revelation Upon
Return.
INDUSTRIALLY FIT
Reviews European Economic
Conditions as Nations
Face Problems.

Electric Company, yesterday. Mr..
Du Bois has just returned from six
weeks of intensive data-gathering
in Europe He visited France,
Switzerland. Austria. Hungary, Ger
many. Belgium and England
-IndustrialIy, Germany seems to
be as efficient as ever. With wages
low as measured in the currency OF
other countries, with highly COM
petent workers eager to produce
and with the reparation question in
a more settled state, Germany Is in
= position to go ahead in building
up her industries to handle export
business. At present she can turn
cut many lines of manufactured
articles to sell profitably for less
money than any other country.
las nearly as I can calculate il,
the cost of German labor in the metal
working trades, measured in dol
lars, which is the correct way to
measure il when it enters into COM
petition with the United States for
foreign trade. is about one-sixth of
the cost ct equivalent labor here.
while in all probability this will
lead to protective measures on the
part Of competing countries, such
as taxes on German exports and
other measures for the encourage
ment of home industries. yet wages
in such countries are now decreas-
ing and this tendency is likely to
continue if they effectively meet
German competition in foreign trade.
The Other Side.
Locking at the other side of the
nj
unrest, but a grave question arising
as to whether the working popula
tion can or will continue to accept
its present low standard of living.
The danger in Germany. therefore.
is of a social overturn. more than
anything else. Politically, the
various Socialist parties seem to be
in the majority, but the Anti
Socialists are in control of the gov
ernment; largely because the Social
lists do not care to assume control
at a time when they cannot hope to
make coed all their promises"
Mr.. Dubois expressed the opinion
that the clearest view of current
European economic conditions is OBJ
tainable in this country. This was
due. he said, TO the large number
of trained observers employed by
American banks and financial
periodicals to report such infor-
nation, and the attention given here
to analyzing and presenting the
facts. The feelings and sentiments
of the European peoples on public
questions he thought could best be
studied at first hand.
1T is almost impossible" said he.
ito think of Europe as a whole to-
day. Each country is faced with
different problems. In Germany,
Austria and Hungary. we find an
extremely low exchange rate; low
wages even in the terms of what
deprecated money will buy, and
paper money continuing to be issued
in large amounts.
Austrian situation.
I'm Austri the situation is
serious but not Immediately critical.
The people are not getting enough
to eat. but everyone is getting
something Austria produces only
one-fifth of the food she consumes.
Her export trade. therefore. must
be built up before her position be-
comes at all stable. 1t is an open
question yet whether this can be ac-
anu nO" lne people can
live until ii is accomplished.
Conditions in Hungary are quite
different. This country. largely agri-
cultural. is able to support herself.
She has passed through two terrible
experiences-Comm and Ru-
manian occupation. She is done with
Communism. Had it not been for a
temporary governmental weakness
IL
Is suspicious of her neighbors and
proposes to be strong in a military
way She wants a king. but she
does not know who that king should
be. She is breaking away from Ger
man influence and seeking favor
with England.
For the hrst time Hungary
claims she has balanced her budget
and does not want outside loans. She
IS preparing to build up from with
in. II she follows out this policy
she is doubtless on the high road
to prosperity. Mr.. Du Bois said that
he had been advised not to go to
England on account of the coal
strike. Though this and several
other strikes were in progress while
he was there, he declared that the
known that any Industrial trouble
existed.
Cooking below the surface. the
immediate situation in England IL
, serious" he said. Hundreds of
thousands of people are out OF en-
ployment. Rail transportation is
seriously impaired. The prevailing
view seems to be "a necessary part
of readjustment is a lower wage
scale in order that competition with
others for foreign trade may be made
possible The labor unions as well
as the employers are agreed thar
there must be lower wages. but the
bone of contention is the amount
by which wages must be reduced. In
due course the British always ap-
peciste the logic of circumstances
and 1t seems certain that an agree
ment will soon be reached. Eng
land in the meantime is losing heav-
fly in trade balance.
There Is one thing, however. COM
mon to all European countries" Mr..
Du Bois concluded. "the people
everywhere are thinking and talk
ing about earning a living. This is
a change from my visit in 1919
when world movements, world poll
tics and world improvement seemed