Evening star., 1923-04-08
GOOD MONEY PUTS
BURDEN ON SWISS
RY HIRAM KELLY MODERWELL.
Especial Correspondence Of The Star ant
Chicago Daily News.)

Especial Correspondence Of The Star and
Chicago Daily News
ZURICH. Switzerland. March ID
Sturdy little Switzerland. with pop
ulation untouched by war and cur
rency as high as the dollar. Is an OBJ
Ject of envy to all In Europe-until
one comes here. Then one catches
the universal feeling of depression.
Every one seems struggling to avoid
imminent bankruptcy and no one
will admit that he sees any light
ahead For the terrible agony of war
has transformed Switzerland's good
population and good money from as
sets into liabilities.
1t is literally true that these two
factors are among the most import
ant direct causes of Switzerland's
trouble. The good population must
be supported through the bad times,
and the government has been com
PEELED to eApend nearly Sl00.000.000
since the war in unemployment sub
sidies. And the good money keeps
prices so high. in relation to those
OF SwitZcrland's neighbors, that she
cannot export in competition with
them and so give her people work.
Exports at Low Point.
The popular picture of Switzerland.
wherein tnt pFelly mliknald draws
great watts OF milk from sleek Guern-
seyS and the merry woodchoppcr
Nodels on his way to work. is highly
misleading. Switzerland has become
an indus ustrillized country. Forty
three per cent OF its population nor
mallY lives on export. The machine
and electrotechnic industries are only
halt occupied. The textile industry
suffers from the dumping of quaint
TIES of cheap English goods on the
Wi ri
20 per cent below the English level
Chocolate export has fallen from
f0,000.000 to 100000 francs (from
HS.000.ooO to $l.000.00O) per quarter
and has lost nearly all. it's mark /
except the British. The dismal list
Is unrelieved except for certain mod
est items of Improvement here and
there-an Improvement which is uSu-
ally timid and uncertain. The result
Is expressed partly in the export fig
ures, which. except for one half-year
have been far below the import fig
ures ever since the end of the war
and partly in the unemployment fig
ureS, which d year ago reached 100
600 equivalent to more than 3.o0O.-
600 in America). and now hovers
around half that figure. with much
short time besides.
The causes. of course. are. first, the
general ImpovcriShment of the for
cign markets. and neXt-a direct re-
suit of this-the tendency Of every
Idtlon 10 save at least its own home
industry by high protective tariffs
BY all reports the new American tar
iff has hit Switzerland hard. raising
the duties in some cases from so to
80 per cent.
How Good Money Hurts.
Next comes tho depressing effec, of
tho high currency. Switzerland is sur
founded by Germany. Austria. Italy
and France. all with lower Currencies,
than hers. and with lower pruduc-
tion costs.
Ask a Swiss business man why
switzerland cannot export and he
Will throw up his hands and eXclaim
How can We, when our basic bread
price is So to 80 per cent higher than
rivalS?''
One of the foundation stones of
Swiss economy before the war was
the hotel business. A third of a mill
lion tourists could be accommodated
a any one time in the Swiss hotels
and the total investment represented
something like per cent of the Swiss
national wealth. More than half the
tourists used to be Germans These
can no longer afford to travel. Most
of the rest of Europe is also more
than half broke. The tourist business
has sunk to half or a third of normal
Only the most fortunately situated
Eoteis. especially those which cater
to the very rich, can now operate on
sound basis. Many have already
gone into bankruptcy (deSpite the
governments limited moratorium
and now stand cold and silent on the
mountain sides.
Hoping for Cheap Money.
One of the strangest experiences one
has in Switzerland is the realization
that people in this "fortunate" coun-
Try are enNying Germany because the
low German exchange permits of ex-
ports. 1t is a terrific comment on the
political morale of Europe that in
every country there is ii solid and inn
portant body of opinion which de-
libcrately desires imitation and bad
money.
Switzerland has settled down to the
conviction that she is bound up with
the rest of Europe. and that life will
not become tolera BILE for her until it
las been made tolerable for every