The Washington times., 1923-05-31
j. S.F|NANC|ERS
MAY LOAN To
GERMANY
American Dollars, Amply Sc
cured, Seen AS Hope for
Exhausted Nation.
BY WILLIAM HARD.

BY WILLIAM HARD.
NEW YORK, N. Y, May 31.-A
world development of the greatest
magnitude, portending a great
change in American world position
and policy, is seen by financial in
terests here in the present acute
coincidence of the four following
happenings:
/, The loan to Austria with
strong American assistance and
participation.
3, The drop Of the German mark
to it's lowest recorded level anu
down to a value approximately the
same as that of the Austrian crown:
8. The arrival in New York OF
so 200, 900 German gold marks i'll
metal.
4. The importation into the
United States Of foreign goods
which in the course of four months
have exceeded our expectations OF
American goods by $SS,O0O,O
Loan To Germany.
The net upshot of these four hap
penings is thought to be that the
day of world restoration through a
loan to Germany backed by Amer1-
can dollars is forced into the lore
ground of the worlds financial life.
Important American banking IN
terests have informally suggested
TO important British banking inter-
ests that the same system of guar
antees which has been used in the
case of the loan to Austria might
equally we'll be used to float a loan
to Germany. Austria, it is pointed
out. was allowed to sink downwards
till she was utterly helpless and
utterly humbled. She then was will
ing to accomplish the internal re-
forms and to offer the material Sc
kcurities necessary for the getting or
loan.
It is believed that Germany is now
at last rapidly approaching a similar
stage of exhaustion and OF amend.
ment. The gold sent here out OF
Germany is not sign OF strength,
but of extreme weakness. Germany
on May Is faced payment OF 6O,OOO,-
900 gold marks on notes given to
Belgium. 1t was unable to find any
way of meeting that payment except
through outright further depletion
of it's gold reserve. 1t had to send
actual metal to the worlds gold
market in harmony with the wishes
of the present owners of its notes.
. Unemployment Shows.
Germany's present floating debt.
at the end of the first quarter OF
this year, had reached the sum OF
six quadrilIion, six trillion, one hun
dred and forty-two billion marks
Unemployment is beginning 10
show itself in German industries.
German international supremacy in
certain conspicuous German special
ties is disappearing. Germany used
to be our largest consumer of Ameri-
can copper. At this instant the
largest consumer of American cop
per is France.
The threatened German industrial
conquest of the world through the
alleged deliberate German depreci-
alton of the German currency has
failed. In the last month Of full
record the exports from Germany
into the United States were barely
greater than the exports from
France, and less than one-third OF
the exports from Britain.
Meanwhile the United States. IL
is noted, has passed into a stage
which places it in a world position
resembling that of Britain. Ameri-
can imports of raw materials or
one sort and another from Cuba
and South America and Asia and
Africa are now so large that Ameri-
can total imports are greater than
American total exports. America
therefore, like Britain, is taking in
surplus Of goods and in return
is sending out surplus of capital
Loan Will Be Taken.
The American quota of the loan
to Austria is said here to be GER
tain Of full subscription. A lead
ing banker here who is thoroughly
opposed to the League of Nations
is nevertheless preparing to take
his share of the loan and is over
looking the political fact that the
arrangements for the loan were
made by the league. He is against
the league but he is also in favor
Of foreign Investment. He ex-
presses to this writer the follow
ing sentiment: lone of the hest
things that an American on behalf
of his country can do today with a
dollar is to invest it abroad"
The situation thus disclosed is
in fact entirely economic and not
political at all. Good-natured re-
monstrances have been addressed
to J. P. Morgan and Company
against advocating the Austrian
loan on any basis Of alleged duty
or alleged humanity to Austria.
The true argument for the loan, 1T
is said, is that the security behind
it is ample and that American
money put into 1t will be sensibly
placed.
With the German mark now fall
| ing to the value of the Austrian
crown, and with Germany becom-
ing more and more an intolerable
| crust of profiteering over a widen
ing and deepening hollow of misery
| and failure, it is believed here in
the most intimately informed quar-
| ters that the German people pres
emily will be forced to make the
same choice that the Austrian peO-
pie have already made. They will
| have to choose between becoming
the slaves Of their local profiteers
and becoming the wards Of their
| foreign creditors.
The point now is that If they
follow the example of their Aus
trian brothers and offer to be-
come the wards Of their foreign
creditors, the economic situation Of
America will produce great sub
scriptions to German loan wheth-
err the American State Department