Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-07-17
BY LELAND STOWE.

4 .toWoTfoD.
BY Leland STOWE.
Special Dispatch to The Star.
BUCHAREST, July 17.-America'
interest in Rumania has been Iargel
romantic. In fact, young America i
indebted to Rumania for vindicatin
George Barr McCutcheon and his gilt
tering procession of princes, princesse
and kings. When Carol came fiyinl
back from exile to the throne littl
more could be said than that Rumanii
once more had -Graustarked Grau
stark.
Actually, however, the United States
has a more important, If less glamor
Gus. interest In Rumania Of today. w,
have commercial and financial inter.
est OF considerable moment. The com
mercial interest, matter Of American
exports to Rumania, is well founded
Arrive in Bucharest today and nine Out
Of ten taxis waiting for the Orient
Express are American cars of q great
variety of makes. Between IS and 9C
per cent of all automobiles bought In
Rumania in year are Of American
manufacture. This is but one exam
pie of the open trade door Rumania
presents to us.
More American Loans Likely.
AS to our financial interest, it is now
constituted Of only q few American
loans, including one just completed for
telephone nodernization by the Inter-
national Telephone & Telegraph Co,
but other such loans will undoubtedly
follow in the next few years.
We have reason, then, to regard re-
cent events in this Balkan kingdom
with something more than delight at
romanticism having a last glittering
tilt against the twentieth century's
matter of-fact armor. Rumania rep
reseuts what, since the war, has been
an economic tragedy and what for the
future ought to be an economic OPP
pcrtunity. As a result, the American
business man and banker mas right to
know what has been happening in re-
cent years to Rumanian economy,
where 1t stands today and what Its
prospects are.
It is not a simple matter to meet
these inquiries adequately in q brief
survey, nor has 1t been q facile task
to gather all the data one would like
to have on the subject. Nevertheless,
one remark should preface even "a
boiled down resume of Rumania's eco
nomic situation and its relation to
King Carols regime. This is that the
information herewith presented tlas
been cleaned from independent sources,
much OF it from business men and ex-
pert observers who have lived in Ru-
mania over a period of years, and that
the great portion of the data cited
here does not represent what Is known
as ''official inspiration" A one-sided
report either of Rumanian politics or
Rumanian economics would be OF no
value.
Population Greater Since War.
With that idea in mind, one can
turn from the engrossing personal prob
lens of King Carol and the new gov
ernmental order associated with his
ascension TO the throne and consider
this outpost between Europe and Rus
STA and the Orient as an economic
entity.
Rumania, as a result Of the war and
the ensuing treaties, Sprouted from q
little nation Of 100000 to IA country
OF 100000. It's area is almost IA
600 square miles, or two ana one-third
times that of New York State. Its
broad plains represent tremendous
agricultural richness, it has thousands
Of miles of great forests and oil deposits
Of vast importance. These are natural
resources still tapped to only a frac-
ton Of their potentiality.
when one considers that almost ione-
fourth Of Rumania's area is covered
with beautiful forests; that its 200
mile strip of $4,000 hectares Of OIL
bearing land is only one-sixth exploit
ed; that the country'S cereal production
is enormous In comparison with Its size.
it seems incongruous indeed 10 recall
that Rumania has been the victim OF
grave economic crisis for the last two
wears. Since the death Of Buzdugan In
October, 1929, and with the wabbline
uncertainty of the revised regency, con-
ditiors went from bad to worse eco
nomically. The eve Of Carols return
found Rumania concluding q disastrous
six months, with relief difdcult to
foresee.
Poor Crops at Poor Prices.
What were the aspects of this acute
crisis? For two years the budget had
suffered heavy deficits-5 682 ,O00, 900 lei
in 1928 and !, 1898 0O0, 900 in 1929. For
two years Rumania suffered an unfa-
vorable balance Of trade close to these
same figures. The extr emely bad crop
of 1928 helped to precip'state this condi'
ton; the reduced prices of wheat, bar
ley, ETC., accentuated them in 1929
largely multiplying the promised gain OF
the biggest crop in FIVE years.
LACK Oh COf1IlQEnCC AL bAlC AC6CANJ
swiftly extended to lack of business con.
fidence. Money became dearer and
dearer until, at the present moment
interest rates on short-term loans are
so high as to be almost unbelievable
On the authority Of leading Ruma'
MAN economist, whose figures are con-
firmed by qualified resident Americans
the rate for open market discount from
big Bucharest banks Is now from IA x
l8 per cent, and from provincial banks
1t Is between 20 and so. Whereas II
1918 there was in circulation $40 worth
of lei for each inhabitant of Rumania
there Is now in circulation only 81
worth.
An eloquent incident in the matter
of short-term loans Of from one to si1
months in Rumania is this: The Ma
tional Bank recently issued a manifesto
stating that 1t would not discount paper
of banks which charged customers more
than Is per cent interest. In othel
words, the National Bank indirectly in.
dicated that it considered 10 per cent
a reasonable rate.
Railroads Losing Money.
In addition to these 'pinches Of eco
nomic crisis, the Rumanian railroad
| for years have operated at loss. They
are improperly organized, in need o.