Year: 1877




try held in Europe-government bonds
railway bonds, State bonds and mining
bonds-amount to not less than two thou
sand millions of dollars on which the aver
age interest is at least six per cent. To meet
this interest Ito say nothing of final dis
charge of the principaD we must every year
send abroad, either in goods or gold, one
hundred and twenty millions of dollars in
excess of our imports. This must be done
permanently, year by year, besides paying
for all the commodities we purchase abroad.
Any intelligent person who will reflect on
this great fact-on this great annual drain
to pay the interest on our colossal foreign
indebtedness-must see how indispensable
foreign markets have become to us. We
cannot be a solvent nation without them.
We are in very different condition from
what we were twenty years ago, when
our foreign trade might be discussed
as mere question of exchange.
mere matter OF buying and selling.
Foreign markets are not necessary to
us simply as means of paying for what we
purchase in foreign countries they are in
dispensable as means OF preserving our
honor and paying the annual interest on our
debts. Luckily We can meet the ever-recur-
ring obligations this year by the exceptional
abundance of our crops and the exceptional
market for them. But, taking one year with
another, we shall hereafter need to export
great deal besides the surplus products OF
our agriculture, and this is an excellent
time for trying to extend our markets tor
other things. We are so strong in the i'm
mediate resources of the year that our gov
ernment in negotiating reciprocity treaties
is relieved from any urgency which might
precipitate it into indiscreet bargains. 1.-THE
new administration wishes to make great
mark let it improve this golden opportunity
to open foreign markets to other products
than those of our agriculture, and thus es-
tablish permanent prosperity for our favored
but still suffering country.


Wash burne i'm Berltn-Germany and


the War.


Our Berlin correspondence tells the pleas
ant story of the elusive good will of the
German Court toward Mr.. Washburne lately
our Minister at Paris, and how the Kaiser
and 'sUnser Fritz" and the iron Chancellor
and everybody else, catching the cue from
those above made themselves very agreeable
to the simple citizen in recognition of the
earnest and honest services he did their
countrymen in the beleagured French capi-
tai during the Franco-German war. 1t is q
pleasant story to read tor Washburnes sue
cess in the case referred to was due to those
sterling qualities of head and heart that con-
stitute him typical American, and Ameri-
cans cannot but be gratified at q compliment
which reaches so widely as to take in the
very nature Of the American people. No
body would be greatly dissatisfied if the
inconvenient law which prevents the ac-
ceptance of the gifts the Emperor desires to
bestow on Mr.. Washburne were not in the
way on this occasion yet we cannot object
to having the German Empire our debtor on
a score Of friendly and fraternal relations,
and for that reason we may be we'll satisfied
that the Emperor cannot discharge in trim
kets an amiable obligation. There ore in this
correspondence references to change of
the attitude of Germany toward the bellig-
erents, and since the letter was written we
have heard more of this by cable. Indeed, one
may almost daily note greater freedom in
German utterances from that reserve ordi-
narily maintained by neutral Powers. 1t
seems intended in Berlin that Europe shall
know that Germany earnestly wishes for
Russian success and will go certain dis
tance to help assure it. Just at this moment
the exact distance to which Germany will 60
for this purpose seems defined. She will
guarantee that Austria shall remain neutral
in spite of Servian participation in the war.
Recent Austrian references to Servian ac-
tivity indicate that this is understood at
Vienna.


Shysters.


If the present efforts being made to drive