164 



COMMERCE, INTERNATIONAL. 



paying countries, besides its depressing influ- 

 ence on general prices and prosperity. The 

 trade of England with the gold-paying coun- 

 tries showed an actual increase of over 5 per 

 cent, between 1874 and 1878 ; but in the Brit- 

 ish trade with most of the bi-metallic countries 

 there was a decline of 32 per cent., and with 

 the countries with the single silver standard 

 of nearly 22 per cent., or of 80 per cent, if 

 India is not counted. Between 1872 and 1878 

 there was an increase of the exports of British 

 products to countries where the gold standard 

 prevailed of 9 per cent., but a decline of 33 

 per cent, in the values of the exports to silver- 

 paying countries. The loss to Great Britain 

 in exchange alone in last year's trade with In- 

 dia is computed at 75 millions of dollars, so 

 great is the disturbance caused by the want of 

 a common medium of exchange. If the single 

 gold standard were permanently adopted in 

 Europe and America, intercourse with the Ori- 

 ent would be reduced to barter trade. Even 

 if the single gold standard were safely and 

 successfully adopted all over the world, and 

 values should accommodate themselves to it 

 without destroying the whole progress of the 

 nineteenth century, there would remain an- 

 other evil connected with it, one from which 

 the world has abundantly suffered in former 

 centuries, and that is a deficient supply of 

 metal to replace the waste of the coin and 

 correspond to the increase in the population. 



The general decline of British exports since 

 1872, the year when they had attained their 

 greatest magnitude, was in the following pro- 

 gression, in millions of pounds sterling: Ex- 

 ports in 1872, nearly 256 ; 1873, 255 ; 1874, 

 239; 1875, 233; 1876, 200; 1877, 198; 1878, 

 192. The aggregate decline from 1872 to 1878 

 amounts to 214 million pounds sterling. The 

 exports of British and Irish products in 1879, 

 estimated on the returns for the first half of 

 the year, show a further decline in values of 8 

 or 10 millions sterling. 



The fall in prices within five or six years, 

 when computed for the aggregate production, 

 presents sums of startling magnitude. Of the 

 decline of 42 per cent, in the exports of the 

 leading British manufactures between the 

 years 1872 and 1875, one fourth corresponds 

 to the diminished demand and three fourths to 

 the fall in prices. Of this fall, one half is off- 

 set by the corresponding abatement in the 

 prime cost of materials. The decline of 6s. 

 per ton in coal from 1873 to 1878 represents a 

 fall in value for the quantity mined in Great 

 Britain of 200 million dollars a year. 



An important consideration regarding the 

 alteration of the existing standards of valua- 

 tion is the effect which it would have on the 

 solvency of countries which owe large public 

 debts. This specially affects the nations in 

 which the largest amounts of foreign public 

 securities are held. The aggregate public in- 

 debtedness of all nations is computed by Ernest 

 Seyd at 22,245 million dollars. Of this amount, 



he considers the following state debts, amount- 

 ing to 9,150 millions of dollars, as almost en- 

 tirely held in the countries themselves : Eng- 

 land, 3,925 millions: France, 3,750 millions; 

 Germany, 825 millions ; Holland, 400 millions ; 

 Belgium, 180 millions; Denmark, 70 millions. 

 The remaining 13,095 millions he reckons as 

 held principally by other nations, viz. : the debt 

 of the United States, 2,000 millions; Russia, 

 1,875 millions : Austria, 1,730 millions; Spain, 

 1,300 millions; Italy, 1,255 millions; Turkey, 

 1,075 millions: India, 530 millions; Egypt, 

 475 millions; Mexico, 395 millions; Brazil, 

 340 millions; Portugal, 330 millions; the 

 British colonies, 315 millions : South American 

 and other small states, 1,475 millions. The 

 amount of the public debt of these nations held 

 in foreign countries is estimated at 10,000 

 millions, and its present value at 8,500 millions. 

 This aggregate amount is supposed to be held 

 in a few European countries, among which it 

 is distributed in the following proportions : Eng- 

 land, the richest nation in foreign state funds 

 and other foreign investmnets, owns 3,750 mil- 

 lion dollars, or nearly the amount of her own 

 public debt, in the state securities of other na- 

 tions, estimating them at their present current 

 values and not at the par of issue ; France, 2,250 

 millions; Germany, 2,000 millions; and Hol- 

 land, Switzerland, and Belgium together, 500 

 millions. How nearly the above estimate ap- 

 proximates to the actual European holdings of 

 foreign securities, there are no more accurate 

 data for determining than those at the com- 

 mand of Mr. Seyd. The national debt of the 

 United States, however, must be stricken from 

 the list of public securities held abroad, as the 

 main bulk of it has now returned to America. 

 The securities of many of the indebted govern- 

 ments are of very uncertain value under the 

 most favorable commercial conditions. Loud 

 complaints have been heard in Great Britain 

 of late at the swindling foreign loans, public 

 and private, which have been successfully 

 placed in the English market. The losses 

 which have accrued to British investors 

 through worthless foreign investments are im- 

 mense. A nearer examination of the facts 

 reveals in these operations methods of going to 

 work which well deserve the name of swin- 

 dling; but the persons who manipulated the 

 loans and deluded the investing public, and 

 who invariably received the lion's share of the 

 plunder, were British bankers and financial 

 agents. The Turkish Government, for instance, 

 can show that it has already paid in interest 

 more than it ever received of its public loan 

 from the English go-betweens. The South 

 American states and a great many financial 

 companies in different parts of the world can 

 relate the same experience. 



In France the decline of exports since 1873 

 has been less marked than with the other great 

 commercial powers of Europe. She is not, 

 however, exempt from the general calamity, 

 but is suffering more and more acutely from a 



