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FINANCIAL REVIEW OF 1892. 



its ultimate extension across the Pacific Ocean. 

 His closing years were spent quietly in his Gram- 

 ercy Park home, and were rendered sad by do- 

 mestic sorrow and financial losses. 



FINANCIAL REVIEW OF 1892. The 

 financial condition of this country seemed to 

 attract the attention of European nations dur- 

 ing 1892, and the operation of the silver-pur- 

 chase law of July, 1890, was watched with keen 

 interest, especially after it was seen that the 

 absorption by this Government of 4,500,000 

 ounces of silver per month did not result in 

 maintaining the price of the metal. Early in 

 the year Austria put in force preparations for 

 resuming gold payments, and began to attract 

 gold from the United States, practically paying 

 a premium therefor in preference to attempt- 

 ing to secure a supply either from London, 

 Paris, or Berlin, for the reason that she was also 

 seeking to float loans in one or more of those 

 markets, and would probably be unsuccessful if 

 the discount rates were deranged by withdrawals 

 of gold. From February to September inclusive 

 about $46,935,000 gold was shipped hence to 

 the Continent of Europe for Austrian account. 

 The movement was renewed in November, and 

 by the end of the year $12.550,000 more had 

 been sent, making a total of $59,485,000. This 

 drain of gold was facilitated by the low rates 

 for money, in New York, which prevented the 

 employment of any portion of the vast amounts 

 of capital lying almost idle in London and at 

 other centers, and there was a feeling of dis- 

 trust abroad regarding the stability of our cur- 

 rency which discouraged purchases and encour- 

 aged sales of American securities. This country 

 was therefore supplying the extraordinary de- 

 mand of Austria for gold, thereby relieving the 

 principal European centers from meeting this 

 inquiry, and at the same time was absorbing 

 securities held in Europe on speculative or in- 

 vestment account, while the redundancy of our 

 currency checked the natural tendency of the 

 market for money automatically to regulate 

 that for exchange. A fall in the price of bar 

 silver in London, Aug. 12, to 37| d. per ounce, 

 the lowest on record, appeared to intensify the 

 feeling of distrust abroad, and it also excited 

 fears that Indian and English commercial and 

 financial interests would suffer from the de- 

 rangement of Eastern exchanges resulting from 

 the unsettled price of silver. This had much to do 

 with the acceptance by the English Government 

 of the invitation extended by the United States 

 to the principal European nations to send dele- 

 gates to an international monetary conference. 

 This assembled at Brussels Nov. 22. A prop- 

 osition by Mr. Rothschild, of the English dele- 

 gation, that European nations unite in the pur- 

 chase of $5,000,000 of silver bullion annually 

 with the object of aiding to maintain stability 

 in the price was rejected, as also was a plan for 

 a bimetallic agreement, and after the discussion 

 of other schemes the conference adjourned Dee. 

 2, to reassemble in May, 1893. This fulfill- 

 ment of the prediction of the failure of the con- 

 ference brought about a revival of the uneasy 

 feeling abroad, which was reflected in another 

 decline in bar silver in London to 37|- d. per 

 ounce on Dec. 23, and the renewal of exports of 

 gold from New York to the Continent for Aus- 



trian account gave rise to fears that unless the 

 operation of the silver-purchase act of 1890 were 

 suspended by Congress, or the law repealed, the 

 Treasury Department would be unable very long 

 to maintain the notes issued in payment for the 

 silver bullion, then amounting to about $124,- 

 000.000, on a parity with gold. At the end of 

 the year efforts were being made to induce 

 members of Congress promptly to act in the 

 matter of a suspension or repeal of the law im- 

 mediately after the reassembling of Congress in 

 January. 



The political situation in France was grave at 

 the end of the year. The sudden death of 

 Baron Reinach in November was alleged to 

 have been due to suicide, caused by his connec- 

 tion with the bribery by the managers of the 

 Panama Canal Company of the Paris press and 

 of members of the French Parliament and 

 officials of high rank. The Chamber of Depu- 

 ties insisted upon a thorough investigation, and 

 the exhumation of the remains of the baron to 

 determine the manner of his death. While con- 

 senting to the inquiry, the Cabinet refused to 

 permit the autopsy, and the Chamber of Deputies, 

 Nov. 28, forced the resignation of the Loubet 

 ministry. On Dec. 7 M. Ribot formed a new 

 Cabinet, retaining many members of the old, 

 and the Government decided promptly to 'co- 

 operate with the Chamber in the inquiry into 

 the charges of bribery, receding from its posi- 

 tion in the matter of Baron Reinach's remains. 

 Arrests of prominent officials of the company 

 and of ex-members of the Chamber speedily 

 followed, and almost daily disclosures of a 

 startling character were made, not the least im- 

 portant of which was the declaration that the 

 movement against high officers of the state was 

 part of a conspiracy to overthrow the republic. 

 A charge of bribery against M. Rouvier, the 

 Minister of Finance, compelled his resignation, 

 and it was alleged that M. Carnot, the President, 

 was indirectly involved in the scandal, but this 

 was promptly denied. The ministry was, on 

 Dec. 23, sustained by a decisive vote of the Cham- 

 ber and as the year closed there were indications 

 that the republic would survive the attacks of 

 its enemies. There was some political tension 

 in Germany at intervals during the year, result- 

 ing from caustic criticisms of the Emperor by 

 Prince Bismarck, and toward the end of the year 

 the bill for increased appropriations for the army 

 met with opposition in Parliament. With the 

 exception of the substitution of the Gladstone 

 for the Salisbury ministry in Great Britain 

 there was no event of political importance in 

 that country. A strike of cotton spinners, 

 brought about by an attempt to reduce wages, 

 tended to paralyze that industry in the closing 

 months of the year. Trade and speculation in 

 England and on the Continent of Europe con- 

 tinued depressed, mainly from causes operating 

 since the Baring failure in 1890 and partly 

 from the decline in silver. On Jan. 25 the 

 President sent a message to Congress reviewing 

 the troubles between this Government and that 

 of Chili growing out of the attack, on Oct. 16, 

 1891, by Chilians in Valparaiso upon a company 

 of sailors belonging to the United States ship 

 " Baltimore " Reparation was demanded by this 

 Government, through its minister, and refused, 



