772 
THE AM ERIC AN-SC AN DIN A VI AN REVIEW 
Denmark 
^ As late as the middle of September, about half the harvest in Den¬ 
mark was still in the fields exposed to the danger of rotting as a con¬ 
sequence of incessant rains. Fortunately the weather took a turn for 
the better, and before many days of October had passed most of the 
grain was under shelter and in a much better condition than had been 
expected. tJEven more engrossing than the concern for the harvest 
was the excitement in the public mind caused by a catastrophal event 
in the world of finance. About September 10, the Landmandsbank, 
the greatest financial institution in the country, failed. Not only the 
reserve fund of 50,000,000 kroner but the capital of 100,000,000 kroner 
was lost. One firm alone, the Transatlantic Company, organized dur¬ 
ing the war to promote foreign trade, had inflicted a loss of 100,000,000 
kroner on the Landmandsbank. The remainder of the loss was caused 
to a large extent by unfortunate speculations, especially in foreign 
currency, which had been carried on by the leaders of the bank and 
also by its clients. C| In order to save the economic life of the country 
from the shocks which the complete collapse of the bank, and the with¬ 
drawal of about a billion kroner savings deposits would have caused, 
the State, the National Bank, the East Asiatic Company, and the 
Great Northern Telegraph Company pledged their support. To¬ 
gether they took preferred stock to an amount of 100,000,000 kroner, 
while the old stock was written down to 10 percent of its par value. 
€J Two new laws, one sanctioning the participation of the State in the 
reconstruction of the bank, and one appointing a commission vested 
with judicial authority to investigate the leadership of the Land¬ 
mandsbank, were passed by the Riksdag in extraordinary session. 
With one exception the members of the board of directors have re¬ 
signed, and others have taken their places. Managing Director Emil 
Gliickstadt in resigning placed the whole of his own and his wife’s 
fortune, with the exception of his wife’s patrimony, at the disposal of 
the bank. The chairman of the board of directors was Admiral 
Richelieu of the East Asiatic Company. C| The failure of the Land¬ 
mandsbank, together with protests from Germany and Czecho-Slo¬ 
vakia against the import regulation on cigars and shoes, led to the 
resignation of the Neergaard ministry, October 9, and its subsequent 
reconstruction. Minister of Commerce Thyge Rothe, Foreign Min¬ 
ister Harald Scavenius, and Minister of Defenses Klavs Berntsen 
gave up their portfolios. As foreign minister was appointed C. M. C. 
Cold, former director of the Scandinavian-American Steamship Line; 
as minister of defenses, S. Boorsen, member of the Folketing; as act¬ 
ing minister of commerce, Minister of the Interior Ivragh. tjf The 
prime minister, who is also finance minister, has done very much to 
put the State of Denmark on a sound economic footing. 
