Engineers and Engineering Volume 39 (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1922 Excerpt: ...debt of 50 per cent; and Germany a debt of over 300 per cent--three times its estimated national wealth. Austria and Hungary combined have a debt of 2,710 per cent of their estimated wealth. With the exception of England, these countries are not paying their operating expenses. Turning to my various reference books, I find figures which I can assure you are right up to the minute indicating that the present external and internal debt of the French Republic is a third of a trillion francs; that the French deficit for 1921-22 will be somewhat between 7 and 10 billion francs; that the German deficit in 1921-22 is upward of 160 billion marks; and that the Polish deficit in 1922-23 will be 216 billion marks. The figures for Czecho-Slovakia indicated a deficit for the last year of over one billion crowns; Jugo-Slavia, over two billion; Austria, 300 billion crowns; the Spanish deficit, a billion pesetas; and the Italian deficit 5 billion lira. These figures are not very reassuring, I admit. There are certain conditions over there that we should all know about, discuss freely, and consider. As I analyze the advance in sterling, I can see England getting ready to re-gain her industrial, commercial and financial supremacy in the world. The pound sterling, as you know, has gone up to $4.46 from a low of around $3.18--in spite of tremendous falling-off in railroad earn ings, gigantic falling-off in shipping earnings and exports. This advance has been accomplished by controlling and limiting imports, by directing exports to certain markets. Some few months ago a method of payment by Germany of reparations which involved accumulation of sterling has helped bring the English pound back nearly to normal, and which has also greatly improved the Italian lira and the French a...