Sir Edward Holden's first questions was as follows: "At the outbreak of war Germany had assets abroad. Do these assets still exist or are they completely exhausted?" The North German Gazette replies thus: During the war Germany has acted with regard to her assets abroad in exactly the same way as England towards hers. If Sir Edward Holden would take the trouble to inquire from the official receivers of German property, which has been sequestrated in England and the English colonies contrary to international law, he would find out that thousands of millions of such assets still exist."
Counter-question: What has become of the English assets abroad which existed at the beginning of the war? Must we not conclude that they are gradually being exhausted, seeing that Sir Edward Holden, in the same Bank meeting, stated that the value of sterling would have fallen still further if England had not had recourse to the emission of a loan in America"?
The second question asks whether Germany, in view of the con- siderable reduction of her export trade, has not been placed in a difficult position as regards the financing of her imports. The answer to this reads: "The German exports have been seriously crippled, but the German imports have also greatly diminished. Not the least important of the causes of this last plienomenon is to be sought in the measures, contrary to international law, taken by England. In fact we will even voluntarily diminish our imports still further; on the other hand we will develop our export trade and maintain in this way the necessary equili- brium. But how do matters stand in England? Does not the balance of trade against England amount to at least £500,000,000, instead of £150,000,000 in time of peace? Is England consequently not encountering much greater difficulty than Germany as regards the financing of her imports?"
The following question, as to whether Germany has not sold nearly all the American, Swiss, Dutch, Scandinavian, and even Russian securities in her possession, is answered as follows: "Germany has evidently had recourse to the foreign securities in her possession, and which were particularly important as constituting reserves for difficult times, in order to meet her liabilities to foreign countries. German holdings of foreign securities are by no means exhausted; on the contrary, the sale of such securities is continuing, a fact of which England. precisely within the most recent times, will have been able to convince herself, thanks to the usual mail robberies committed by her on neutral ships. But does not Sir Edward Holden know that England is compelled to realise the most valuable part of her holdings of foreign securities, that is to say the American securities, in order to pay for her imports? Does he nut know that the British Government has itself organised the sale of American securities, and that Sir Edward Holden himself, in the course of the same Bank meeting, declared it to be the political duty of every Englislunan to hand over his American securities in order that they may be sold in New York?”
After these more general questions, Sir Edward Holden turned his attention to the Reichsbank and its weekly statements. He asked whether the gold mentioned in those statements is really in possession of the Reichs- bank. Dr. Helfferich replied categorically that the Reichsbank's state- ments do not mention one ounce of gold which is not in the vaults of the Bank itself, whereas on the contrary the gold held by the Bank for
reign accounts is not included in such statements.” Then comes the unter-question: "Is Sir Edward Holden aware of the fact that the ank of England's statements comprise gold held in Canada (Ottawa)? an Sir Edward Holden give the assurance that the gold of Belgium, gypt and India, and also the gold assets of the Banque de France and Bank of Russia, are not included in the gold supplies of the Bank England?"
These are the most important questions put by Sir Edward Holden. ther questions for instance regarding the gold covering of the bank otes alleged to have been issued by war credit banks, mortgage banks, surance companies, private banks, municipalities," notes which were ever issued at all and which the phantasy of the English Press created; concerning the riots in Berlin and the shooting down of hungry men-simply prove the hopeless confusion, and the total ignorance of erman conditions, which have been engendered, even in the minds of e most intelligent Englishmen, by the systematic misrepresentations and s of the English Press. When a man holding Sir Edward Holden's sition believes such fairy tales, we can imagine the absurdity of the geads that are current among the masses. The Swedish political econo- st. Professor Cassel rightly observes with regard to Sir Edward Holden's jestions: "They bear in an astonishing degree the mark of a superficial ader of phantasy-loving newspapers. Since the outbreak of war has single scrious effort been made in England to examine objectively the ength of Germany's powers of economic resistance?"
That such an effort has never been made, that people in England deliberately close their eyes and endeavor by every means to convince nation of the imminence of Germany's bankruptcy, is best proved by attitude taken up by the English Press with regard to the German blies and counter-questions. After having loudly proclaimed that Sir ward Holden's questions proved the financial collapse of Germany, English Press contented itself with reproducing curtailed and mislead- extracts from the replies of the North German Gazette. Some papers, h as the Daily Mail, characterised the categorical assertions of the man Minister of Finance that all the gold mentioned in the statements the Reichsbank is in fact in the vaults of the Bank, and that war lit banks, insurance companies and mortgage banks do not issue bank- tes, as downright falsehoods. And Sir Edward Holden himself, who triumphantly put his questions to Dr. Helfferich, has judged it better to reply to the German Minister's counter-questions. He wrote to the adon papers to say that he had read Dr. Heifferich's reply with interest; this reply did not entirely satisfy him, but that be thanked Dr. Helffe- for his courteous explanation. The London Press naturally admires Edward Holden's wisdom in not continuing the conversation begun him. But the objective observer knows what to think of such wisdom this, which has recourse to silence in view of the impossibility of lying.
Another failure of the English starving-out policy.
It is to-day evident to the whole world that the starving-out policy, means of which England hoped to crush Germany, has not had the eess that was anticipated. Despite the cessation of oversea imports,
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