SLUMP IN AMERICA

Hokitika Guardian, 5 December 1931, Page 6

SLUMP IN AMERICA

“WORST SEEMS PAST.”

SAN FRANCISCO, November 5

Prognosticators of good times and another era of prosperity are again working overtime in the United States, but it is extremely difficult to discern any change- in the greatest slump that Uncle Sam and lifs 110,000,000 population in the country have ever experienced. Various estimates have been made of .he number of idle in the United States. The American Federation of Labour officials have placed the number at 5,500,000, but other authorities say 11 millions. As a matter of ’ fact, the number never will be knowril until an exhaustive census is taken, but the streets are crowded in every city with those out of work.

The general run of the populace resolutely decline to part with their money although those “higher up” have published statements advising the people, to cease their ‘‘buyers’ strike.” The people are only buying the barest necessities and are continuing to hoard their savings. Many have withdrawn their deposits from the banns, owing to the fact that numerous banks have failed and were compelled .to close their doors. On the subject of hoarding, some financial writers, who have been talking to American bankers, severely' berate the small depositor for withdrawing his funds from banks, changing them into gold and placing them in a safe deposit box or in the hollow bed post. They do not give the other fellow a chance to state his. argument, which might run like this: “Banks are falling right and left. Tins is all the money I have. It took a long time to save it. I do. not want to take any chance with it. Therefore, I will forego the interest and place it safely in a hiding place. Anyhow, are we not- on a gold basis and is not it my privilege to take my money to the bank and have it exchanged for gold? What about the bankers’ .own hoarding? Have not they been refusing loans on perfectly good collateral and real estate ?’’

Three Senators sat around a table and sought to measure the depths of the American depression and the height of the prosperity that preceded it. '1 hey composed a special Senate sub-committee headed by Senator Robert M. Lafol.'ette, Republican of Wisconsin. Its purpose was to provide a picture of the situation to help them determine if economic planning on a national scale were necessary to ' avoid inflations arid depressions. At the tend of a day of bewildering statistics of billions of dollars lost, of defaulted interest on bonds, of heavy losses in real estate and omitted dividends, one of the expert witnesses, VicePresident Laurence H. Sloan, of the (Standard Statistics Company of New York, offered this vista of the future: “The worst seems to be past, as October appears to be the lowest month. If the banking pool does what it is expected to do and people begin to spend money, ai d something results from the visit :of Premier Laval, I should judge there will he a slowly rising trend of business in the next 12 months. But certainly many years will elapse before we have such prices as in 1929.” Prices of .necessaries of life, principally foodstuffs, have shown a decided drop recently. Occasionally there is a small boom on Wall Street, but in a day or it wo the prices of gilt-edge securities slump again, and establish new lovs, to the utter disgust of those new customers who have been attracted to the market.