HOW FRANCE PAID ITS INDEMNITY

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLIII, Issue 2311, 4 August 1921, Page 4

HOW FRANCE PAID ITS

INDEMNITY

In view of the present discussion as to how Germany will make her reparations payments, the exact procedure of the French Government in paving the 5,000,000,000 francs indemnity to Prussia after the war of 1870 is in point. M. Leon Say, while connected with the French Treasury, drew up with great accuracy a statement of how that sum, wholly unexampled for those days, was delivered by the French Government to Berlin. The actual total amount paid over was 5,286,000,000 francs, from which was deducted 325,000,000 as German payment to French owners of the railways in Alsace-Lorraine. Of the balance, amounting to 961,000,000 francs, only 273,000,000 francs were paid through actual shipment of gold from Paris to Berlin. -Through shipment of silver 239,000,000 was paid; in notes of the Bank of France 125,000,000, of the Bank of Belgium 70,000,000, of the Bank of Prussia 103,000,000. This still left ’4,151,000,000 francs gold to be delivered in some other way. Of that sum 2,484,000,000 francs were paid in bills of exchange on Germany, partly bought on other foreign markets and partly representing drafts against German subscriptions to the flew French loan; to which were added 324,000,000 francs in drafts on Hemburg and 232,000,000 on Frankfort. There were also delivered 636,000,000 francs in bills of exchange on London, 250,000,000 on Holland, and 225,000,000 on Belgium. The great indemnity -loan issued to make the final payment bv the French Government realised 3,498,744,636 francs. It was offered on all the foreign markets, at inviting terms and with very extaordinary results. Owing to the desire of speculators to obtain the new bonds and re-sell them at an expected higher price, applications for the _1,541,431,660 francs of rentes

which were offered on foreign markets footed up to- no less than 26,000,000,000 francs. In the actual allotment to foreign subscribers, 471,154,815 francs went to Germany itself, 396,044,320 to Belgium, 334,151,215 to England, 87,735,015 to Alsace-Lorraine, 82,986,865 to Holland, 34,402,390 to Denmark, 32,917,790 to Turkey, 32,483,285 to Switzerland, 31,078,090 to Italy. 30,370,440 to Australia, 5,792,765 to the Papal States, and 2,311,670 to "Asia. The exceptionally large subscription by capitalists in Germany itself to the French indemnity loan was perhaps the most striking incident of the entire operation.