Page:The Czechoslovak Review, vol4, 1920.pdf/118

Newspapers display prominently appeals to their partisans to be sure and register for the coming elections. National democrats and people’s party criticise the government, and Czechoslovak socialists have constant bickerings with the social democrats, while everybody in the cities takes a shy occasionally at the farmers who are charged with selfishness. But in parliament they all vote together and all want the prosperity of the republic. In preparation for the elections the oposition in the farmers’ party joined the national democrats, while in Slovakia the significant event is the decision of socialists—Slovak, Magyar and German to vote one ticket, all three nationalities declaring their adherence to the Republic. Magyar workingmen hate the reactionary rule in Hungary proper, while the Germans in Slovakia appreciate the fact that under Czechoslovak rule their national rights are far better respected than they were under Magyar rule. In the Czech social democratic party the left wing published its program in February; it insists on the Marxist platform, is opposed to the coalition of social democrats with bourgeois parties and wants to join the third internationale. But even these radicals go slow; they declare their purpose to hold back the agitation during the elections and only afterwards make an effort to capture the machinery of the party. It is, of course, easy to understand the dissatisfaction of the radical socialists with the present leadership. A government which has half the members socialistic, with a social democrat as the premier, lets go the governmental pressbureau to a private syndicate and announces its approval of the bill for a bank to be the government’s fiscal agent and to have exclusive right to issue banknotes, not as a governmental bank, but as a stock company.

Lack of coal, still the principal difficulty in the way of economic reconstruction, was for a time aggravated by a strike of coal miners in the Ostrava district. The strike was meant to be a one day demonstration against the cost of living, both food and clothing, but overturning the plans of the leaders the men refused to return to work and remained idle for a whole week. There were no disorders, but the loss of one week’s production closed many factories, until delegations of factory workers came to plead with miners to resume work. The strikers received 20 per cent increase in wages and the state authorities agreed to supply them with clothing and shoes at reduced prices. A conference of miners, held in Prague on January 28, declared for nationalization of coal mines, and as immediate step toward this end they demanded the establishment of workers, councils with share in management and profits; the government had already agreed to this demand. The minister of food supply announced that stock of flour was low, owing to the impossibility of importing flour from abroad, when the value of crown had depreciated so greatly. At the same time he believed that it would not be necessary to reduce the flour ration. Great efforts are being made to increase the yield of crops for the coming year; the government imported phosphate from French Africa and salts from Germany and is trying to import cattle and feed. Although the farmers clamor for the abolition of the state control of grain production, it is stated this cannot be done in the near future.

A new domestic loan was announced by the government. The first loan of the Czechoslovak Republic, the Liberty Loan, will be due in 1924; the outstanding treasury certificates are payable in 1923 and 1924. The new loan is a long term security; it is to be retired on or before 1960 in annual drawings which will commence in 1925. The rate of interest is 42 per cent, but as bonds drawn for retirement are redeemed at 125, the average rate of interest will amount to about 5.15 per cent. This is a lower rate of interest than France offers on its latest state issue. All the old Austrian paper money is now withdrawn from circulation, and thus the danger of forgery of stamped currency is finally done away with. But the government now plans to substitute gradually for the currency, issued by the state, notes of the new Bank of Czechoslovakia. The bank will receive from the government its slender store of precious metal, buildings and special privileges. It will issue its own notes against its hard money reserves, commercial paper, and if possible, against sound foreign money, to be obtained by a loan abroad. State-issued money will be retired, as bank notes will enter circulation. The basis of new money will be the Latin monetary union,