amounted to Rs. 66,41,00,000—against an average for the five pre-war years, 1910-4, of Rs. 21,99,00,000—it may safely be assumed that they were not likely to be purchasers of the metal for some years to come.
As regards China’s consumption, it is an almost hopeless task to supply anything approaching reliable data. The figures in Table 4, however, taken from the Chinese Maritime Customs reports may be taken as approximately correct they are, how- ever, given in Haikwan taels.
Table 4. China.
| Imports | Exports | |
| 1914 | 861,167 taels | 13,861,917 taels |
| 1915 | 818,827 “ | 18,211,040 “ |
| 1916 | 19,903,117 “ | 8,102,268 “ |
| 1917 | 13,871,778 “ | 5,024,575 “ |
| 1918 | 1,228,342 “ | 2,281,659 “ |
| 1919 | 51,078,643 “ | 9,896,429 “ |
| 1920 | 50,966,880 “ | 68,469,360 “ |
Imports into Hong Kong for the year 1920 were reported to be the equivalent of 7,049,700—the greater portion of which was probably dealt with by the mint in Canton. The stocks of silver held in Shanghai on Dec. 31 of the following years are shown in Table 5. The increase in stocks in 1920 over 1919—viz, taels 15,460,000, and dollars 18,420,000—represents the equivalent of an increase of about 31,030,820 ounces.
Table 5. Stock at Shanghai.
| A table should appear at this position in the text. See Help:Table for formatting instructions. |
Taels
Dollars
Bar SiUcr
1917
1918
1919 1920
21,760,000 18,860,000 19,140,000 34,600,000
14, 040, o
13,470,000 11,260,000 29,680,000
357 4 242 nil
Prices. Table 6 gives the highest, lowest and average price of bar silver in London per oz., British standard 925 fine since 1833, from which it will be seen that the highest quotation recorded since 1833 was 8g|d. in 1920, the next highest being 79id. in 1919, 62fd. in 1859 and 62jd. in 1864. Though the highest point reached was in 1920, the average quotation for that year was only 6ii|d. against averages in 1859 of 62 Ad. and 6i|d. in 1864, which would point to more stable conditions existing in the silver market in the years 1859 and 1864 than in 1920. To the years 1902 and 1903 belong the honour of recording the lowest prices, viz. 2i}d., whilst the lowest average goes to 1915 with 23d. followed by 1909 with 23fd. When the Pitt- man Act became law in the United States, good authorities, not only in America but in England, made bold to assert that the result of this Act would be to stabilize the world's price of silver at not less than $i per oz., for many years to come, whilst Senator Pittman went further and predicted that the world's price would range between $i and $1.29 the parity of the American silver dollar for the next 20 years. The spot price in London on June i 1921, was 33 Jd., and the price in America on the same date for foreign mined silver was 60 cents nominal.
Table 6. Highest, lowest, and average price of bar silver in London, per oz. (British standard 0.925) from 1833 to 1920.
Year
Highest pence
Lowest pence
Average pence
1833
59%
5%
59%
1834
60%
59%
599?
1835
60
59%
59%
1836
60 %
59%
60
1837
6oy s
59
59%
1838
60 3^3
59%
1839
60%
60
6oy s
1840
60%
60%
1841 1842 1843
3 A 60 59%
59% 59% 59
60%
59% 59%
1844
59%
59%
1845
59%
59 %
1846
60%
59
59%
1847
60%
59%
1848
60
58%
59%
1849
60
59%
59%
1850
61%
59%
60%
Table 6. Continued.
Year
Highest pence
Lowest pence
Average pence
1851
6lR
60
61
1852
6l
59^
6oJ^
1853
6l
60%
61 H
1854
6iH
60 %
6iH
1855
6iM
60
6i
1856
62 X
6oy 2
61 K
i857
62 3 A
61
61
1858
(>i%
60%
6lK
1859
62%
61%
6a
i860
62*A
618
61%
1861
6i
6oy 8
6o!?js
1862
62^
61
6i
1863
6ij|
61
6i^g
1864
62 y 2
60%
6iM
1865
61%
(x>y 2
6l
1866
62%
6oy s
61}^
1867
61%
(x>y a
6oM
1868
6ij|
6oy s
60^
1869
61
60
60 J6
1870
60%
60^
60%
1871
61
60%
60^
1872
6iM
59%
6o>(J
1873
59%
57%
59?f
1874
59 1 A
57 1 A
58
1875 1876
57 & A
5y*
55% 46%
56% 52 M
1877
58%
53 1 A
54%
1878
55%
49 %
52%
1879
53
58%
5iM
1880
52%
51*2
52^
1881
52 y*
50%
51%
1882
52 3 A
So
5iH
1883
51%
50%
50%
1884
5iH
49%
5o%
1885
50
46%
48%
1886
47
42
45%
1887
47 1 A
43K
44%
1888
44
418
42^
1889
44%
4
42%
1890
54%
43%
47 3 A
1891
4%
43%
45J16
1892
43%
37%
39
J893
3%
30%
35%
1894
3* 3 A
27
28K
1895
3iN
vjK
29%
1896
31%
29%
30%
1897
29%
23%
27%
1898
2Sy s
25
26%
1899
29
26%
27%
1900
30%
27
28%
1901
29%
24%
27%
1902
26%
21%
24%
1903
28^
21%
24^
1904
28%
24%
26H
1905
30%
25%
27%
1906
33%
29 ,,
30%
1907
32%
24%
30%
1908
27
22
24 M
1909
24%
23%
23M
1910
26%
23 %
24M
1911
26y g
23%
24&
1912
29%
25%
28%
1913
29 3 A
26%
27%
1914
27%
22 %
25 '4
I9'5
27^
22%
23^
1916
37 1 A
26%
3I ^
1917
55
35%
40%
1918
49 1 A
42 %
47 tt
1919
79%
47 3 A
57 A
1920
89^2
611932
(W. E. P.)
SIMON, SIR JOHN ALLSEBROOK (1873–), British politician and lawyer, the son of a Congregational minister, was educated at Fettes, and at Wadham College, Oxford, where he was a scholar and was eventually elected an hon. fellow. He became pres. of the Union in 1896, and took a first-class in Lit. Hum. in the same year, being subsequently elected fellow of All Souls. He went to the bar, became Barstow Law scholar in 1898, and was called in 1899. His manifest abilities and the persuasiveness of his advocacy soon brought him into notice; he was chosen one of the counsel for the British Government in the
