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 worth in sterling yesterday or a year ago or ten or fifty years ago. And these facts are sometimes really some guide as to what the probable value of any country's currency may be in a year's time; though the extent to which shrewd people may be misled about exchange movements was shown by the readiness with which they went on buying German marks until the value of the mark went out of sight.

In the midst of this mirage of doubts and possibilities those who invest in oversea Government debts work largely on impression and instinct, a hazy knowledge of the financial past of the debtor and the summary of the shrewd judgment of the Stock Exchange which is supplied to them by their brokers. They think and feel and find that Capel Court agrees that "Argentina (or whatever the country may be) is all right" and there you are. In this example there is at least a record to work on, but how can anyone make a guess concerning the probable performance of the frisky European three-year-olds who have lately made their appearance? Of them, however, it can at least be said that they were introduced at a time of great difficulty and under august auspices. The need for care was so evident that we may be certain that as much