ABSTRACT
The outbreak of war in Europe in 1914 had certain immediate effects upon the economy of the United States. (1) A financial crisis impended as a result of the closing of the London Stock Exchange and the liquidation of European investments in the United States. Stock exchanges in leading centers suspended operations for several months. Heavy demands on banks for cash forced the New York banks to issue clearinghouse certificates and the national government to issue almost 68 million dollars in paper money under the Aldrich-Vreeland Act of 1908. (2) Trade and industry were seriously upset. Export markets for cotton, wheat, metals, and steel manufactures temporarily contracted. American industry was deprived of foreign ships previously available for American trade. Wartime conditions made commerce hazardous and difficult. American business prospects in 1914 and early 1915 were very uncertain.
