The essence of my inventories is, therefore, the counting of things rather than the ephemeral valuations that are put upon them. Obviously it is impossible to add up the number of ships, railway cars, etc. and obtain any total that means anything. Consequently in order to arrive at totals reflecting physical quantities it is necessary to translate the latter into terms of a common denominator, and for such a common denominator I use the dollar, i.e., the values, of 1913, unless there be some sound reason, as in the cases of ships and agricultural land, to use different values. Even so, such different values are supposed to be based upon the dollar of 1913. My main purpose is to develop an expression of the physical wealth of the country. This must be borne distinctly in mind in considering the analyses that follow. These explanations and qualifications, however, pertain only to the estimation of the internal wealth. The estimation of the external wealth obviously is a totalization of the dollars of the years when invested, and manifestly includes the effects of inflated prices. An understanding of this difference may lead us to a consideration of the subject of whether as a matter not only of policy, but also of equity, the foreign obligations that have accrued to us on account of the war ought not to be written down.
My inventory for 1916 is supposed to represent the position at the end of that year. The inventory for 1920 accounts for the situation at various times between June 30, 1920, and June 30, 1921, but generally the assets are reckoned as of Dec. 31, 1920. It was impossible to survey the situation of everything as of the same date. The inventory is confined to physical
