Aftenposten
- President Relander's Farewell to Oslo.
- The Winding-Up of Klaveness Bank.
- Mowinckel Again.
Aftenposten's morning edition of 7 October 1926 described Finnish President Relander leaving Oslo: King Haakon and Crown Prince Olav rode with him in an open carriage from the Palace to the East Station while thousands cheered along Karl Johan. The paper also reported that Klaveness Bank would ask a general meeting next Friday to dissolve the bank and choose voluntary liquidation rather than costly winding-up under administration; it expected the process to take about five years and said small depositors would be paid in full. An editorial, "Mowinckel Again", defended Prime Minister Lykke's decision to wait for the prohibition referendum before setting the budget's revenue side, and mocked Mowinckel for having backed a prohibition law during treaty negotiations, which the paper called a humiliating retreat.
Translation
President Relander's Farewell to Oslo.
Around six o'clock yesterday afternoon thousands had gathered on Karl Johan to bid President Relander farewell as the President drove to the East Station. King Haakon, Crown Prince Olav and the President drove from the Palace to the station in an open carriage. Everywhere the carriage went, cheers rang out from the crowd. At the East Station the arrangements were much the same as at the arrival, except that there was no military guard of honour. The gentlemen present, among whom were seen the members of the government with Prime Minister Lyk-
The Winding-Up of Klaveness Bank.
General meeting next Friday. Why voluntary liquidation is preferred.
A meeting of the board of representatives of Klaveness Bank was held yesterday afternoon under the chairmanship of its chairman, shipowner A. F. Klaveness. It was decided to call a general meeting for next Friday. The general meeting will have to decide on the dissolution of the bank and elect a liquidation board. The creditors' consent will now gradually be obtained for choosing a voluntary winding-up, which is believed to be in the creditors' interest, since a winding-up under administration would be a costly and unsuitable apparatus to set in motion in this case. Much depends on the position the foreign creditors take. As regards the bank's financial position, it is impossible at the present time to say anything certain. The final result will of course depend largely on how fortunate one is in realising one's industrial engagements. Such a liquidation will take a good 5 years. It has been announced that the smaller depositors will be paid in full. According to what we learn, the bank has a couple of thousand in that category.
Mowinckel Again.
In Trondhjem Mr. Mowinckel has felt himself unpleasantly touched by the fact that Prime Minister Lykke has stated that the Government will not draw up the budget for the coming term before it has seen the result of the prohibition vote. That the Government, in other words, wants to see the sums it can count on before it sets up the revenue side of the budget. Shameful! When Mr. Mowinckel was Minister of Commerce, he certainly did not need to see anything whatsoever in order to hit on the right course. He did not need to see how the treaty negotiations went before he joined in enshrining prohibition in law. On the contrary, he regarded a statutory enactment of prohibition as a strengthening of the treaty negotiations. Oh yes, Mr. Mowinckel hit on the right course. As is well known, it turned into a humiliating retreat. That does not tempt the present government to a repetition in any form. It wants to see the result before it counts on it. It will not repeat the Mowinckel blunders. At this Mr. Mowinckel now feels unpleasantly touched.
Context
Why prohibition was going to a vote in October 1926
The editorial appeared eleven days before Norwegians voted, on 18 October 1926, in a consultative referendum on whether to keep prohibition. Partial prohibition had been in force since 1917, and after a 1919 referendum spirits and dessert wine had also been banned. Pressure from France, whose exports of alcoholic beverages had fallen, was one of the reasons the referendum was organised. This is the background to the editorial's attack on Mowinckel. The paper claims that as Minister of Commerce he backed writing prohibition into law without waiting to see how the treaty negotiations turned out, and that the result was "a humiliating retreat". The editorial does not name the countries involved. The independent record confirms French trade pressure, but the paper's account of Mowinckel's own role is its partisan reading.
What the referendum decided, and why the budget waited for it
Voters rejected continued prohibition. The vote against was overwhelming in and around Oslo and in other urban areas such as Bergen, and as a result the law was abolished and prohibition came to an end. The editorial presents Lykke's decision to wait for this result as plain prudence: the government would see what sums it could count on before writing the revenue side of the budget. In the paper's argument, this caution is the opposite of Mowinckel's earlier conduct, which it portrays as legislating first and facing the consequences later. When the editorial was printed, the outcome was still unknown. The figures the government chose to wait for became settled only with the vote eleven days later.
Klaveness Bank and Norway's 1920s banking crisis
Norway had banking crises roughly once a decade between 1847 and 1928, the last of them running from 1920 to 1928, and this one was the most extensive the country had experienced. The groundwork for such crises was generally laid in boom times, while the crises themselves usually broke out in downturns. In 1923 the Storting passed an administration law that allowed banks to be placed under public administration, and between its passage and 1928, 47 commercial banks and 19 savings banks were put under that regime. When the Klaveness Bank report rejects a winding-up "under administration" as costly and unsuitable, it is referring to this procedure. The article does not explain why the bank failed. It links the final outcome to how well the bank can sell off its industrial engagements, and says much depends on how the foreign creditors respond.
Who was President Relander, and why he was travelling
Lauri Kristian Relander was President of Finland from 1925 to 1931. A prominent member of the Agrarian League, he had served as a member of parliament and as Speaker before his election. Finland kept to a policy of isolation in foreign affairs during his term, but Relander established relations at the head-of-state level with neighbouring countries, including the other Nordic states. In 1926 he also made an official visit to Latvia. His constant state visits and trips drew criticism and earned him the nickname Reissu-Lasse, "Travelling Lasse". The Aftenposten report shows the Norwegian side of this diplomacy: the King and Crown Prince rode with him in an open carriage, and thousands lined Karl Johan to see him off.
Original
Præsident Relanders avsked med Oslo.
til staværende get sikt vil jo av, hvor sationen ter. En 5 aar. dre indEfter en ha et ori. paa er slike opbevaKong Haakon og pra Ved seks-tiden igaar eftermiddag var tusener samlet paa Karl Johan for at by præsident Relander farvel, idet præsidenten kjørte til Østbanestationen. Kong Haakon, kronprins Olav og præsidenten kjørte fra Slottet til stationen i aapen vogn. Overalt hvor vognen kjørte frem lød hurraene fra folkemassen. Paa Østbanestationen var arrangementet omtrent det samme som ved ankomsten, dog med undtagelse av at der ikke var nogen militær honnørvakt. De fremmøtte herrer, hvoriblandt saaes regjeringens medlemmer med statsminister Lyk -
Avviklingen av Klaveness Bank.
træffe det rette. Han behøvet ikke at se, hvorleOver dette føler nu hr. Mowinckel sig ubehagelig berørt. Avviklingen av Klaveness Bank. Generalforsamling næste fredag. Hvorfor man vil vælge frivillig likvidation. Der holdtes repræsentantskapsmøte i Klaveness Bank igaar eftermiddag under ledelse av ordføreren, skibsreder A. F. Klaveness. Der besluttedes at indkalde til generalforsamling næste fredag. Generalforsamlingen vil faa at fatte beslutning om bankens opløsning og at vælge likvidationsstyre. Man vil nu efterhvert indhente kreditorenes samtykke til, at der vælges frivillig avvikling, hvad man mener er i kreditorenes interesse, da en avvikling under administration vil være et kostbart og uhensiktsmæssig apparat at sætte igang i dette tilfælde. Meget avhænger av, hvordan de utenlandske kreditorer stiller sig. Med hensyn til status er det paa det nuværende tidspunkt umulig at si noget sikkert. Det endelige resultat vil jo i væsentlig grad avhænge av, hvor heldig man er med realisationen av sine industriengagementer. En slik likvidation vil ta sine 5 aar. Det er meddelt, at de mindre indskytere vil faa sit helt ut. Efter hvad vi erfarer skal banken ha et par tusen inden den kategori. Store sprit-fangster. 90 ti-literskander og endel [?] paa Ved dag va Johan lande ten kj Kor Olav Slottet Ove frem l sen. Paa rangem
Mowinckel igjen.
Nr 506 Morgennr Abonnem. pris: indenbys...... "...... Mowinckel igjen. I Trondhjem har hr. Mowinckel følt sig ubehagelig berørt over, at statsminister Lykke har uttalt, at Regjeringen ikke vil sætte op budgettet for kommende termin, før den har set resultatet av forbudsavstemningen. At Regjeringen med andre ord vil se de beløp, den kan regne med, før den sætter op budgettets indtæktsside. Skammelig! Da hr. Mowinckel var handelsminister behøvet han saamen ikke at se nogetsomhelst for at træffe det rette. Han behøvet ikke at se, hvorledes det gik med traktatforhandlingene, før han var med paa at lovfæste forbudet. Han ansaa tvertimot en lovfæstelse av forbudet som en styrkelse av traktatforhandlingene. Jo, hr. Mowinckel traf det rette. Det blev som bekjendt et ydmygende tilbaketog. Det frister ikke den nuværende regjering til gjentagelse i nogen form. Den vil se resultatet, før den regner med det. Den vil ikke gjøre de Mowinckel'ske dumheter op igjen. Over dette føler nu hr. Mowinckel sig ubehagelig berørt. Avviklingen av Klaveness Bank. Pr L