Then she turned about and steadily built up her gold reserve in the Bank of France, from $500,000,000 to above $800,000,000, although her people were not expanding in population, industry, or enterprise.

France had grown so confident that she seemed at one time to have lost her financial cunning.
In Germany in 1913 I was told that German finance had passed through the "fire test," that two years of building recession and of expanding commerce had placed her on a solid financial base; and it was true.
I was told to step over to Paris and see a disordered budget, an increasing national deficit, bad investments in Mexico and South America, and disorganized finance.

I did and found it all true.

I also found that France was fully able to take care of herself without any outside help, and, but for the specter of outside interference, to delay her financing if she so elected.
It has been something of a mystery as to how there could be two Balkan wars and so little of public finance behind them.

Of course, Russia and France helped the Balkan States and Germany helped Turkey.