The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1919-02-15
BIG PROBLEMS
BEFORE ALLIES
NOW ECONOMIC
With Temporary Disposal Of
League of Nations Plan
Peace Council Now to Air
Food and Trade Situation.
BLOCKADE, SHIPPING AND
RAW MATERIALS lNV0LV WE'D
Supreme Economic Council
Comprising Trained Finan-
Cial and Commercial Minds
Is in Complete Charge.

PARIS, Feb. 1b.--With the subject
OF the league OF nations now out OF
the way for some time to come, the
biggest problem before the peace con-
ference ut present is believed TO be
the readiustment Of the worlds flnan-
CiRl and economic relations,
Three different organizations have
been created to deal with these sub
iects Some Of their conclusions are
ready for consideration as soon as the
ports, although the last body created
IN this connection dates back only to
Feb 3.
This body ls the supreme economic
council, and its work IL of the great
eat immediate Importance, 1t has
been charged temporarily during the
armistice period to handle only such
pressing questions as are the dispo-
sition to be made of shipping, the
abatement Of the blockade, which has
been holding back not only the enc
mys industry, but that of neutrals,
the distribution of raw materials, and
finally those financial questions that
require instant attention,
This council, which includes some OF
the ablest financial and business minds
Of America and Europe, has firmly but
quietly and without exciting animoSlty
been suppanting the military officials
who had been dealing with the same
subjects.
1t was felt the handling of these
questions by the military was only in
Cidentnl to the war and that the time
had come to place them in hands
trained to deal with them, 1t was this
opinion, held by the supreme wal
council which caused the economic
council to be created, as 1t was de-
sired they be dealt with on the safe
and sound lines of civilian experience
N at,.N ts ~ I'D
to be the work Of two other organSa'
tions created by the peace conference
These are the economic drafting com
mission and the financial drafting
commission, These include distln'
guiRhed finanoiers from all the entente
countries. The economic drafting com
mission already has its report befor'
the peace conference, awaiting aetiol
by that body,
N. rs high irnpnrtanee. may be- Judge
fffUin the fart that it, hiss liFderkA lsfl
| to make practical application Of IN
| third of President Wilson's II points
namely, that declaring for the remOva
80 far as possible Of all economic bar
rers and the establishment OF a.
equality OF trade conditions among al
Of the nations oonsenting to the peace
and associating themselves for III
maintenance,
The problem involves the right o
nations to discriminate between
friends and foes In their trade rela
tIons and the proprlety OF continuing
the many special trade treaties will
their differential tariffs, which In thu
past often have ieopardi2ed the peace
fu relations of states,
The financial drafting commission II
dealing with another subject of thu
greatest moment to the business
world, 1t Is this commission whicl
will have to meet the insistent demanC
OF some of tho European nations fol
the pooling of all the credits, debit
and resources of the nations--a propo
stion which seems certain to b,
strongly resisted by the American rep
resentatiYes,
OF scarcely secondary Importance II
the task Of obtaining information ~
to the financial resources, present ant
prospective of the enemy countries, IL
order that the commission on repara
tion may complete its work, which Il
based on the idea, one of the dele
gates intimated. Of making the encm!
pay all that he can safely be mad'
to do.