The Glenwood post., 1920-05-22

One-half of the world may not eat
while the other half starves. How
long do you believe the plague Of ty-
toll in Esthonia and Poland and the
Ukraine and eating along the frtnges
Of Germany and Czecho- Slokavia will
confine itself to these remote lands2
Only last Saturday our health COM
missioner of New York, DIR. Copeland,
sailed for the other side just to meas
ure the danger and take precaution
against such an invasion.
This is one menace at our threshold.
The other more threatening, more ter
rible, is the menace Of the worlds i'll
will We can afford to die, but to be
despised forever as a greedy and phar-
isaical nation Ia a fate that we must
not incur.
The French government has many
serious problems to solve, but the
French peasant is working and the
French artisan while still sadly In
need of raw materials, has not lost his
habit of industry and thrift. The most
encouraging fact about France today Is
that her people are alive to the seri-
BUSINESS of Frances problem and they
are going forward bravely to solve that
problem.
Italy, despite her great shortage of
raw material, is looking forward and
not backward. Italy can be relied up
on to do her part.
England is meeting the problems of
reconstruction just as those who knew
hor. noe oh hn cd hor n
meet them.
Plan to Aid Central Europe.
| 1t is not for me, perhaps, to give in
detail a formula for solution of the
worlds ills, but as l have been asked
many times, what would you do?" l
am glad TO give my own answer
Accordingly, l would ask:
/. That Congress Immediately pass
bill appropriating sum not to ex-
coed $5O0,O00,O00 for the use of Cen
trail and Eastern Europe.
2. That Congress call upon the
President to appoint a non-political
| commission of three Americans, dis
| tnguished for their character and ex
| ecutive ability, and commanding the
respect of the American people. Such
commission should include men OF
the type of General Pershing, Mr..
| Hoover, or eXSecretary Lane. l would
| invest that commission with complete
| power.
3. l would have the commission in
structed to proceed at once, accompan-
led by proper personnel, to survey con
ditions in Central and Eastern Europe,
and then act for the restoration of
! those countries under such conditions
| and upon such terms as the commits
sion itself may decide to be practical
| BILE and effective. Among the cOndi-
| tons should be provided that there
| should be no local interference with
| the free and untrammeled exercise by
the commission of its own prerogative
| of allocating materials. Governmental
politics should be eliminated, unreason-
able and prejudicial barriers between
the various countries should be re-
moved and such substantial guarantees
as may be available should be eXacted
| in order that the conditions imposed
| should be fulfilled.
T. AS to financial terms, / should
make them liberal. would charge no
interest for the first three years, for
| the next three years, 6 per cent, with
provision that such interest might be
| funded if the economic conditions Of
| the country We're not apron ching nor
nal, or if its exchange conditions were
so adverse as to make payment unduly
| hurdensome. | should make the matur-
ty of the obligation fifteen years from
its date and | should have no doubt as
TO its final payment.
3. Immediately the plan was
adopted l would have our government
invite other governments in a position
TO assist to participate in the under
taking
g. To set forth completely my opin-
ion l should add that in the final in
| structions the American people
through their government should say
to the commission: I'VE want you to
20 and do this job in such ii manner
! as after study you think it should be
| done. This is no ordinary undertake
ing. The Americap people trust you
to see that it is done right" / would
also say to the commission: Use SO
much of this money ms is needed" Per
sonally, i am confident that with the
| assistance and cooperation which
would come from other parts of the
| world, the sum of S5O0,OOO,OeO from the
United States would be more than
way to self support and the restora-
| ton of normal conditions.
The whole plan of course involves
| many practical considerations, the
most serious of which is that of OBJ
! tanning the money, whether by issuing
additional Liberty bonds, an increase
in the floating debt or by taxation. But
think we could properly say to the
Treasury Department:
I'VE know how serious your financial
| problems are we know the difficulties
which are Immediately confronting
you; we know the Importance of de-
flation, and we know that the govern
ment must economic and that individ-
uals must economze but we also know
that the American government adj
ynnced $4,000, 100000 to its allies 10
attain victory and peace Certainly it