The Bolivar County Democrat., 1920-05-22

do you believe the plague of types
that Is taking hideous death toll ir
Esthonia and Poland and the Ukraine
and eating along the fringes of Ger
many and Czecho-Slovakia, will con
fine itself to these remote lands?
Only last Saturday our health com
missioner OF New York, DR.. Copeland
sailed for the other side, just to meas.
ure the danger and take precautiou
against such an invasion.
This is one menace at our threshold
The other, more threatening, more
terrible, is the menace of the worlds
i'll will. We can afford to die, but
to be despised forever as greedy
and Pharisaical nation Ia . fate that
we must not incur. o.
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 seriousness 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
upon to do her part.
England is meeting the problems Of
reconstruction just as those who knew
her past should have expected her to
meet them.
Plan to Aid Central Europe.
It is not for me, perhaps, to give
In detail formula for solution of the
worlds ills, bat as have been asked
many times, What would you do?"
1 am glad to give my own answer.
Accordingly, l would ask:
/. That congress Immediately pass
a bill appropriating sum not to ex.
ceed $500,O00,O00 for the use of Cen
trail and Eastern Europe.
2. That congress call upon the pres
ident to appoint non-political COM
mission of three Americans, distin.
guished for their character and execu.
tive ability and commanding the re-
spect of the American people. Such
commission should include men Of
the type OF General Pershing, Mr..
Hoover or ex-Secretary Lane. l would
invest that commission with complete
power.
T 8. would have the commission in.
structed to proceed at once, accom-.
panied by proper personnel, to survey
conditions in Central and Eastern
Europe, and then act for the restora
ton of the countries under such con
ditions and upon such terms as the
commission itself may decide to be
practicable and effective. Among the
conditions should be provided thai
there should be no local interference
with the free and untrammeled exer
else by the commission Of its OWL
prerogative Of allocating materials
Governmental politics should be elm
mated; unreasonable and prejudicial
barriers between the various countries
should be removed, and such substan
tial guarantees as may be available
should be exacted in order that the
conditions imposed should be ful
filled.
A.. As to financial terms, should
make them liberal. would charge
no interest for the first three years
for the next three years, per cent
with provision that such Interest
might be funded If the economic con
ditions of the country were not ap
preaching normal, or If its exchange
conditions were so adverse as to make
payment unduly burdensome. should
make the maturity of the obligation
Is years from its date, and l should
have no doubt as to it's final payment
s. Immediately the plan was adopt
ed l would have our government invite
other governments, in position to as
sist, to participate in the undertaking
6. To set forth completely my
opinion, should add that in the final
instructions the American people
through their government; should say
to the commission:
1--WE want you to go and do this job
In such a manner as, after study, you
think it should be done. This is no
ordinary undertaking. The American
people trust you to see that it is
done right"
l would also say to the commission:
"Use so much of this money as il
needed"
Personally, am confident that with
the assistance and cooperation which
would come from other parts OF the
world, the sum of $500,000,000 from
the United States would be more than
enough to start these countries on
their way to self-support and the res
toration of normal conditions.
The whole plan, of course, involvec
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 I think we could properly say to
the treasury department:
1--WE know how serious your finan
cial problems are; we know the dif.
ficulties which are Immediately con-
fronting you; we know the importance
of deflation, and we know that the
government must economize and that