Evening star., 1920-05-26
.GEDDES DENIES
BRITAIN SEEKS TO
M0NOPOL|ZE OIL
No Truth in War Debt Pool
Backing, Says British
Ambassador.

completely without basis in fact as
charges that Britain today was moved
by militarist impulses.
! Il say without fear OF informed
criticism" Sir Auckland declared.
that British foreign policy is di-
rected against no man, but is inspired
| by the desire to seek peace. to bring
| order out Of chaos, to extend the
| boundaries Of freedom, to improve the
| lot of the oppressed and to increase
the material prosperity of the world.
That is our program, those are tho
principles by which ], as British rep
reSentative in this land, am guided
from day to day."
| Denies War Debt Pool.
The ambassador touched also upon
reports that the British government
was trying to pool the war debts OF
Europe and to drag you the United
States) into the pool"
| You may seek far and wide for
could be based" he said. You will not
find 1t. II you look closely you will
find my government trying to pour oil
on the troubled waters of Europe and
| you will also find on-lookers who
seize the oil as 1t is poured and throw
| it on the fires of anti-English feeling
here
A. to ship Building.
| In answering what he characterized
as wild duck" publications as to
British purposes. the ambassador
dealt first with the British navy.
sand ships. including four battle
cruisers. We're under construction
when the armistice was signed, one
cruiser. the Hood. too far advanced
TO permit cancellation, was the only
| major ship completed.
I'VE have not at present a single
| capital ship building or completing
| and not one ship, large or small, has
been laid down since the armistice,"
| he said.
The British army and air force
had been "even more drasticaly"
dealt with, Sir Auckland continued,
| and added:
1T is no business Of mine to com
pare these facts with the correspond
ing action of any other nation, but
ask you who know yourselves to
be n-militarist to contrast them
with your own national acts II you
are tempted to think England mill
tarist"
| Touches OIL Topic.
The ambassador, after referring to
azine that Britain has acquired an
oil monopoly and proposes to hold
the world to ransom" said 10 per
cent of the worlds oil output was
from American soil, and Is per cent
from Mexico. American capital con-
trolling three-fourths Of the Mexican
yield. In addition. he declared. Amer
leans were seeking oil in at least
ten other countries. but, regardless
of these operations. he concluded.
you have 81 per cent OF the present
world supply of oil under your con-
troll"
| Now for the alleged oil monopolist,"
the ambassador continued, the British
empires total production is about 2h
per cent of the worlds supply, while the
] ,y,v>1x Nf 1;I vr,hSo fo
trolled by British capital. is about 2 per
cent. British companies have also some
production in Burma, but the total is
relatively small.
'1n time of emergency British in
terests controlled about 5 per cent Of
the world output. Do your figures sug-
I gest monopoly for Britain?"
Explains Oil Rights.
1t had been said. Sir Auckland con-
tinued, that Britain sought rights over
undeveloped oil and future monopoly
through control Of Baku, Ratum, Pales-
tine and Mesopotamia- Britain owned
none Of these, he said, and over Pales-
tine and Mesopotamia would have un-
der Turkish treaty proposals a mandate
tionship toward those countries as that
of the United States to Liberia-"a best
friend and big brother"
t. AS trustee. he said. Great Britain had
forbidden surveys and acquisition Of oil
rights in Mesopotamia and Palestine un-
problem themselves He said he wished
to deny quite categorically" that Great
Britain had commenced q pipe line from
Bagdad or Mosul to Haifa on the Med
iterranean. ~
AS to the Anglo Persian. agreement
| and reports that II was based on oil
acquisition, the ambassador said that
British oil rights in Persia were of
"the ordinary commercial kind and
date from 1901." and since had not
been modified. AS to reports that Brit
| ain was excluding foreigners from ex-
| ploitation of oil in her territories. he
| said IT was true only Al to the Brit
! ish isles and there only because oil
| had been nationalized. AIDING that It
| made no difference IN any case be-
| curiosity, not commercial PROPOSE
ton" x
The last report as to oil with which
the ambassador dealt was that Amer
lean ships had been denied fuel oil
at British bunker stations This was
true, he said, only in that a special
wartime privilege to all allied ship
ping, including British: giving them
access to navy oil stocks. had been
withdrawn.
Chauucey NJ. Depew Welcomes.
Toasts to President Wilson and
King George were proposed by
Chauncey M Depew. president Of the
Pilgrims and toastmaster, after
which he made an address Of well
come and read q message Of greeting
from Lord Desborough. chairman Of
the executive committee of the Brit
ish Pilgrims. A message OF regret at
not being able to be present was read
from Secretary OF State Colby.
Mr.. Depew said, in part: "All irri.
tation and pin pricks will in a brief
time be. forgotten, though others will
mass away. But when the history of
| this period is written it will record
"a among the brightest OF wonderful
achievements that the American and
the British navies worked together
| in absolute harmony; that there was
never any dissension among the OFF,
GERS and always cordial friendship
among the men,"