The New York herald., 1921-05-08


900 600, wnich<represented less than half o.
the sum fixed at London and at Versailles
and they abolished the export tax feature.
Actually they offered 10 pay l2,5oo0O0,O0o
as compared with $33, 600, 100000 which the
Preparations Commission later settled upon
the final sum of Indebtedness
But in making an offer representing APP
proximately third of the allied figure the
Germans surrounded their proposal with
multitude of conditions. These seemed to
indicate that the Allies if they accepted the
Gerrnan offer, would surrender all their
powers of enforcement, including the occu-
patton of German territory, as fixed by the
Treaty of Versailles. In addition they were
bound to break the terms of the Upper
Silesian pebiscite provision, which obligated
them to give to Poland such districts in
Upper Silesia as voted for Polish annexation.
And at the recent election practically all the
mineral regions had voted for Poland.
German Offer Not Clear
To American Understanding
Many Americans were doubtless deceived
by the German statement which announced
that the Germans mad promised to pay 200,-
coo, 100000 marks gold. against 226O0O,-
900, 900 demanded at London, that is S50,000,
900 600 as agaNst $4,000 900 600 In reality
of s12,500 900, as compared with $21 ,00O,-
100000. 1t had arrived at the larger total
by providing that the amortization Of the
$12, 500. 900, 900 should be extended over sixty
or even eighty years as compared with
forty-two years fixed at London. This
proposal was the more astonishing as al
London Simons had protested against the
forty-two year period amounting to the
enslavement of the German people over long
years Yet he now solemnly proposed to
double the term of years.
Still another condition was an nterna-
tional loan, guaranteed by Germany but to
be issued at per cent. lat the moment when
money was to be had on far better security
only az per cent, or even at a higher rate
But no single detail is worth emphasizing
because the main difficulty lay in the size Of
the sum proposed and the conditions at
tached, which meant, so far as they were
intelligible at all, the scrapping of the Treaty
Of Versailles
When received with all the diplomatic
fiction of "informaty'' these terms were
transmitted to Geddes and Jusserand the
British and French Ambassadors and some
what laterlt to the Belgian and Italian. Both
the British and French Ambassadors frankly
told MIR. Hughes at the outset that they
regarded these proposals as totally unaccept-
ernments before making a final statement
Meantime the Germans with character
istic courtesy, published the proposals, giving
their publication all the advantage Of en-
phasis laid upon various points and set at
work their propaganda factories the world
over In making this publication the Ger
mans grayely embarrassed the American
Government and removed from the whole
discussion the slightest character of secrecy
The result was inevitable. Instead of any
private discussions, the British and French
Prime Mnisters-the latter at once the for
mel after a discussion with Berlin over the
meaning Of certain passa ages-pronounced
the proposals totally unacceptable and so
informed Mr.. Hughes Similarly emphatic
statement came from the Belgians, while the
Italian view. although more guarded had
the same general character
Meantime German propaganda took IN its
work. From Berlin came the repeated sug-
gestlon that the United states should sug-
Sest any appropriate notifications and
Germany would consent to accept these
suggestions of the United States. This was
followed by the inaccurate statement that
the United States was actually making such
sugsesuons--a statement which obtained
credence momentarily, both in London and
Paris. Mr.. Hughes was now in the actual
presence OF the danger which he had fore
seem the danger that German failure to
make reasonable proposition might leave
him In the lurch and that at home and
abroad he might seem TO be serving only
German end And this danger was tenn
porarily accentuated by the apparent differ
ence in opinion between Paris and London
as to the, question of whether the German
proposal, unsatisfactory in itself, could be
tho basis for new discussions.
Is Germany Using u. S. to
Divide Her Enemies?