New-York tribune., 1921-02-16
President Elect Assured
He Will Be as Untram-
meled as Air in Deal
ing With Foreign Loans
III edge by Wilson
Is F'latly Denied
Clearing Up $1,6OO,OOO
Party Deficit Discussed
in Council With Hays
From a Star Correspondent

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla, Feb. 15.-
absolute bunk" were the words used
by Thomas W. Lamont to-day to con-
vince Precident-elect Harding of the
untruth of the report that President
Wilson had secretly agreed that the
Allies indebtedness to the United
States should be cancelled. Mr.. La
mont, partner in J. p Morgan G. Co.
and one of President Wilson's peaue
conference advisers, assured Mr.. Har-
ding that his future policy toward the
liquidation of this debt must be "as
untrammeled as air"
1t may DE said that the President
elect has been greatly perturbed by the
thought that the United States may
have been pledged to cancellation Of
this tremendous financial obligation.
Some idea of the measure of his con-
Germ may e had from a realization of
the fact that Mr.. Lamont is the first
member of the peace conference that
Mr.. Harding has summoned to a con-
ference. In fact, he studiously has
avoided this in the past, because he
did not wish to embarrass President
Wilson. 1t was this feeling that caused
Mr.. Harding to withhold invitations to
former Secretary of State Lansing and
CLionel E. n. House to attend the front
rl--h meeting of minds.
GsNestioned on Peace Conference
Mr. Lamont after leaving Mr.. Harding
said:
81 found that President elect Harding
wished to ask me about certain phases
of the international financial situation
which had come under my observation
during my attendance at the peace
conference at Paris in 1919. l found
too, that Mr.. Harding has himself been
giving very serious thought to the
same situation, and / may say at once
that his view is both safe and re-
assuring. He began by dsclaiming
any ability as fnancier, but I must
say that many of the suggestions were
very practical and showed the result
of careful, cool and friendly analysis.
In my turn | was able to assure the
President-elect that there is absolutely
no truth in the statement being CON
stantly repeated to the effect that at
was some secret understanding be-
tween President Wilson and his ad-
visers on the one hand and the French
and British representatives on the
other, to the effect that the Allied in
debtedness to the United States should
in whole or in part be cancelled. 1t
is only fair to say that from start
to finish of the peace conference Presi-
dent Wilson and his advisers, without
exception, opposed vigorously and fin
ally any such suggestion of cancella-
tion. 10 repeat, there was no commit
ment, expressed or implied, near or
remote, moral or otherwise, as to the
handling of the Allies Indebtedness to
Mr.. Harding from my knowledge of
what took place at the peace, confer
ence' that as to his future policy in
this whole matter, he is as free and as
untrammeled as air.
Harding Showed Keen Interest
Having said this, / want to add
that the President-elect showed, as |
have said, keen interest in the whole
situation, and from his expression I
clearly gained the idea that when
the time comes for dealing with
these questions of international indebt-
an eye to the welfare of the United
States and. in large sense, of the
world generally"
The President-el and Chairman
Will II. Hays have been discussing an
other financial question, which, while
it does not involve so much money as
the Allied indebtedness, is important
enough to have vital influence on the
next Administration. This is the mat
ter of the S1,o00,OO0 deficit created by
the Republican National Committee be-
Tor the close of the last campaign.
Mr.. Hays arrived last night and was
in conference with the President-elect
until midnight. They had other talks
to-day and Mr.. Hays is remaining until
tomorrow William Boyce Thompson,
of New York, chairman of the ways
and means committee of the national
organization, which was directly in
charge Of the raising of funds for the
also is here, and Harry
Daugherty, the President-e elects chief
political adviser, arrived tonight.
Although it was allowed to be known
that Mr.. Harding and Mr.. Hays had
discussed everything from taxation to
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