The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1922-02-01
Senator France
 Sounds Call For
 World Conference

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 Armaments and wars are but the outward symptoms of imperialism which is the deadly malady from which the world has long and griev- ous1y suffered. This last war was the final and absolute proof that the clashing rivalries and conflicting an- b1dons of empires must ever make wars inevitable. Permanent peace cannot be achieved by new deals. It can come only through new ideals, l those ideals which have been wrought into the fndestructible framework of America and Americanisn1-
 Our Americanism holds that all men everywhere are divine1y endowed with the rights of life, liberty, justice, happiness and self-government. This l doctrine removes all motive for the l conquest of the weak by the strong. | Under this doctrine the conqueror ac- | quires not new opportunities for ex- 1 ploitaton, but new responsibilities for the elevation and liberation of the conquered.
 | Imperialism leads to the selfish as- sertion and aggrandizement of one na- | tfon at the expense of and against the interests of all. Amerfcanism ad- nations and peoples and the common aggrandiZement and enrichment of all. This would be morally right and commercially wise. Imperialism
 
 in order to exploit him. Americanfsm would elevate, educate and strengthen him that he may exercise his unalien- able rights, become a producer and trader adding to the worlds wealth. Imperialism would exploit and inn poverish subject peoples. Am merfcan- ism would develop and enrich the world.
 The more one studies the great truths enunciated in the Declaration of Independence and in the constitu- ton the more apparent becomes the need of their application to the in- ternational problems of the present Decentralization in Europe.
 Every farmer, worker, manufactur CT and business man in America is suffering because of the financial de- moralization in Europe. The budgets Of European countries will not bal ance. Europe owes us more than fif- teen billions of dollars. Foreign ex- change markets are diSordered. Eur ope cannot buy from us as she would. Our export trade was three billions of dollars less in 1921 than it was in the previous year.
 How can Europe pay her debts to | us? Can we trade as usual with Eur | ope and can Europe send us in addi- l tton one-half a billion dollars of gold l annually to pay the interest on the | debts of European countries to us. It | is impossible. The present gold re- | serve of the United States is in ex-
  land has but $763,749,00O, France | s690,15S,000 and Italy s2O9, ,69S, 900 in gold, all of these countries together having gold little in excess of one-half of our gold reserve. If the European countries began paying us this inter- est on their debt in gold and some thing each year on the principal in less than three years we would drain from Europe every ounce and grain of gold. Germany's separations, Eur ope's debt to us, all international ob ligatonS must be paid either in goods or Hquidated otherwise than with gold. If Europe pays her interest to us by shipping us five hundred mill lions of dollars more goods than we ship to Europe, our industries will be utterly demoralized.
 Because of all of these problems which must be met I have advocated l the calling at once of an economic conference These problems can and must be solved, under American lead srship, by the application of the re- conciling, healing and upbui1ding ruths, principles and ideals of Ameri- canisn. . The problems of these debts owed ., oy certain of the nations to certain other nations and of the huge total ] 1ebt of the world are most serious ] ones. Ii
 Liquidation of Worlds Debts {
 Before the war the total debts of l he countries of the world were about ,
  febts of the countries amount to the S nconceivable and staggering total of ( two hundred and sixty i've billions of dollars, which sum t 'arrfes an interest charge in excess of s line billions of dollars annually T Prosperity can not return to America e intn there has been adopted some T ,lan for the reduction or liquida Ii on ! e If those international obligations q which act as impossible barriers fl the normal circulation of a commerce. The nations must become a nsolvent under such a crushing load | t # debt unless means are found for a he elimination of deficits and the ! p he increasing of national incomes. D of budgets i. It must be apparent to all that the t olution lies in the increasing of the v ota1 producing power of the world c Y rational, practical and humane de- elopment of it's vast, undeveloped uman resources of energy and pro- uctive power and its largely unused atural wealth International coop { ration would find vast virgin fields b or helpful endeavor in upbuilding nd developing Russia, China, Africa t nd other less important, but exten- . i've backward portions of the world. n never advocate 6 policy simply be- l. ause 1t is ideal. insist that every b olicy must combine the ideal with le practical. My proposal for a vol q ntary concert of effort by all the na- il pms for the common recognition and v flrunation Of the princip1es upon x