Evening star., 1922-10-03

'i oiiieo ueDt, MIR. Lamont raised two
| Questions: DO our former allies
! really owe US all the debt?" and care
! we doing our full share to solve the
| tragic questions that are weighing
| upon the world?"
One thing is certain" he declared
h ~ some one, en- April 4. 1917, had
been able to give us our choice as to
whether we should rather give up
Ireely and for all time $5,00O,OOO, 900
OF give up the lives of several hun
dred thousand of our sons, there
would have been no hesitation as to
our choice.
Questions Debt Policy.
rate, however, determined that
cholce 1t determined that Great
hrltaln and France should give up the
llVes during that first year and that
we should furnish, not our blood, but
our money; taking, however, in place
| or IT the promises to pay of our allies.
NO other policy could have been
followed at that time, 1 grant you,
hut now that the war is behind us
| and we can take a long look back, is
| 1t wise for US, is it just, is it gener-
Gus to make some composition Of this
| matter?'
Mr.. Lamont sought tp console the
! farmers who, he said. complain that
though this is big season for crops,
our net money gain will be SMALL
Il shant attempt to argue the point
| of lower prices, continued the
! iinancier. But l never knew a coun-
| try to go broke because of its abun-
| dant crops So. even though our farm
ers suffer disappointment. l think the
! low-price hurdle the easiest one to
| jump. The farmers had high prices
! in 1919 and 1920. but the aftermath
was Il serious one, for them. In the
/ long run. they. like all of US, will fare
| better on a moderate price scale, with
small fluctuations"
/ Sees Some Arrogance.
| Labor strikes rise as one of the
most serious distractions to prosper
I ity, Mr.. Lamont declared, "even
though the worst may now seem to
| be over" He asked his audience
to remember that in this country
/ there are still traces of arrogance
I among employers, as there are mani
| fest~signS of arrogance among labor"
| President Harding's veto of the
bonus BILL with its threat to- tax
/ billions more out of the American
people and distribute it in such a
| way that probably no one would re-
ceive real benefit" temporarily leap
! ed that hurdle and created such a
/. feeling of relief says Mr.. Lamont
Hits Tariff Bill.
Of the tariff he said: 1--WE shall be
| fortunate, indeed. if we do not find
| that in practice 1t protects lot Of
! lection, and cuts off from our farmers
| and manufacturers a lot of foreign
, markets that are ready to buy our
commodities.
| '1f there is any one motto which
| American producers and legislators
! should learn by heart lit is that Oft
| repeated on of the British merchants.
who, over century ago, declared
he who will not buy, neither shall
| he SELL"
Even with "the sick man of Europe"
| the Turk. suddenly alive and kicking
the Greeks all around the lot, with Rus
sia, Germany and Austria what they
are. and with. Ireland in ferment,' 1t
is dangerous. declared Mr.. Lamont, ITO
say that Europe has gone all to pot I"
| Invisible forces are saving Europe
he said, adding. politically Europe may
be in the doldrunis or worse, but eco
nomically. I, for one, believe she is on
| the mend"
| ReparatiOns Issue Vital
The reparations question, said Mr.
| Lamont, has now reached a stage in
! the public opinion of both America and
! Europe secondary to interallied in
debtedness, because. he declared, it is
generally recognized that Germany
cant or will never pay anything like
the reparations totals fixed in the Yer
sailleS treaty."
| Now let us, as practical men, de-
termine what, if any, Of these debts
CALLED debts to America), are in any
written off. in order to quit fooling our
Selves" he suggested to the bankers.
| Let us decide what others of
these debtors are good in part, but
must be given ample time to pay;
emphatically, let US figure whether
| the payment of these debts-which
inevitably must mean a great in
! crease in our import and a heavy
| decrease in our export trade-is go
| ing to prove an asset or a liability
| for American business men,"
| Reach Parting Of Ways.
Finally" he concluded, "do not
| forget that as the nations of Europe
! face great dangers, America. too, ts
facing a crisis, though of a different
/ order We have gained great power.
| With the power goes responsibility.
Have we discharged it? For the
period of the world war, my answer
period since the armistice, can any
one of us search his heart and
answer yes? We have, it is true,
| offered criticism to the nations of
| Europe. We have shouted advice
across to them: But we have been
ment Now we have, it would seem,
| come to the parting Of the ways:
! shall we meet the responsibility
! that has come with our power-or
shall we fail? Shall you and give
| our minds, our understanding and
;. shall we stand aside and add to our
| national stock of gold? Shall we
urge upon our national government
! active, cooperation in the counsels
| of the mother country and of the
| old world? Or shall we keep silent?
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