The New York herald., 1922-09-30
URGE BRITAIN TO PAY
u. S. DEBT in FULL
English Writer Suggests
Immediate Transfer of
Securities.
$4,000. 100000 INVESTED
sAdequate,' Says Withers,
If America Would Ac-
I; cept Them
MIGHT LIFT INCOME TAX
British Government Bonds in
( Exchange to Those Who
Release Paper.
MIGHT LIFT INCOME TAX

Special Gable TO THE New YORK HrssID.
Copyrioht, 1929, bD THE NEW YORK HERALD.
New York Herald Bureau.
London. Sept. 90.
( Hartley Withers, in an article which
will appear in to-morrow's Saturday
dfcUieio, urges Great Britain to pay
the entire American debt Immediately
through transfer to America of the
foreign securities held in Great Brit
Ain.
According to Sir George Paish's
estimate the foreign Investments OF
British capitalists amount to s15,000,
100000 Withers writes. Unless our
statisticians are in grave error we
ought to be able to produce batch
1he payment of the debt, if the United
States are prepared to accept them
He admits that he is not certain
whether America would accept. and
says it would not relieve the exchange
situation to any great degree. as the
dividends on foreign securities now
held here are paid mostly in sterling.
which would have to be converted into
dollars through the usual channels.
But" he says, 1.-The financial feat of
paying such n debt or part of il out
right would be most useful in reestab-
siishtng our prestige; and even If the
proposal were not accepted the mere
soffer of such a solution would do much
to repair the harm done by short
sighted handling Of this problem"
Breach OF Tradition.
withers charges that the Govern
.ments first informal soundings admitted,
by Austen Chamber.a Mast year. were .
grave breach of r'the British tradition
sof paying when payment is due. and
says that the Balfour note will be an
aequally unfortunate handicap when Sir
Robert Horne reaches Washington He
says Sir Robert should go with an out
right offer of payment, either in full or
sin part, by the means mentioned
He says that during the war far
greater sums of British foreign securi-
tiles were modified and takes o
thoroughly American view OF the sug-
gestion that Great Britain let off her
continental creditors II the United
States let's her off. calling the con-
tinental debt theatrical money He
gives credit for the first suggestion Of
payment through securities 10 EliSnam
Friedman OF New York. as set forth
in his book. international Finance and
Its Reorganization
He says the securities should be gath.
cred by the British Government. He
names Argentine Railway debentures al
the type desired. though Offering TO re.
lease from income tax the investors whs
surrendered them in exchange for new
British Government bonds, and possibly
by imposing tax penalties on those wn'
refuse to surrender the securities wanted
The net effect OF the whole opera
tlon.'' he continues. "will be that in
stead of the British Government taxin,
rs and then turning our money. int,
dollars. 1t would tax and then pay tn:
money back 0ess income taxi to som,
of vs. in the form of interest on Govern
ment stock issued in payment of 2ecur
ties handed to America. and that In
terest which we used to receive from
abroad would go TO America and woult
be turned into dollars"