New-York tribune., 1922-10-06
The British Position

The address of tho Right Hon.
Reginald McKenna before the bank
ers' convention was completely at
odds with the position taken in the
unfortunate Balfour note. 1t asserted
stoutly the resolve of England to
pay her debt to America - in no
event to make request for it's cam
collation.. Mr.. McKenna spoke un-
officially, and he made no reference
to the fact that he was contradicting
what had recently been his govern
ment's view. But such reversals of
policy have become commonplace
under Mr.. Lloyd Georges regime,
and wo can welcome Mr.. McKenna's
stand for its soundness and for it's
informal promise of better under
standing of the American mind in
Downing Street.
Aside from this implied revision
Of the British position, it is not easy
to applaud the matter of Mr.. Nc
Kenna's address. AS the repre-
sentative Of great and friendly
powcr---a power tied to US by in
Vulnerable bonds of likemindednes
and tradition--he naturally received
the heartiest Of welcomes. He is,
moreover, a persuasive and distin-
guished speaker.
But what was the gist Of his
entire speech? First of all, that it
is ruinous for creditor to collect
from his debtor. The suggestion
that Germany was ruined by the
billion which she collected from
France in 1871-'73 was hardly in
tended to be taken literally, and GER
'tainly was not worthy of place in a
serious address. But the idea that
France and the rest of the world
would ruin themselves if they at
tempted to collect great sum from
Germany was the undercurrent of
his entire speech.
One slight advance in British
opinion must be recognized. Mr..
McKenna conceded what Mr.. Lloyd
George has never conceded, that a
vast German wealth has been de-
.veloped abroad and now lies securely
in foreign countries. 1t is something
TO have this item in the German
plan to escape reparations admitted
by responsible British banker. But
the difficult problem of collecting any
portion of this wealth is tied up
with the broader problem of COM
pelling Germany to make sincere
and utmost effort to pay the judg-
snent rendered against her by civil
cation.
y 1t is in respect to this broader
issue that Mr.. McKenna's remarks
were most disappointing. When you
;are face to face with a debtor who
As practicing every trick to escape
payment it does not aid collection
to argue, first, that it ruins a credi-
tor nation to collect from debtor,
and, second, that the debtor has next
to nothing to pay with. 1t was
British policy which led to the ex-
cessive reparation figures calculated
AT the time of the Versailles Treaty.
, by complete right about face it
IS British policy which now en-
courages Germany to evade any sin
acere effort to pay.
1t is true that the economic state
of Germany must determine the
amount of reparaaons which it is
possible to collect from her. French
rcpinion has for some time been ready
to face such scaling down. But
it is one thing to discuss a revision
fairly and candidly with ones allies,
with full recognition of the justice
of the claims, and clear declara-
tion that Germany must be forced
to pay to the utmost practicable
AlIIl3t. ~ 10 diiQItiSl W present every
defense of German non-payment and
make but passing references to the
case for justice.
Mr.. McKenna commits The unfor-
tunate mistake of treating all the
debts of Europe as upon the same
plane. That is not the American
view. The German debt is punish
ment owed to justice for war
wickedly and wantonly fought To-
ward its collection the civilized ma
fions must bend every effort-must,
above all else, present a firm and
united front. When England has
co-operated to the limit in bringing
pressure upon Germany it will be
a great deal easier to say just how
much or how little she can pay. 1t
is certainly most difficult to estimate
that figure in the mood of Mr.. Nc