The Washington times., 1922-12-30
j. s. HOLDS OFF
TILL HARVEY
COMES
Harding Expected to Sanction
Nothing More Than Com
mission Of Experts.
Continued from First Page)

Continued from First Page)
If France persists in her announced
intention of occupying the Ruhr
basin on January is. then 1t is en-
tirely probable the American Gov
ernment will intervene with
plan" to adjust the differences
and designed particularly to fore
stall French military thrust at
the Ruhr.
This is the policy Of President
Harding and Secretary OF State
Hughes, as CLEANED today from the
numerous official statements. semi
official statements, and plain. ordi-
nary conjectures with which WASH
ington has been deluged in the last
twenty.four hours.
No hard and-fast American pro.
gram has been worked out. 1t was
stated officially today. nor Ia one
likely to be in advance OF the ar.
rivalsof Col. George Harvey, Amer.
lean ambassador to Great Britain.
who is due in Washington about
the same time the allied premiers
gather in Paris. Colonel Harvey
has been summoned home for the
sole purpose of advising President
Harding and Secretary Hughes as
TO American policy in the crisis"
Hughes Wants Facts.
1t is more than likely, however,
that this contemplated American
action will be along the general
line proposed by Secretary of State
Hughes i'm his speech In New Haven
last night-an international commits.
sion of economic experts, a fact
finding commission" appointed by
all the governments concerned to
survey the reparations situation and
render an impartial. non.poiitical re-
port on Germany's ability to pay.
1t is around this proposal that
informal conversations and "feelers'
have been in progress In the
! capitals OF Europe for some weeks.
Thus far, the French government
| has been distinctly cold 10 the
proposition. But the opinion is held
by some of the Presidents closest
advisers that il the United States
were formally and publicly to pro-
pose such a solution, with the com.
bined backing OF Great Britain,
Italy, Belgium and Germany her
self. and accompany it with OBJ
| jectiOns to French military action
in the Ruhr, Premier Poncare
would be forced to change his at
| titude or accept the disagreeable
alternative Of seeing France morally
isolated among the leading world
powers.
II is not believed, in Washing.
ton at any rate, that the French
government could long Withstand
/ the combined moral and diplomatic
pressure that could be exerted
against it to come into line.
Borah Still Pleased.
1t matters little, officials said to.
| day, whether the work Of such a
group OF experts would be called
IAN economic conference" or 'an
economic commission" That part
of 1t also is of small concern to
Senator William e. Borah, who
caused all the furore in the Senate
by his insistence that President
Harding call an economic con-
ference. The difference. in Borah's
opinion, is the difference between
tweedle.dum and tweedle.dee
Senator Borah was in high good
humor today.
"The difference between an eco.
nomic conference and a conference
of economic experts is not ap.
parent to me-" he informed the
International News Service.
"A rose by any other name
smells just as sweetly.
"I am perfectly we'll satisfied
with the situation. I feel as
though / were in the position of
for the cat to jump, feeling he
knew all the time which way the
jump was coming.
No world conference to deal with
a variety of economic and finincial
ills will be called by this Govern
ment. That much seemed certain
today. President Harding Is per-
sonally opposed to such a parley
unlimited in scope or direction, and
Secretary of State Hughes is even
more opposed to 1t. Nor will any
conference, for that matter, be
called to meet In Washington, ac-
cording to the White House. The
field of operation for whatever con-
ference or commission is formed is
in Europe, and the Administration
is convinced that it should meet
in Europe.
While the United States will not
officially be represented in the
meeting Of premiers in Paris on
| Tuesday, nevertheless Amba ssador
Herrick will keep President Hard
ing and Secretary Hughes fully in.
formed on the progress of the meet.
ing. And 1t is entirely probable
that Herrick will play an active,
though unofficial, part in the pro-
ceedings.
The absence Of the United States,
officially at least, from the Paris
meeting of premiers is in line with
the Harding Hughes policy OF let
ting Europe settle Europe's prob.
lens" IL that is possible without
American help. When 1t is ap-
parent that these world problems
cannot be settled without American
aid. then the United States can be
expected, 1t was stated officially
today, to come forward with re-
medal suggestions.