Perth Amboy evening news., 1923-08-24
GERMANY'S CAPACITY TO
IS TOLD OF BY HASKIN
Daily Letter by Frederic j.. Haskip

have for many years to come a
tically no net international income
from the invisible sources, her ability
to obtain the foreign bills of ex-
change with which to make repara-
ton payments will depend almost en-
tirely upon her foreign trade.
Imports That Are Necessary
The imports that are required to
maintain the German population in
a state of physical efficiency and to
enable German factories to operate
at something like pre-war capacity.
total in value about IA million gold
marks, as compared with actual i'm
ports in 1922 of only about 60 bill
lions. German exports must there
fore equal ID billion gold marks
merely for the purpose of paying for
the necessary imports. In 1922 they
were less than half this total. Both
the industrial and agricultural out
put is at a low ebb. The greater
part of the German industrial popu-
lation is even now seriously under
nourished.
Export markets for German goods
have been very greatly curtailed since
the war because of the general i'm
provement of Europe and the erec-
ton everywhere of tariff barriers
against German goods even by the
Identical countries which declare that
Germany can and must pay in full.
Reading this book will not afford
much encouragement to those who
count on GeTmany's making good the
worlds war losses, or any substantial
part thereof, but it will prove illu-
minating to all who are willing to
face facts. The authors contend that
the continued exaction of reparation
payments under conditions directly
reducing imports of raw materials
and foodstuffs will not only quickly
reduce the subsequent payments that
can be made, but will shortly result
in the disintegration of the whole
German economic system, accom-
panied by wholesale unemployment
and starvation for a considerable
portion of the German population.
The process of compelling Germany
to pay when she has no internation-
al balance available for the purpose
is likened to forcing complete liqui-
dalton upon a temporarily insolvent
debtor. A little more juice may be
squeezed out by the process-and
then the end.
AS a final word the authors say
that IF Germany is to pay in the
largest measure, her creditors must
squarely face the facts and give her
time in which to recover, if possible,
her international economic position.
IF one believes that the economic
prosperity of the world will be pro-
NOTED by the economic recovery and
the restoration of the consuming
power of Germany, he should favor
her importation of large quantities
of necessary food and raw materials
and the expectation of correspond
'ingly large quantities of manufac-
tured goods.
"If, on the other hand, n be-
lieves that the disintegration of the
German Industrial system and the
starvation of some millions of Ger
man people III promote the general
welfare of the world, then he should
welcome the continued curtailment
of both German import and German
export trade"
AS toethe amounts-Germany has
already paid in PREPARATION settle
ments the authors fix a total of from
25 to 26 billions, which contrasts
sharply with the Allied figure of s
billions and the German claim OF
from A to Sc billions.