Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1923-01-25
PRESENT CONGRESS
To GET PLAN FOR
WAR DEBT FUNDING
Administration Is Confident
That Agreement viii Soon
Result From Negotiations
With Great Britain
BY DAVID LAWRENCE
Neased Wire Service to The Journal.)
-lCopyright, 1921

Geased Wire Service to The Journal.l
Copyright 1881
WASHINGTON, Jan. 24.-The adj
ministration fully expects to submit
to the present session of congress a
recommendation for the settlement
of the five billion war debt owed by
Great Britain to the United States.
The British mission which sailed
from New York last week will reach
homo on Friday, and a cabinet meet
ing is scheduled for Saturday, and
a few days later Ambassador Harvey
will transmit the decision of the
British. No doubt exists IN the
minds of government officials here
who handled the matter that salts
factory agreement will be reached.
This information obtained today
clears the air of the many rumors
and erroneous interpretations which
followed the departure of the British
mission. rumors which conveyed the
idea of a deadlock as well as indefi-
mite delay. For reasons of their own
the American government and the
British mission made no statement
of expectations when sessions ad.
journed. This was partly cut OF
Difference to the British cabinet.
which must ratify the action, and
partly because there are still some
details which must be settled in Lon
don. Ambassador Harvey is thor
oughly familiar with the situation
and will negotiate these details. In
fact, it is now definitely known
that he was summoned to America
primarily to be here when the Brit
ish debt mission was negotiating
with the American funding commits.
sion, and only incidentally to give
his viewpoint on the Preparations con-
troversy.
Action at This Session
The exact nature of the agree
ment which will be reached will not
be known until after the British
cabinet meets but there is every ex-
pectation here that the British mis-
sion will recommend to the cabinet
the major principles which Were as
serted in the conference here, these
relating to the period of years for
the payment of the debt and the
notifications of the interest rate.
Congress alone has the power to
ratify the agreement for the Ameri-
can government and the administra-
ton will want the present funding
act modified not only to permit more
flexibility in the handling of the
British debt, bpt in the negotiations
of a settlement of all the other
debts. The formula followed in the
case of Great Britain will be a
precedent for other debts but this
does not mean necessarily that other
countries will get the same terms.
It does mean that the funding
commission will probably seek to
have the limits of it's authority
broadened so that it may have more
flexibility. This is essential, the
administration believes, irrespective
of the capacity of Britain to pay and
irrespective of what the future may
hold in store for the other countries
which owe America money and
which have not yet made known
their wishes as to funding of prln-
cipal and interest.
Secretary Mellon is hopeful that
the settlement. of the British debt
will have a beneficial influence on
the international business situation
clearing away the uncertainties
which have surrounded the question
of British credit because of these
undetermined obligations. Congress
is to adjourn automatically on March
4, next. There has been an impress
sion in many quarters that the debt
question would hang over for action
in the future and that nothing would
be settled between now and March 4.
The administration is anxious, how
ever, to get action at the session,
believing that the matter can not
be indefinitely delayed.
American Proposal
President Harding in his recent
letter to Senator Lodge pointed out
that instead of passing resolutions
for the calling of an economic con-
ference, more could be done toward
the sterilization Of the economic sit
uation in the world by giving the
American funding commission broad
er powers to negotiate settlement
of war debts which have hung like
cloud on the foreign exchange ana
credit situations ever since the war.
When the British mission left
Washington last week they carried
away definite impressions of what
the United States government could
do and what it could not do. Under
no circumstances is it accurate to
say "a tentative agreement was
reached. Strictly speaking, the
American funding commission didn't
have any right to make a tentative
agreement, or any other kind of an
agreement, which differed in the
least from the specific authority
granted to the American mission by
act of congress. To have reached
one agreement with the British
which anticipates a change of the
present law by congress would have
been subject to the possible criticism
of anticipating the action of congress
and would have put the American
mission in the position of violating
the spirit of the present statute ir'
respective of whether it is a good
law or a bad one.