Evening star., 1923-04-05
us. BUSINESSMEN
|NRUHR IN MAZE
Tangle Deemed Certain Hin
drance to Export-AII Regu-
Iations Prove Ineffective.
By the Associated Press.

| By the Associated Press.
COBLENZ, April 5.-Little headway
toward solution of the difficulty has
| thus far been made by the representa-
tives of several American houses, in
cluding the International Harvester
Company, sent hsre in an effort to
unravel the tangle resulting from the
occupation of the Ruhr. Orders and
contracts for goods estimated at more
than $5O.000,000 have been tied up
from this cause.
The regulations adopted by allies
intended to facilitate exports of goods
to neutral countries on licenses is
sued to neutral buyers in deeRult of
application by the German exporters
have thus far been ineffective. The
few German manufacturers who in
their own interest desire tp fill their
orders are promptly blacklisted when
they apply for expectation licenses.
When the American buyers try to
sub themselves for the exporter
and obtain the licenses themselves
they are confronted by a complica-
tion of details which thus far no one
has been able to see through The
state Department in Washington is
understood to have been making dill
gent Inquiries through the embassies
in Paris and Berlin In the hope of
finding way out of the muddle.
Every Effort NuIIihsd.
In general it appears that German
nationalism, or patriotism combined
with fear of prosecution for treason
after the Ruhr is evacuated, has thus
Tar nullified every effort of the allies
to get export trade from the Ruhr
with neutrals running again. The
goods on order include iron and steel
products. some of which are for ship
ment for the United States. but a CON
siderable portion for shipment To
South America and elsewhere for the
account of American firms. Articles
of dress. millinery, ribbons and dyes
also enter largely into the total
The allies do not appear convinced
that the simple enunciation of the
methods through which export per
mits mag he issued is insufficient to
solve the problem. though they them
selves were in the dark at the outset
as to jus. how the system would
work out.
Americans who have been studying
the situation have about come to the
conclusion that there must be either
radical change in the system or
that the allies must provide a force
sufficient to enforce compliance upon
VIC any liUpOT-
tant can be done in the way OF get
ting out of the Ruhr the goods on
order there.
Efforts have been made to ship by
the Rhine through Holland. but
Dutch vessels alone are available on
this route, as the German crews. fear
ing reprisals. refuse to take aboard
their ships goods ready for exporta-
tion under allied license.
Fall tn Deliver OrdAs
Considerable quantities of Crefeld
velvets and the other dress goods in
question were ordered for the spring
trade. for Easter and summer wear,
and the failure to deliver them has
resulted in large cancellations of or
ders, though the Germans raised the
point that the failure of delivery was
due to force majeur. e.
The opinion seems to prevail among
Americans here that long as the
Germans continue to regard the oc-
cupation as valid legal excuse for
non-fulfllment OF contract there will
be little business between the United
Sta teS, and the Ruhr.