The Monmouth inquirer., 1923-02-15
HARDING'S PLEA
FOR DEBT PLAN
Congress AppIauds as Executive
Calls British Agreement an
Anti-War Covenant.
DEMANDS VOTE ON SUBSIDY
Offers No Hope for Soldier Bonus
Rider-Leaders Taken by Surprise
as He Includes Request for
Ship Bill Test.

-Pronouncing the Brit
ish debt agreement the first clearing
of the war-clouded skies in debt
burdened world" President Harding
submitted the proposal for settle
ment to a joint session of the two
houses of Congress and urged prompt
approval.
Failure of the British undertake
ing" the President declared, would
have spread political and economic
encouragement throughout the world
and general reputation would have
likely followed in its wake"
The President characterized the
agreement as "a covenant of peace
no less effective than it would be If
joint British and American opposition
to war were expressly agreed upon"
This idea that the debt agreement
is more than a mere economic ar
rangement, is, in fact, long step
in the direction Of restoring peace
and the will to peace in the world, is
emphasized again and again through
the short address of the President
the shortest he has yet delivered to a
joint session.
ut is in effect" he said in another
place, "a plight against war and war
expenditures and a rigid adherence
to that production and retrenchment
which enhances stability precisely as
if discharges obligations
A vote on the ship subsidy bill was
also demanded by the President, who
pointed out that it was just as impor-
tant to stop the leak of $50,000000 a
year through the present government
operation of the Shipping Board as to
arrange for the payment of debts to
this country.
This inclusion of an appeal for an
American merchant marine was COM
plete surprise to the Congressional
leaders. It had been thought the Presi-
dent would send a note to Senator
Jones of Washington, who is in charge
of the bill in the Senate, but it had
not been suspected that he would
make his appeal in a public address
to the two houses.
In fact, 1t was not even known def
nitely that the President would ap-
pear personally to urge the approval
of the debt agreement. The President
had not made up his mind on this
point, and his decision to do so came
as surprise
A canvass of the House and Senate
following the Presidents address in
Dictated clearly that the debt agree
ment with Great Britain will be ap-
proved, and that probably the delay
even in the Senate will not be serious
The best opinion was that the debt
measure would go through without
having the soldier bonus saddled on
it. While not referring directly to the
bonus, every one in the House cham
Der knew just what the President
meant when he said:
Il am not unmindful of the DISPOSE
ton to pledge the application of an
ticipated payments in giving sanction
to the settlement" and also, sit will
best comport with the Importance of
such an international transaction to
cision, uninvolved by any disposition
of the moneys which the funding pro-
gram ultimately will bring to the Fed
eral treasury"
Senator Fletcher, who has been
leading the fight on the Democratic
side, made it plain he would keep on
fighting. Senator Brookhart, one Of
the progressive Republicans against
the bill, said he was ready for vote
after March 4.
Backed by the Presidents appeal
for the subsidy measure Senator
Jones plans to try to force the sub
sidy bill to the front as soon as the
army bill is out of the way. Senate
Republican leaders sand the subsidy
I bill would be brought up after the
army bill and if possible kept before
the Senate until voted on They
thought this would not endanger the
debt bill.