Evening star., 1923-11-24
COMEDIES
POINT IN RUHR PACT
Forgoes Using Taxes to Pay
for Army-Seen as Victory
for SHINES.
BY the Associated Pre- ss.

BY the Associa ted Press.
PARIS, November 24-It is felt in
official circles here that France made
another important concession to the
allies and to Germany in the contract
signed yesterday with the SHINES
group of Ruhr industrialists. In this
contract it is stipulated that all de-
liveries in kind shall be credited to
Germany on reparation account,
while the taxes collected by the oc-
cupying countries shall be paid into
what is called a productive pledge
fund"
From this fund the occupying au-
thOrities would pay the cost of the
occupation. subject to the rights @
the reparation commission This n
understood to mean that France ~
Belgium will be unable to use the
receipts from taxes even to pay the
cost of maintaining their forces In
the Ruhr unless permission to do so
Is given by the reparation commits
sion.
French Press Comments.
The importanc of this concession
is reflected in the prudence with which
the accord with the industrialists is
commented upon in the French press
Opposition in reparation circles is that
Premier Poincare has begun to rec
ogniZe the necessity of yielding on
some points in order to prepare the
way for a final reparation settlement,
and that his success in bringing the
chamber of deputies to approve the
concession made to Great Britain in
drafting the recent note to Germany
on military control gives him greater
latitude in dealing with the question.
Yesterdays hearing of the Germans
by the reparation commission is not
expected to produce any important
development toward settlement of the
problem. The German delegates
merely repeated in more detail. with
supporting statistics. the arguments
DIR. Stresemann already had made
familiar, such as the necessity of Ger
many having untrammeled control of
the Ruhr If it was expected she would
pay her reparation debt.
The Germans made no specific de-
mands on the commission. content
ing themselves with arguments,
which they hold susceptible of proof.
that they are unable to pay any
thing now, and similar arguments
to show that the moratorium asked
agenda of the commission. should be
declared.
Concessions Unlikely.
The feeling of the reparation COM
mission is that it can make no fur
ther progress toward a final ad-
justment until Premiers Poincare anu
Baldwin reach an agreement.
Information in reparation circles
is that the French and British
premiers will get together soon after
the British elections and make an
effort to reach a final agreement
before the expiration of the accords
with the German industrialists. The
reparation experts doubt the eff
cacy of those agreements, although
they are of the opinion that Hugo
SHINES and the other heads of Ger
nan industries can easily provide the
financing to keep things going sew
eral months out of funds deposited
abroad.
1t is known here that the British
are somewhat exercised by the di-
rect negotiations in progress be-
tween a group of French industries
and German industrial groups, with
out the Intervention of either gov
ernment. These negotiations are
supplemental to the contracts be-
tween the SHINES group and the
mine control mission of the occupa-
tion authorities. The private nego-
tiations are in a tentative stage. AS
soon as they reach any definite con-
clusion 1t is assumed the French will
be asked for information as to what
they mean.