The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1924-08-05
eIOW PAYMENT OF BIG
WAR DEBT PREDICTED
,,,c1E SAM MAY GET BACK
ne WHAT EUROPE OWES
linn IN THIRTY YEARS.
RIG BURDEN ON TAXPAYERS
c...+ britain Only Big Nation Which
u.s Arranged Debt. France, Italy
49, Belgium Seem Unconcerned.
Ten and a Half Billion.

And Belgium Seem OlCoilCeIhe0'
Ten and a Half Billion.
wAcHTNGTON. = Although the
Ar,er;can government expects to
s,o;c+ain IFS policy of refusing to con-
.;do- cancellation of war debts of Eu-
-oosan nations, calculations of treas
,.,,, officials are being made on the
th1ory that not more than one-fourth
" the principal of $10,500,000 owed
sc will be paid back during the next
" This means that if the $21,250,000,-
ma debt of the United States is to be
v vst;rqd in something like 80 years the
American people must be taxed to the
-,, OF S7,5O0000,000 or more to
retire bonds represented by the for
sgn loans besides caring for the do
nestle part of the debt. This would
ayerage in excess of $250,000,O00 an
nually ~.
will not be considered by the present
administration has been again empha-
sized in connection with the confer
ence OF allied premiers now in session
at London.
U. S. Compelled to Wait.
Notwith standing this attitude, how
ever il is recognized that the Amer
Iran government cannot compel the
foreign nations to pay their debts any
more RAPIDLY than they choose. The
British government is the only one of
the larger nations which has funded
its debt to the United States and I'M
der the agreement payments are to
be made over a period extending I'M
til 1884 or 90 years from the present
time. Smaller nations, such as Fin
land which have funded their debts
have used the British agreement as
model and it is the assumption that
whenever France, Italy and Belgium,
the three largest debtors, propose
funding arrangement it will not be
anv less favorable to themselves than
the British scheme.
The theory that foreign nations Will
not pay back more than one-fourth OF
their debts during the next 80 years is
predicted on the British debt agree
ment. Under this agreement Great
Britain commenced its annual pay
ments on account of the principal OF
its S4,60O,000,000 debt at $23,000,0O0
and will increase the amount gradu-
ally until the final payment OF prln-
cipal on December IS, 1884, amounts
to SIZE, 100000 The payment IN 1855
alter period OF 80 years from the
present time amounts to only $o0,O00,-
GOO and the total to be paid on the
principal during the 80 years includ-
ing 1858 will be $1,182,000,0OO, or ap-
proximatelv one-fourth of the debt.
Burden for Taxpayers.
Debts OF other nations as unfunded
amount to $5,970,000,000, not counting
accumulated interest. If all the other
nations were to duplicate the British
agreement and commence payments at
once it would mean that not more
than one-fourth of this total, or some
what less than 81, 500,000,000, would be
paid by them during the next 81 years.
Ii none of the other larger nations
pay anything during the next 80 years
it would mean that American taXpay..
ers would have to pay in excess OF
S9,300,000,000 to retire bonds repre-
senting foreign loans, in case the debt
is to be wiped out in anything like
40 years. This would be an average
OF about $312,000,000 a year.