Evening star., 1924-08-24

| France $4,000, 900 annually. of which
| some S25,000O,000 will go to the
United States through Britain and
| SITS, 200, 900 to the United States di-
| rectly. Italy will receive some $780,
! O0O, 900, all of which will be consumed
| in payments either directly to the
United States on the Italian debt or
indirectly in contribution to Britain.
Omitting the Belgian share of per
cent, it is plain that of the sum
of German reparations payments
namely. $600.000,000 annually-almost
s400. 100000 ($392.000, 900. to be exacD
is at once earmarked for the United
States, while there is left to French
and Balgians. respectively, annual
payments of $112,O0o.o0o and $4S,oo0.-
| 900 to defray the costs Of their recon-
struction of devastated areas.
Nor is this the whole story, for
there remains per cent of the repa-
| rations total to be divided among
the smaller allied nations, all of whom
are in debt to Britain and to our
| selves and have no other resource
than the German payments to meet
| these debts. So actually, If we insist
upon our debts being paid in full, then
we shall be paid, if at all, by the
| transfer to US by the European credi-
tors of not less than $44O,00O.000 of
the $500, 100000 which is the German
dnHudl Contribution. III pTdCtlCe,
| then. while Germany will pay her
European creditors directly, nearly 80
per cent. of the payments will come to
us. Thus it may come down to this,
that we financed Europe to assist the
allies and now Germany is to supply
Europe with the funds to defray their
debts to US.
Likely to Wipe Out Debts.
For the moment, however, it is
plain that Europe is going ahead to
make it's own adjustments of Euro
pean debts. In all probability the
| whole mass of interallied debts will
be swept away. leaving in place of
something more than $4,000, ,000, 900
due Britain on balance annual pay
ments to Britain of sums aggregat-
ing $50.008,000 annually, which will
| be assigned by the continental states
| to the British from their share of
German reparations, while Britain
will turn over to us her share of
| reparations, $132.000,000 annually,
plus 100000 coming from her con-
from any real burden of foreign debt.
In making these concessions, how
| ever. the British are certain to ask
counterbalancing concessions from the
continental states in the matter of
| reduced armaments. in which. Of
course, the United States can take a
part, and might even seek a leading
part by proposing a new Washington
conference. Moreover, not until these
three matters have been disposed Of
| reparations, debts and armaments-
will we have any complete reorgani-
cation of Europe for peace-and these
adjustments presuppose the admis-
sion of Germany into the League of
Nations without great delay as a
great power. They also presuppose
the transfer to the League of Nations
of the supervisions of German arma-
ments and the assurance of French
security.
From the American angle there re-
| mains the matter of debt adjustments
between ourselves and the European
states in our debt, but these must be
| by separate arrangement, and are
unlikely to be made before the other
| European arrangements are arrived
| at and the German payments under
the Dawes plan actually begun.
Meantime London has been a fair
beginning, subject always to the ac-
| tion of the French and German Par
liaments, pending whose actions there
is nothing for the world to do but
wait. But in the Immediate future
| are two and perhaps three more con-
ferences of equal Importance.
! Copyright, 1924, by the Mcclure Newspaper
Syndicate)