Evening star., 1925-06-25
BACKGROUND OF EVENTS
BY PAUL y. COLLINS.

ent on dumping goods in the Amer.
| lean market.
Last year Germany imported FROM
the United States 1,754400 milIiou
rentenmarks, as compared with her Inn
ports in 1913 Of only 1911 100 million
marks. So her imports from US were
43 million marks greater in 1924 than
the year before the war-When we
had the Underwood tariff. She eIs
ported TO this country in 1913 goods to
the value of 1920 million marks,
and in 1924 only 509 400 million marks
"a decrease of exports to US with an
increase of imports from the United
States. That illustrates that imports
do not measure exports, but each
STANDS on its own merits. These are
| not American data, but are official
| figures from the German statistical
bureau, issued April, 1925.
In the last six months Gernanys
imports from the world were 10 per-
cent greater than they were in 1879;
and her exports, in spite of her handi-l
caps, were almost equal to those OF
1918. Germany's increase of Imports
| began August 80, last year-immedi.
ately following the introduction of the
Dawes plan, and doubled in the first
three months. This was partly due 10
|
from the Dawes plan. in reviving Gers
man industries. Her exports to tha!
world were SO per cent in 1924 of heeI
exports in 1913. This is all the morai
significant in view of the fact that
certain major monopones. enjoyed by
| Germany prior to the war, are nowT
| shared by competing nations. For exs'
ample, the United States had no dys
industry before the war; today we pro-
| duce 95 per cent Of all our Chenicah b
| needs, and England more than half OF
hers.
Month by month Germany's eos
ports show rapid gains, since the beA
ginning of the operation of the Dawes
| plan last September 1. April, 1925, eSc-
ports totaled 672 million marks. asj
compared with April, 1924, of only 81 I
million marks. Monthly exports are
now so per cent of pre-war gold
| values. At the beginning of 1924 they
were only 65 per cent of the 1913 eva
ports. This shows that the Dawes
plan is not causing a .problern.' but is
helping to solve one in reviving Geps
| many's production surplus"
All economists agree that the chief
problem is that which confronts tha
| American agent general for repara~i
tons payments-S. Parker Gilberce
| jr., whose function 1t is to controL
| all transmissions Of either money Or
merchandise out of Germany to ths
creditor nations, without permits
| ting such tranSmissions to demoralizsi
| the exchange or the labor of the reel
| ceiving country.
T The Dawes plan does not undertakes
| to work out the details Of transmits
| sion, but sketches broad principles
and leaves details to be adjusted from
| time to time by the agent general-~
at present Mr.. Gilbert.
If it could be conceived that ANS
country-France for example-wers
| to receive a vast payment suddenly
from Germany, even in gold, IL,
| would dernoralize French exchanged
and would lower the purchasincT
! power Of the franc. II France were
to forward a billion dollars in gold to-
America, in one shipment, the value
of the dollar would fall and the prices
Of merchandise would rise. Hence, iSl
| is important that no such sudden de-
| moralization should come to any!
creditor nation through spasmodicg
payments from Germany.
Under the Dawes plan that posst~i
bility is controlled by the fact tina D
Germany makes her payments ii
Berlin, where they are taken over br
the American agent general. He has
power to hold them in Germany: he
may re-invest them in German induss
tries until such time as proves far
vorable for their gradual release and
expectation to creditor nations. In.
| his first report, covering the first
eight months, Mr.. Gilbert points out,i
1.-The realized German budget for
| the fiscal year 1924-25 reveals al
safe balance of receipts over expendi~
lures which will enable the Govern
ment to hquidate many outstanding
| liabilities and provide cash reserves
| for the future
X X \ X
Senator Reed Smoot, chairman OF
the Senate finance committee, charao-
/ terizes all the speeches in the Interna-
tional Chamber of Commerce as "old
stuff" amounting to nothing more
than European propaganda to attack
the American protective tariff. and
says it will have no effect
Copyright. 1926. b. Paul V. CollinsA Il