Evening star., 1925-02-04
US. TRADED AM|TY
FOR HATE IN PARIS,
JOHNSON DECLARES
That Is All Nation Got in Ex-
change for 2 IA Per Cent
of Something, He Says.

Without undertaking to discuss di-
| rectly Secretary Hughes reply re-
| garding the Paris reparations agree
| ment, Senator Johnson, Republican,
| California, one of the irreconcilables,
| asked the Senate today to consider
''the grave and important questions
| which have been presented by what
| happened at Paris"
| The California Senator then de-
clared that 2A per cent of "specu-
| lative reparations" America has risk
! ed the amity and good will of Euro
| pean nations.
! The Senator added, however, that
| administrations change and that he
! felt that some one ought in the Con-
| gress of the United States to render
what service he can in avoidance of
perils that may lie ahead"
Pledge to Keep Up Fight.
| Fer five years. he said, he had trod
the rough road" against foreign en-
! tanglements.
Il shall continue" he said, ito
! travel the rough road of the demand
that America live her own life in her
own way without entanglements with
! Europe or European nations"
II am more than deeply concerned
|
from what was done by the United
States at Paris" the California Sena-
| tor continued. Il recognize the po-
sition of the Secretary of State.
| neither question it nor criticize 1t.
take it that when the Secretary of
State says the United states is neither
| legally nor morally bound he express
! his present intention"
Must Face Issue in Time.
From that conference" he said,
two important questions come to US
that some time, some day, by some
| Senate, and by some American peo-
| pie. must be decided"
The first and foremost question
Senator Johnson added, is presented
| by the possibilities that may come
out of the action at Paris, while
the second is the question of the
! power of the executive branch of the
| Government to determine without the
consent of Congress what should be
done with the debts of the Nation
| I'VE have traded amity and good
will for perplexity, confusion, i'll will
and hostility" he said. That is
what we got at Paris for 2A per cent
of something that may never be paid
That is the price We got for chang
| ing Americas policy, If we did
|
say we did"
"The statement of Secretary Hughes
! that the agreement does not bind the
! United States legally or morally"
| Senator Johnson said, was wholly at
! variance with the apparent intention
of the signers of the pact, and with
! the interpretations of the document
by the leading statesmen and press
/ of the world"
I or fnr, fc r
agreement made by the official repre-
! sentatives of European nations, he
| continued: They believe in Europe
| that we are over there again. 1 do
not want to go over there again
1 would keep this country from
European wars, politics and argu-
ments."
! Pointing out that Secretary Hughes
| had omitted to say whether reserva-
| tions were sought by the American
representatives at Paris, Senator
Johnson said he had private informa-
! ton that something of that kind had
occurred. That Something" he said,
might prove of controlling import
| ance in future years.
| settlement Of Claim.
| What actually was done at Paris,
| Senator Johnson said, was the settle
ment of an already liquidated claim
| of the United States against Ger
many To support his contention he
| read from a statement of Winston
| Churchill that under the. Wadsworth
agreement this country would have
received Ave million pounds sterling
| annually under an unchallenged
| claim, whereas under the Paris
agreement 1t would receive about two
and one-half million sterling, taking
their chances for i'll or good with the
! rest of the allies.
! The Senate was informed yesterday
by Secretary Hughes, with the ap
! proval of President Coolidge, that the
much discussed Paris reparations agree
ment was negotiated under long
recognized authority of the Executive
| to deal with the settlement of claims
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