Imperial Valley press., 1927-05-05
KE:[[ ()(,(,
ANSWERS
ENGLAND
Correspondence Between
Hibben and Mellon Was
Private Matter.
DEBT TERMS FAIR
Mellon Points Out Why
America Is Creditor
and Not Debtor.
By JOSEPH S. WASNEY
United Press Staff Correspondent

WASHINGTON, May 5. The
United States has no intention now
or any other time, of carcelling or
modifying its war debt settlements,
it was made plain today.
Winston Churchill S criticism OF
q letter Secretary of the Treasury
Mellon recently sent TO President
John G. Hibben Of Princeton Uni=9-
versity outlining the administra.
tion's debt policies failed of its
purpose il that purpose was to re-
open debt negotiations with Amer
lea.
Secretary of State Kellogg sent
the following terse note to the Brit
ish foreign office:
1.-The government regards the
correspondence between Mr.. Mellon
and Mr.. Hibben as purely domes-
tic discussion, and does not desire
to engage in any formal diplomatic
exchanges upon the subject
And Secretary Mellon, whose
figures were under fire, declared in
a statement that all debt agree
ments We're fair and no terms were
so harsh as to become a serious
economic burden on nations that
had borrowed from America
England calculates her war debt
differently from methods used By
the testimony in that she exclud1
war stocks debts from the term
Called war debts' Mellon said.
When similar methods are used the
totals arrived at by both countries
are identical, he added.
Calculations Vary
"Again,' he said, ''there is
bound to be disagreement when the
American treasury department, in
discussing payments received from
Germany includes all payments
while the British government in
answer confines itself to payments
strictly on account of reparations
and Belgian war debt.
''Under such circumstances there
is not a disagreement as to facts:
there is simply a failure to join
ISSUE
Mellon said the British note con.
firms his previous statement that
after September l, 1923, assuming
the British French debt agreement
is ratified, Great Britain will re.
ceive from its own debtors and
from Germany "sufficient to cover
the current payments due from Eng
land to the United States''
The contention that loans made
by the United States during the
war should be considered contribu-
tions to a common cause is only ap-
plicable if the proposed adjustment
was mutual and applied on equal
basis between America and our
debtor nations, Melons said.
We Paid Cash
81 pointed out that the dollars
with which goods and services were
purchased in this country were
furnished to our associate on credit
whereas the pounds with which we
purchased goods and services in
Great Britain We're pal d for in
cash." Mellon said. "Here is the
fundamental reason which explains
why we ended the war with every
one owing us and our owing no
cne'.'
Mellon said that all debts were
settled on capacity to pay and only
incidental consideration was given
to reparatiOn payments to be receiv-
ed by debtor countries from Ger
many.
In the Hibben letter Mellon stat
ed that ''all of our principal debt
ors are already receiving from Ger.
many more than enough to pay
their debts to the United States.'
Finally Mellon points out, 'the
United States government is cred
itor only and every dollar of debt
cancelled by the United States rep
resents an increase by just that
amount of the war burden borne
by the American taxpayer,