Evening star., 1927-05-05
Secretary Melons Statement in Reply
NO DESIRE TO PROLONG DISPUTE,
TREASURY HEAD SAYS IN ANSWER

The statement of the Secretary of
the Treasury in connection with the
British debt rate follows:
THE Treasury Department has no
desire to enter into a controversy
with the British government on the
subject of allied Wap debts, but mas
much as the British government, in
an official note to the American State
Department has seen fit to challenge
the facts and figures contained in
letter addressed by the American Sec
retary of the Treasury to the presi-
dent of Princeton University, the
Treasury deems 1t its duty to present
the facts as it knows them and to en-
deavor to explain existing differences.
at should be noted at the outset
that the letter of the Secretary of the
Treasury to President Hibben was in
answer to statement put out by
members of the faculty of Princeton
University urging a reconsideration
of the debt settlements and was di.
rected specifically to their arguments.
IT was not intended as a cOmmunica-
ton. direct or indirect, to the British
government, and that government
was referred to Only as an incident
to the general thesis therein set
forth.
Technical Terms Used.
"It should be noted in the second
place that the figures in the British
note are apparently used in a technf-
cal accounting sense, so that. for in
stance, the term allied war debts
excludes debts for war stocks. SINH
larly, payments received from Ger
many are used in the most strictly
limited sense, and do not include such
9 A
of Occupation.
"While not admitting it. the British
governments note does not deny that
the sums specified in my letter were
actually paid by the people of France,
Germany and Italy, but says in sub.
stance that some of the sums paid
accrued to the benefit of the Bank of
England, others to the dominions, and
apparently from our reading of their
figures such items as payment for war
stocks are not considered by them as
accruing to the benefit of the ex-
chequer on account of war debts.
This is the real cause of the apparent
disagreement as to facts. There is
no basis of comparison when, for in
stance, payments on account of war
debts, as used by the American Treas
ury, include the payments on account
of war stocks sold, but such an item
is not included by the British under
the head of war debt payments.
Again, there is bound to be disagree
ment when the American Treasury
Department, in discussing payments
received from Germany, includes all
payments, while the British govern
ment in answer confines itself to pay
ments strictly on account of repara-
tions and Belgian war debt. Under
such circumstances there is not
disagreement as to facts; there is
simply a failure to join issue.
Applies Only Until September /, 1928.
"But exen these differences of inter
probation are material only in respect
of the period prior to September ],
1928. The British government admits
that, beginning on that date, assum-
ing that the French agreement is
ratified, it will receive from it's own
debtors and from Germany sums
sufficient to cover the current pay
ments due to the United States Gov
ernment' This, it should be noted,
is the principal point made in the
letter of the Secretary of the Treasury
to President Hibben and the accuracy
of this point is now officially confirm
ed by the British government.
"The first statement to which the
British government takes exception
is one advanced by me in reply to
the argument that the loans made
by the American Government during
the war should be considered as con-
tributions to a common cause, in
which / pointed out that there was
merit in such d contention only if
the proposed adjustment was a mu
tual one and to be applied on a
equal basis between us and