Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-10-04
DECLARES GERMAN
BURDEN TOO HEAVY
Dr.. Schacht Believes Read
justment of War Debt
is Necessary.
BY JOHN F. SINCLAIR.

ton and you will see the key to ou
future" said DR.. Hjalmar Schacht, SO
former head of the German Reichs
bank, upon his arrival in New York fo
an eight weeks visit Its povert!
and bad conditions which make more
Hitlers."
It was this German banker who tool
charge of German finances in 1923
when 1873 government printing offices
equipped with 1,783 presses, were turn
Ing out money by the bale. He changed
that situation Immediately, and came
TO be known as a man of iron" DR.
Schacht speaks in a direct pleasant
manner, without frills.
you must think that If you treat
Q people for 10 years as the German
people have been treated they will con-
tinue to smile. How would you like
to be kept in jail for 10 years? Every
one suggests that the Germans must be
reasonable. But how about the world
itself? Should it not be reasonable,
too?"
No one who interviews DR.. Schacht
can fail to see that he believes the
Z burdens now resting upon Germany
are far too heavy for her to carry in
definitely. Her financial burden will
have to be greatly lightened before
SAAAOPS NdAA PhO AAOA AAAAStAANio1 AiOdOO AAA
order.
DR.. Schacht's views will be widely
commented upon in the United States
during the next eight weeks They will
open the eyes of many people to what
the real conditions are within Germany.
Soviet Imports Banned.
France is a practical nation. Her
people may be emotional, but when it
comes to business in which they are
vitality interested they see facts very
clearly and act upon them.
Witness the French governments en-
ergetic action yesterday in banning i'm
ports from Soviet Russia to protect her
home market.
France says to Russia, in substance
this: If you wish to sell sugar, WOOL
wood, gelatins, eggs, meats, wheat and
rubber in France you must buy from
us an equal amount of goods to be sent
to Russia to square our buying account
with you: We will do business with you
on no other basis.
1t looks as though France has started
something which will develop into a
major problem of international business
before 1880 is over.
Dumping of Commodities.
Problems arising from Russian dump
Ing on the world market are serious.
Europe Is affected much more than the
United States, so far. It is a new and
distressing problem of international
business, which sooner or later must be
faced.
The government of Russia is supreme.
1T demands and receives a certain per
cent Of all production raised in the
country. As it grows stronger. it can
take an increasingly larger amount ard
give in return its own government
money. There Is no limit to its activi-
ties.
So hundreds Of millions of dollars of
goods OF one kind or another are under
Soviet control. II the government needs
money badly, 1t can throw these goods
on the world markets at bargain coun-
ter prices and demoralize exports from
other nations
Exactly that is going on today, in the
case of Soviet wheat, lumber, rubber,
manufactured products, matches, pc
troleunl, manganese and other products.
The Soviet match monopoly is the
only serious competitor which the
Swedish match monopoly faces in Eu-
rope today" said an observer who has
just returned from continental Europe.
Not only in matches, but in every
other commodity which she has, Soviet
Russia is in a position to demoralize
world trade.
What's to be done about it? No one
yet has an answer. Perhaps Russia
herself. in the building UP of her FIVE
year program has been forced to sell
goods at bargain prices in order to
realize cash for this activity.
It's new problem-a confused, baf-
fling one-for world business to face.
It never has had to be faced before
No nation has ever challenged the capt.
talistic system so determinedly and so
powerfully as Soviet Russia is doing
today. And every capitalistic country
knows 1t.
Undoubtedly, the Soviet dumping now
in process will accelerate the demand
for still higher tariff walls in the vari-
Gus countries of the world.
The next big struggle in the interna-
tional field of business is that struggle
which has already started. 1t VII be
between Soviet Russia on the one hand,
and the capitalistic nations on the other
Leadership Needed.
"Wnat Europe needs is leaders. What
Is a leader anyhow" asked Henry Ford
He answers the question: "A man who
visualizes what the people want and
goes atead and produces it,
Mr.. Ford has been telling Europe that
there is no such thing as overproduction.
The thing people call overproduction Is
really "a lack of production OF what
people want"
AS in the United States. Henry Ford
Is good copy in Europe. His savings are
front page news, not only in Germany
where he has been. but in nearly all
other countries of Europe.
And why? Because he's a big business
leader that's different. He's not or
thodox. Germany's business leaders are
reported to be intrigued and fascinated
by his ideas of mass production, but
they hesitate They think thai the
great Detroit manufacturer Goes not un-
derstand the amazing completely and
the handicaps of European business.
Tariff walls-high ones-rise up in more
than 20 nations in Europe to obstruct
trade progress.
This fact is rarely understood and APP
preciated by Americans.
American Standards.
Probably John w Barton, Minneapo-
lis banker, did not realize that he
would cause such a sensation when he
made the assertion TO the American
Bankers Association that American
standards of living should be lowered.
That caught the eye Of the President
on his way to Cleveland and he chal-
lenged it vigorously in his address be-
fore the bankers.
The reply of President Hoover con-
tanned this statement: ANY retreat
from our American philosophy of con-
stantly increasing standards Of living
becomes a retreat into perpetual I'M
employment and the acceptance of a
cesspool of poverty fer some large part
of our people"
Probably Mr.. Barton was misunder-
stood by the President. Perhaps Mr.
Barton meant that in such times as
we are going through the American
people should cut down on all luxurieS
and live closer to their incomes.
But, even If this is Mr.. Barton's po-
sition, the President took issue wher