Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-06-07
PREPARATION BOND
! BATTLE is SHIFTED
McF adden's Opposition to Is
sue Transfers Fight to
u. S. Front.
speeIal pIspateh to rhe star.

| Special Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK, June THE reparation
battle has been transferred to the
American front. Representative Louis
T. McFadden, chairman of the House
committee on banking and currency,
whose statement as to the nlegaltty OF
the reparation bonds was challenged by
Thomas w. Lamont, came back hard
and fast in Congress by asking the
Morgan partner this question:
Are the 500, 0oo,0 900 German repara-
ton bonds, about to be sold In the
United States, an advance by the nan 1,so
erS to the German government Ior the
development of German railways ana
postal service?"
If the bonds represent such an ad-
vance, they are secured by the German
budget If they are not an advance
for either of these two purposes they
are rot secured by the German budget:
OF the $300.000,000 reparation bond
issue to be offered, only OOOO, OOO
seems to be guaranteed Internationally
by the German budget. Chairman NC
Fadden wants to know from Mr.. Lamont
If each and every bond offered to the
American investors is a part of the
bonds which are absolutely guaranteed
by the German government.
The Representatives. second question
is directed to the American State De-
partment Broadly speaking, he asks:
What position does the United States
Department of State actually assume
in regard to the legality and the sale
| of the reparation bond issue, which is
to be recommended by the house OF
Morgan?"
Both of these questions should be
| cleared up before the issue is offered
and undoubtedly they will be answered.
| There should be no difficulty in getting
a frank and complete answer to both
of them.
Business struck trend slightly lower
| for the week which ended May 81 than
| for the previous week. says the Depart
ment of Commerce, and one definitely
lower than for the same week of last
J year, based on the volume of checks,
| building contracts, wholesale prices and
interest rates. Iron and steel prices
were lower than 1929 by 9 per cent.
Although stocks are lower than In
| 1929, they are higher than in the pre-
vious week. Bank loans are 4 per cent
greater than last year. Business fall
| ures continue greater than last year, but
less than for the preceding week.
The anticipated business revival has
not yet materialized either here or
abroad, although the downward tend
ency of prices seems to have been
temporarily arrested, except in Japan,
where silk is the lowest in Is years. in
China, where its business is at stand
still, owing to the silver price decline
and the failure of large banks, and in
India, which is in the throes of national
riots.
Thus business continues its watchful
waiting policy
Hats off to Los Angelesl When
other large cities are showing popu-
lation increase since 1920 of from 10 to
| 20 per cent, Los Angeles comes through
with 1889 per cent increase, to enter
| by wide margin the million class
| 1888, 1900. This Far Western City. now
vying with Detroit for fourth place,
was established under a Spanish land
grant just 10 years ago. In 1880, only
| IL 900 people lived there.
| But from then on the city grew
rapidly. showing 50,395 in 1890.
Doubling again in the next decade. the
| 00,000-mark was reached in 1900.
Then $4,000 in 1910 and $4,000 in
| 1920.
At first, Los Angeles was known to a
large part of the American people as
| just another Winter resort Other
cities built on business and not on
| sunshine refused to take Los An
geles seriously Its industrial and
| business growth really began after
1900. Today its tourist trade, impor-
| tant as it is, is subordinate to its fast
| expanding business activities. During the
| last decade its harbor development has
| been rapid, and now it has passed such
| substantial business cities, to reach its
present eminence, as Pittsburgh, Balti-
more, Boston, st. Louis and Cleveland
1t looks, too. as though CALIFORNIA;
population increase since 1920 will be
| among the most impressive, If not the
most impressive, of all the States.
The latest formed nation in Europe
has decided to put up tariff wall for
its own protection.
When Italy last year granted to the
Vatican City its political independence,
1t was not expected that tariff would
be raised against articles coming into
| Italy. Matches, tobacco and playing
| cards are monopolies of the government
of Italy today, and cannot enter Italy
| except in that form.
But this week the new Vatican City
of the Pope decreed its own customs
duties, effective this week, and at one
stroke increased the price of tobacco
rs per cent.
Whether such commodities consigned
| to the Vatican City may now cross
Italian territory under seal and enter
| the new papal dominion on the pay
| ment of the papal tariff is one of the
questions that will be decided this Sum-
| mer.
Henry Ford's statement that if the
world buying power was equal to that
of the United States production would
run 10 times behind demand is not a
wild guess. It's easy to prove-much
easier than to figure out a workable
plan to bring 1t about.
Boiled down to everyday life. 1t
would mean that China would become a
market for 100,000,000 cars.
The big job of the future is to figure
out how to expand buying power and
wealth throughout the world.
| If China could buy 10 per cent OF the
number of cars suggested, 1t would re-
lieve the American market tremendous
| ly, even if that buying power took 10
years to bring about
More and more American business in
| terestS must realize that expansion OF
capital into foreign lands cannot be
accompanied indefinitely by higher and
higher tariff walls.
The two just don't go together-un-
less American investors consider their
exported capital in the nature OF a
goodwill gift-with no thought OF 1t
ever being paid back.
| Copyright, 1880, by North American News
| paper Alliance)