Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-06-28
New York Banker Believes
Action Will Be Taken to
Aid Business.
URGES DIRECT CREDITS
FROM AMERICAN BANKS
Suggests Competent Commission to
Supervise Applications
for Loans.
Special Dispatch to The Star.


American policy will come out Of GER
tain plans now being laid in Washing
ton, is the view of Thomas F. Lee. New
York banker, engineer and authority
on South America.
That the public believes there is
something more than rumor in the pro-
posed plan credited to President Hoo
yer to air the financial and economic
recovery Of the Latin American coun-
tries was shown by the enthusiastic
buying Of the bonds Of the South Amer
lean countries. both on the stock ex-
changes In this city and in London at
the close Of last week.
According to Mr.. Lee. the plan is
the first really constructive. logical,
| helpful and unselfish gesture the
United States has made toward its
southern neighbors in many years.
Mr.. Lee has just returned from a
flve-month trip through Latin America.
during which time he made a close
study Of conditions. He discussed with
practically all of the present chief ex-
ecutives OF those countries the prob
lens now confronting them.
AS a result Of his study he suggests
direct financial assistance from bank
ing institutions In the United States,
supervised by a competent and disin-
terested economic commission. This Is
the logical avenue open to the United
States for aiding Latin America, he
says.
Mr. Lee warned. however. that such
commission must be composed of the
best American minds and not second
string" men. who too often in the past
have represented the United States Il
the Latin American field.
IF the Presidents proposed plan Is
carried through" Mr.. Lee said today,
'"it will do more to establish and cement
harmonious relations. promote markets
which We certainly need, and give ac-
cess to South American raw materials,
than all the neat phrasings of friend
ship and admiration in our vocabulary.
IlI-Advised Loans.
while it Is true that many Of the
loans TO South American countries in
recent years were Ill advised-many Of
the nations taking on greater debts
than they should have assumed-their
sins were no greater than those of all
other optimistic peoples and corporation
executives throughout the world.
During the past decade the South
American people have not behaved with
any worse abandon than our own peo-
pie or the people of Europe. Little by
little they permitted their vision, OPP
timism and high hopes to exceed their
better Judgment. And with 1t all they
have been hard hit by the drastic de-
cline Of their basic agricultural COM
moditieS and raw materials.
Because the European situation is
now holding the attention of the Amer
lean people and because the average
citizen has never appreciated our po-
tenttal markets south of the Rio Grande
few in the United States realize the
profound significance of President
Hoover's proposed plan and the urgent
need for it.
I'VE in the United States sometimes
do not realize that south Of us live more
than 100, OOO, 900 people, great pres
ent market and an enormous potential
market for the great surplus of manu-
featured goods we produce annually and
must find markets for
Nor do we realize that the Latin
American area (many times larger than
that Of the United States) is, in effect,
the greatest storehouse of raw materials
within our reach.
THE Presidents proposal that these
peoples, with their enormous natural
resources, be not permitted to suffer a
financial breakdown, an economic ca
taStrophe-that their credit be not
sacriflced-that they be not plunged
into an economic abyss-is timely and
logical. But it is more than that. It
is a sign that Washington is deter
mined not to miss a great opportunity
to build friendships and to promote
trade: It seems to give warning of a
new Latin American policy-one that
will reap untold riches and cordial
relations with our neighbors to the
South
Like Country Banker.
"The lending of money at this time
- al 2~1f
Brazil, Peru, in order that they may
continue their functions of government
and pay the service on their existing
loans would be exactly like q good
country banker lending a little addi-
tional money to the owner of a big
farm who had momentarily over
reached himself and needed but an
other season of good crops to catch up
with his obligations.
"The Latin American countries have
an enormous advantage over the rest
Of the world, for without exception,
they are possessorS Of enormous ma
tional wealth-wealth in agriculture,
In minerals and raw materials, and
this stands back of every dollar that
has been loaned to these countries
nationally. The stable commodities of
South America have declined in price
and consumption. just as have the
stable commodities elsewhere.
Coffee, hides, platinum, emeraldS In
Colombia; cacao, sugar, rice and wool
in Ecuador; copper and wool in Bra
iii: sugar in Cuba-all of them find
that the products of their plantations
of their forests, of their mines, and
Of their ranges now command price
that in many cases does not equal the
cost of production. But this Is a tenn
porary thing. This is a condition that
will pas Sas a normal mental attitude
again regains its place among thinking
people"
In enlarging on his plan for COM
mission to supervise the extension of
credits to the Latin Americans, Mr.. Lee
declared that the matter of such a
commission Is almost as important as
the matter of tiding these governments
over financially. The commission, In
turn, Mr.. Lee explained, would select
technical advisors to work with each
government.
Sympathetic Commission Urged.
"Such a commission" he said, must
be composed of men who know Latin
America-men who know the language,
who know the fundamental economic
problems, not only of this country but
of the countries south of the Rio
Grande, who know much of the Sociol-
ogy, psychology and basic problems of
these peoples. A commission thus
emlinped a prolIn of men able to point