Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-07-06

F1rSC murmurS or rift in the po-
litical lutte, which has twanged so har-
moniously since President Hoover an
nounced his debt plan. are discerned in
Gov. Riches Independence day sd-
dress Marylands perennial chief. ex-
ecutive opines that the moratorium
scheme means the eventual loss OF the
billions European nations owe the
United States. Political Washington
wonders whether. in their frantic search
for something to match Hoover's trump
card the Democrats may not be pre-
pairing to move along the lines Richie
has Just indicated. Leaving its merits
or dement's wholly aside. such a theory
does project q clean-cut issue. It might
be Just as easy to scare the country into
believing that Uncle Sans Sill 600, 000.-
coo Of Old World I. o. US are going
glimmer1ng as 1t was for the Repub-
licanS to depict membership In the
League Of Nations as the end of Yankee
liberties. Ritchie's bogey-man propo-
sltion doesn't fr1ghten another Demo-
cratic presidential aspirant-Newton D.
Baker. The little Napoleon from Ohio
one of these days may be found advo-
eating outright cancellation of Euro
pean debts as the Democrats best coun-
ter-o1enSive to the Hoover plan. Hold
Ing advanced views on that score.
Baker may conclude that going whole
hog would be a political master stroke.
now that the President has made the
country. see that generosity to Europe
Is enlightened Self-interest for America.
With the debt holiday about to be-
come an accomplished fact no question
Is asked so eagerly as the one that
seeks TO determine just whose BRAIN
wave 1t really was. Did it spring from
Mr. Hoover'S own ample think tank?
Was 1t Stimson. Mellon or some other
administrations who evolved the
worlds brightest idea in IL years?
Where did it originate-in Washington.
New York or Europe? The exact facts
probably will never be known-until
Hoover writes his memoirs. The woods
are full Of guesSeS as to where the
laurels should be bestowed. Rumor's
candidates for the honor include, more
or less in the order named, Ambassa dor
Sackett, Secretary Stimson. former Am
baSSador Houghton. Senator Morrow.
owen D. Young, former Reparations
Agent General 8. Parker Gilbert. Am
baSSador Dawes and Undersecretary of
the Treasury Mills. One eleventh hour
moratorium tid-bit is that the White
House sprang the plan earlier than in
tended. The President wanted to line
up an even more imposing array of
congressional support before announc-
ing 1t. Then leaks" were discovered
among some Of the Senators and Rep
resentatives already consulted, and,
fearing he might be "scooped" on his
own story, Hoover decided to spill the
beans without further celay.
~ X
So far the only man to come forward
with the modest suggestion that II did
| II" Is Oswald Garrison Willard, editor of
the Nation. In the current issue of
that saxophone of lurid liberalism Mr.
Willard runs an advertisement indicat-
ing that nearly three weeks before the
debt holiday announcement he made q
| statement in London proposing that
the President electrify the world with a
bold stroke Of that kind. In the same
| number Of his weekly Mr.. Willard goes
| through the motions of eating crow.
Just q week before, the Nation began
publishing q series of 10 articles de-
signed to depict Mr.. Hoover as o presi-
Dental tragedy. The keynote diatribe
was by Willard himself. Coincident with
| the second article-by o Princeton pro-
feSsor belaboring Hoover's foreign policy
Willard printed an editorial eulogizing
the Presidents debt move % q great and
glorious gesturel
His name hasn't broken into the
news, but no man has been playing q
more potent behind the scenes role In
| the moratorium maneuvers than Her
| bert FeiS, new economic adviser of the
State Department. DR.. Feis had hardly
had time to find his way about the de-
partment when the debt deal came