The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1931-12-24
EXPERTS URGE
new DEAL ON
PREPARATIONS
Complete Revision of War
Debt Plan Is Needed,
Committee Says.

By United Prees
BASLE, Switzerland, Dec. 24.-An
immediate and complete new deal
on war debts and reparations, to
avert new disasters" is called for
in the report of the international
experts who have been studying
Germany's capacity to pay"
Germany's inability to resume
payments after the expiration of
the present Hoover moratorium and
economic conditions prevailing
throughout the entire world make
such international action necessary,
the advisory committee of the
Young plan reported.
Despite the seriousness of the
situation as outlined in the report,
it suggested:
THE assumption that equilibrium
will not be regained after the pres
ent crisis would be to counsel de-
spair.' It observed that period
Of prosperity had followed every
PREVIOUS WOI4Q CILSlS,
Important Conclusions Cited
Although it is impossible to fix
a date, it is none the less certain
that equilibrium ultimately will be
reached with the assistance of
measures suggested in the conclu-
sion of the committees reoprt," the
report said, in holding out the
promise of prosperity in return for
war debt revision.
The committees report, which
will be referred to the interested
governments, which include Ger
many's principal creditors, called
the governments attention to the
following important conclusions:
Germany is justified in declaring
her inability to resume payment on
some $268,000,000 conditional repa-
rations in the year following the
Hoover debt holiday.
The committee would not have
considered that it had accomplished
it's task fully if it had not called
attention of the interested govern
ments "tU the unprecedented grav-
ity of the crisis, the magnitude of
which undoubtedly exceeds the
relatively short depression which
the Young plan envisaged."
Would Increase Crisis
Transfer of payments from one
country to another on the present |
scale only can accentuate the finan-
cial crisis.
Release of debtor country from |
a burden it is unable to pay merely
may transfer the burden to the
creditor country, which, in turn,
may be unable to bear it.
Adjustment of all reparations and |
war debt settlements to harmon
ize with the present troubled world
situation is the only lasting step
toward world confidence.
Linking of war debts and repara-
tons definitely raised the question
Of the policy Of the United States
government, which has regarded |
the two issues as separate.
The committee pointed out that |
the Young plan contemplated
steady expansion of world trade,
whereas a shrinking volume of |
trade, and the exceptional fall of |
the gold value of commodities had |
added greatly to the burdens of
commerce, not only to the German
annuities, but to all payments fixed
in gold.
as No Parallel
The problem assumed worldwide /
proportions without a peace-time
parallel, the committee said, and
the present dislocation ''well may |
involve profound changes in the
economic relations of nations.
action is most urgently needed |
in much wider field than Ger
many alone" the report stated.
The committee doubted Ger
many's ability to continue a surplus
of exports at her recent level, point
ing out that Germany's industrial
production fell one-third between
1923 and 1881.
Inc committee believed that the
burden of taxation had become so
high that there might be no mar
gin for further increase.
1t expressed the opinion that
when normally returns to Ger
many, her railroads should yield an
operating surplus comparable to
that of every big foreign railway
company.