Evening star., 1932-12-20
R00SEVE[T'S AID
| ON DEBTS AWAITED
President. elect Expected to
Answer Hoover's Pub
lie Appeal.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

President Hoover asked President
elect Roosevelt last month at their
White House conference to aid in ar
ranging the preliminary work for the
World Economic Conference. But Mr..
Roosevelt preferred to offer no sugges-
tions. Since that time the situation
has been complicated by the French
default on the December debt payments.
So Mr.. Hoover is asking Mr.. Roosevelt
publicly to help.
The first conversation took place In
private after Prof Moley and Secretary
Mills withdrew. It became known aft
erward that the President was deeply
disappointed that the Presi lent-elect
did not wish to participate in the pre-
liminary work that had to be done for
the World Economic Conference. Since
that time, friends Of the President
elect, in whom he had more confidence
probably than the suggestion OF his erst-
while rival in the presidential contest,
have been urging upon him the same
in his message to Congress. The ex-
pectation now is that there will be CO.
operation, for Mr.. Hoover wants to ap-
point to the new debt commission the
very men Mr.. Roosevelt may wish to
have serve on 1t.
Davis Talked for Post.
It is expected, for instance, that Nor
man H Davis, who Is a Democrat and
was Undersecretary of State in the final
days of the Wilson administration, will
head the new commission. Mr.. DAVIS
has been abroad for more than year
as Americas representative on the
Commission for Reduction OF Arma-
1,nr hn
confidence of the Hoover administration
and knows the European situation and
its statesmen intimately. He has been
mentioned as a possible Secretary OF
State in the Roosevelt cabinet.
The most amazing thing about the
Hoover message Is that 1t presents q
suggestion which could have been put
into effect a year age when Congress
refused to authorize the creation OF
such body. 1t could have been for
mulated a month ago when Mr. Roose,
relt was in Washington Doubtless Mr..
Hoover felt a year ago he could not get
members of Congress to serve on the
commission. Maybe he thought the
same thing month ago when the
doubt about the December is payments
had not been cleared up.
Today the appointment OF a debt
commission, selected wholly by the
Chief Executive without legislative en-.
actment and simply as part Of his
constitutional powers to appoint COM
missions to negotiate with foreign gov
ernment, depends for its success on the
cooperation of President-elect Roose-
welt, to whom Mr.. Hoover's address Is
public petition rather than a private
plea. 1t is assumed here that this
makes difficult any rejection of the
idea by Mr. Roosevelt. In fact. the in
formal expressions of approval by
Democratic members of Congress re-
veal that they have had something OF
a change of heart since the French de-
fault in the sense that they realize the
Congress is confronted with the prac-
ticalities rather than theory now.
Congress Shuns Vote.
And vet Congress would not wish to
vote on the question of debt-fund-
ing commission because it might be
construed as a weakness or an implied
promise of revision, which means, OF
course. reduction.
So the formula worked out over the
week end saves the face OF Congress
and may save the face of the French
Parliament It may give the French
an excuse to make the December Is
payment. for the mere announcement
of the intention of the President to set
up a commission is a fulflllment to
some extent of the French request that
consideration be given to review OF
the whole debt problem.
If France wishes to adopt the Hoover
message as basis for making the S19,-
900 900 payment the way has been
opened by the President, and better
atmosphere has been created for q gen.
eral examination Of the debt problem
in relation to the world economic situa-
tion. The Intervening Of the debt
problem with world economics. the
restoration of commodity price levels,
the stabilization Of exchange and kin
dred questions of trade and commerce,
will now give the economic conference
an importance 1t has not had before.
It will provide the basis for exchanging
what the Hoover message refers to as
other "compensations" in trade to re-
place gold payments.
Whether members Of Congress agree
to accept places on the presidential
commission may be vital consequence
in the European mind and there will
be an effort on the part of Mr.. Hoover
to have Mr. Roosevelt persuade his
Democratic colleagues to serve, but even
if this does not succeed, Europe knows
sisting of personnel in whom the new
President will have confidence. will soon
turn its undivided attention to the
has progress been made over the week
end on one of the most perplexing
questions before the world today.
(Copvriphf 1870