Evening star., 1932-11-22
MORE THAN DEBTS
INVOLVED IN TALK
Good viii of Other Powers
and Future Foreign
Relations at Stake.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE,

Today will be known in American
history as a new Inauguration day, in
formal, unofficial, yet realistic, for
without having taken the formal oath
Of office, Franklin D. Roosevelt as
surnes, by virtue Of the mandate of the
people just two weeks ago, a manifest
responsibility for the course Of Amer
lean policy in a major crisis affecting
domestic revenues and foreign rela-
tions.
More than mere financial arrange
ments for the December Is payment by
foreign governments on war debts is in
volved. The good will, prestige and
friendship of other powers and the fu-
ture foreign relations Of the United
States are at stake. A misstep may
take years to undo. Hence, a Repub-
lican President, defeated at the polls,
takes counsel with his Democratic con-
queror, not so much in doubt about
their capacity to agree upon a common
course, but in fear that neither can
control his legislative group unless both
champion aggressively the principles
adopted at this unprecedented confer
ence.
Mr.. Roosevelt is loath to take re-
sponsibility before his term begins. Mr.
Hoover has been reluctant to confess to
the world that unless Mr.. Roosevelt
undertakes to influence the action Of
the House of Representatives, controlled
by the Democrats, there can be no
progress made in the next three months
toward settlement of any major ques-
tions, and that the dreaded stagnation
in government must result.
Debts Legislative Problem.
The President-elect and the President
both recognize that the debt question
has become more a legislative problem
than a question Of executive power In
foreign relations.
Formally, the negotiation Of treaty
with a foreign country needs only a
two-thirds vote of the Senate for adop-
ton, but the loans made to the allies
during the war became matters Of do
mestic appropriation and fiscal policy,
and hence any modification of the orig
inal terms of the loans becomes mat
ter for amendment of existing con-
gressional law and can be granted only
by a majority vote of both Houses.
Sentiment in Congress is not only
against cancellation, but also against
deferment of the December IS pay
mentS, lest this be construed as sign
Of concession on the whole problem Of
future anpuities.
Europe has not expected to pay next
months installment, and some coun-
tries may yet decline to do so. The
big question Is not the December is
payments, but what will happen to the
subsequent installments. Should there
be a revival of the War Debt Refund
ing Commission, the European debtors
would view 1t as readiness to recon-
slider the whole debt problem and they
would be pleased.
Proposal Faces Possible Defeat.
Coincidentally, insistence on the De-
cember Is payments would carry with 1t
a plain implication that the creation
CT the commission is a courtesy due the
debtor, but does not bind the American
Congress to any substantial reduction
in the annual payments hereafter.
If Mr.. Roosevelt leaves it to Mr..
Hoover to make the recommendation to
Congress without supporting the request
for the revival of the Debt Commission,
it may spell defeat for the proposal, as
the House Democrats will feel no obli-
CATION to accept the Hoover recon-
mendation This would postpone q
solution until after Mr.. Roosevelt is
inaugurated. The responsibility for any
interruption Of economic recovery due
to demoralize exchanges would be
placed by the Republicans on their
opponents. Sterling exchange Is again
behaving nervously this week, as are
all the markets on the continent.
The outcome Of the parleys today be-
tween the incoming and outgoing Chief
Executives, and between both of these
men and the leaders Of the two parties
in Congress tomorrow. can result only
in stalemate between the conflicting
viewpoints expressed by congressional
leaders during the past week. Mr.
Hoover favors postponement Of the De-
cember IS payments but will not recon-