Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1932-11-11
ROOSEVELT IS GIVEN
BRITISH DEBT NOTE
Message on Payment Prob
lem Sent to President-EIect
After Hoover Sees 1t.
BY CONSTANTINE BROWN.

A COPY of the British note on debts
was sent to President ELECT Roosevelt at
Albany after the full text of the note
had been transmitted to President Hoo
yer, it was said today in we'll informed
quarters.
Secretary of State Stimson earlier
had told newspaper men that the debt
note probably would not be made pub
lie at least for two days. The Secretary
said he had not received a note con-
corning debts from the French govern
ment
The note from Great Britain was
one of several developments yesterday
which revived the war debt discussion.
The others were Greece's failure to pay
and Hungary's notice that she cannot
meet her December installmcnt.
May Pave Way to Farley.
Ramsay MacDonald's main object in
sending the note to the State Depart
mert regarding the payment Of the
British debt inStallment is believed In
well-informed official quarters to be to
induce the United States Government to
agree to take up the question of debts
at the coming economic conference.
There is nothing in the British note
it is stated, which should lead the ao-
ministration to believe Great Britain
intends to repudiate her obngatlons
The British government merely mas
submitted to the American Government
a statement of facts regarding the Il
lii Of
ury and its enormous difficulties in con-
tinuing to pay the war debts with the
pound at its low level and without being
able to collect reparations from Ger
many in accordance with the Lausanne
agreement of last July.
The British government has hereto
fore kept quiet about the debt and tarlH
questions. Both Ambassador Mellon
and Norman Davis have besn advising
Macdonald to avoid injecting in the
American electoral campaign the queS-
ton of debts. The British and other
DEBTOR governments have realized the
reasonableness of the request OF the
American Government and have re-
Trained from mentioning debts during
the last few months.
U. S. Conditions Disappointing.
However it was an open secret that
they had been sadly disappointed when
early last Summer this government &C
cepted the British invitation to attend
the International Economic Conference
on the condition that neither the debt
question nor the tariff rate question
should form a part of the agenda OF
that conference. The American Gov
eminent was told that without these
two important items on the agenda the
whole conference would be futile and
would not achieve any of the results
the world was expecting.
Unofficially the foreign governments
we're told that the administration may
amend its point of view after presl-
dental election and the debtor ma
tons have patiently waited until the re-
suits of the elections were known.
But clear indications had been re-
ceived at the State Department that
as soon as the result of the presidential
contest was over the British govern
ment, more hard pressed than the
others because it owes on December Is
the sum of 100000, and because the
pound sterling was again slumplng,
would take up the matter of debts with
the hope that from the discussion which
would follow the American Government
would give its consent to include the
question OF war deDIS IN tne dge1lud Ol
the Economic Conference. This is hap
pening now.
French Note Expected.
While the State Department has, so
far. not received a note regarding the
debts question from France, officials
fully expected such a note in the course
of this week.
Ambassador Claudel called on the
| Secretary of State yesterday and is re-
ported to have given him preliminary
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