Evening star., 1932-10-21
Europe to Pay.

! Amid the jeremiads which well up in
this country from preachers of the
gospel of fear" bewailing Europes
imminent reputation of her war debt
obligations to the United States, news
| comes from the other side that such
alarms are unfounded. On December
Is Great Britain has some $4,000, 900
falling due in Washington, while France
is required to pay about s20,oo0,O00 in
| the form of a semi-annual interest in
stallment. Despite hostile Paris press
campaign, unblushingly advocating de-
fault Premier Herriot announces that
the French government has every in
tention and expectation of stepping up
up to the American counter on the due
date and squarirg the account. Great
Britain, on which a much heavier bur-
den lies, has given no reason to suppose
that she will not likewise keep the slate
clean.
Anything savoring of French repudia- :
ton of debt payments would be the less
the United States because of France S
recent gold operations Of which this
country was the base. notwithstanding
the Impoverished condition of the Paris
treasury, now afflicted with stagger-
ing deficit, the French were able to
withdraw about 100000 Of gold
from America during the past year, and
have substantial additional amounts
earmarked here. Under such condl-
tions, they would have some difficulty
in sustaining a plea for suspension OF
debt annuities.
Great Britain is less happily caparl-
soned as far as national finances are
concerned, than her neighbOr across
the Channel. but the British have a
vital reason for not defaulting on their
American obligations Britain is her
self one of tine foremost creditor ma
tions in the world, probably ranking
next to the United States in that re-
spect, though she may share that dis
tinction with France. 1t is obvious that
John Bull would hesitate long before
passing any of his payments here. He
is known to be straining every nerve to
rebuild the British financial position
and could hardly afford to do anything
which would jeopardize British credit.
New York dispatches state that the
British plan is believed to be to make
the December payment without protest,
relying on the United States readiness
to take a more lenient view of debts
after the 1882 elections. Although
their current budget makes no pro-
vision for the December payment
due at Washington, the British have
been taking the significant step OF
building up dollar balances in America.
the immediate purpose Of which is
scarcely mistakable.
The country awaits with genuine in
terest the results of an intensive sur
vey now in progress by an influential
non-partisan Committee for the Con-
sideration of Intergovernmental Debts. "
It is headed by Mr.. A. P. Sloan, Jr.,
president of General Motors, Inc. Its
purpose is to discover whether the
American people favor collection, re-
vision or cancellation of debts owing to
them The survey is conducted on the
hard-headed theory of wanting to find
out what Americans believe to be the
debt policy most beneficial tc them lin
business sense" Senator Borah,
whom American professional isolation
lists will hardly brand as a minion OF
the "internationalists." favors wiping
ou the debts if he can be shown that
it lies in American interests to do SO.