The Western news. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1933-current, 1933-08-10


X:th Not;or. wholly oblivious
TO the existence
and the subsequent death of the world
wide economic conference In London,
and the aftermath of those sessions.
True, there never could have been any
thing come of the conference for the
simple reason selhshness ruled that
meeting as 1t rules every other meet
ing OF representatives of different peo-
pies But 1t appears from this vantage
point that our government Is now
ready to embark on new course, one
which 1t could hardly have tackled
had the London conference never been
held. So at least the London confer
ence resulted in clarifying the general
situation from our own standpoint.
You have seen the signs of moves
by our government In the last month
In guarded announcements to the eff
feet that Department of States experts
were surveying the possibilities of
trade treaties with many nations.
They are called bi-lateral treaties and
affect, OF course enly the two nations
entering into the compact While the
London conference was going, On, 1t
would not have been q gesture of hope
for success In that gathering had the
United States at the same time moved
openly to arrange individual treaties
with nations participating In those dis
cussions, That very thing was being
done, nevertheless, and now the eff
fort Is no longer concealed The
United States Is seeking to do in the
treaties with Individual nations some
of the things It sought, and failed, to
do at London.
Secretary Hull is back from London.
He has had night OF confidential con-
versatlon with President Roosevelt. He
Is ready to go ahead. indeed, he Is
charged by the President to proceed.
with the new plan OF action. Gonse-
quently. In the next few months we are
likely to hear much about agreements
between the United States and various
other nations by which trade barriers
will be removed to some extent and
better understandings will have been
obtained about commercial relations.
There are so many barriers TO the
free flow OF commerce these days, aside
from the low level of purchasing power
resulting from the depression. that one
can see possibilities of great results.
Yet as observers here view the stu
alton Secretary Hull has hard Job.
Nations are selfish, or their people are.
They naturally want to protect their
markets and they obviously are I'M
willing to give up anything unless they
gain something else. So there Is to be
trading; there will have to be trading,
and the United States will have to
give In somewhere with every ma
ton In the treaty negotiations.
For instance, II new trade treaty
were to be negotiated with France,
1t appears that France certainly would
have to agree to remove limitations on
certain kinds Of imports from the
United States They are called
quotas. They prescribe that only so
many thousand pounds, say, of Amer
lean wheat can be imported into
France. In turn, no doubt. France
will demand that the United States es-
tablish lower tariff duty on some
commodities which that nation hereto
fore has shipped here In large quanti-
ties.
But to get back to the London con.
ference. / recall having written In
these columns Mt
Plans Another the outset of those
Rnod sessions that Pres
ident Roosevelt
WIS In highly advantageous position
when he promoted the meeting OF some
"a nations Whether he expected the
widely advertised conference was go
ing to fall, as a great many persons
believed, by entering whole-heartedly
into 1t. sending large American dele
cation to participate and doing the
other things that gave the appearance
OF sincerity, he Unanswered at the
very same time to build another road
which this country can follow. When
the London conference was called, the
big issue was whether our government
should act In unison with other world
powers on an international basis or
whether we were to become an In
tensely nationalistic country. There
fore, while Mr.. Roosevelt on the one
hand was pushing American plans and
proposals into the conference for an
international understanding. he was
on. the other hand driving legislation
like the farm adjustment act, highly
nationalistic In character, through
congress
While every ounce of energy is be-
ing used to stabilize American crop
production within the limits OF our
own needs and while every effort is
being utilized to create manufacture
ing structure self-sustaining within
our own limits, the President now Is
seeking to fortify those acts and
strengthen our position by treaties
with individual nations on trade rela-
lions. In other words. he Is complet.
Ing the picture OF nationalism.