Evening star., 1933-06-07
SNOWDEN ARGUES
BRITAIN MUST PAY
Former Chancellor of Ex-
Chequer Says Fate of Eco
nomic ParIey Is Involved.
BY vIsCouNT sNowDEN.

b1 tISCOCNT SNOWDEN.
Former Chancellor of the British Exchequer.
tThrough Courtesy OF the London Daily MaifD
BY Radio to The Star.
LONDON. June (NANA) Great
Britain's half yearly payment OF inter-
est on the American debt Is due next
week. We have no information about
the course the British government will
adopt. Will it honor its bond or will
Great Britain on June Is be added to
the long list Of defaulting states?
There is no possibility of revision Of
the American debt before the next pay
ment is due on June Is. There is no
doubt that responsibility for this rests
with the United States Government.
Great Britain has an honorable record
on the debt question. She always has
been willing to wipe the slate clean,
even though this would involve putting
on the British taxpayers burden for
80 years of some s5o,O0o,0o0 a year.
There is a strong moral case for COM
plete relief from the American debt.
This, no doubt, will be urged if ever
we come to grips with the question of
revision, but meanwhile the United
States insists upon, execution of the
bond and is backed by practically
unanimous Congress. q
To Pay or to Default
The immediate question, therefore. is
whether we shall pay or default next
week. 1t would have been gracious
act on the part of the United States If
she had given a moratorium while the
World Economic Conference is sitting.
But President Roosevelt is evidently
afraid to do this, although the need is
much greater than when President
Hoover made his cffer of moratorium,
and in the meantime Great Britain has
given a moratorium to all her debtors
at the cost of sixpenny income.
There Is undoubtedly very consid-
cradle volume of opinion in this coun-
try. some of it in influential quarters,
in favor of telling the United States that
the British government will not pay the
installment due on June Is. 1t is
very dangerous thing for a government
to repudiate. its bond and for Great
Britain it is more dangerous than for
any ether country Our nationals are
the greatest creditors of foreign coun-
tries in the world. They have overseas
investments amounting to f4,000,000,-
600, bringing in normally f200, 100000
a year.
This income is the main item in
maintaining the balance of trade,
Embarrassed foreign debtors of Great
Britain would need little encourage
ment to follow the lead Of. Great Brit
ain and repudiata their debts to her.
The honor Of Great Britain and her
interest in maintaining the sanctity of
contracts join in condemning any de-
lberate default on our part. Some
American opinion might welcome de-
fault because it would humiliate Great
Britain. Instead of the United States
being driven into debt revision by our
default. it is more likely that she
would be driven from the World Eco
nomic Conference. for recent EXPIRE
sions of views in official quarters there
show that she is leaning toward el1
isolationist position in the belief tha
within her own internal resources
Argues for Payment
The action Of the British governme-.. =.
en- the debt payment will affect f
veal or woe the fate of the World
Economic Conference. The primary
purpose of the conference is to restore
financial and economic stability through
cut the world, and it will not increase
confidence, which is so essential to its
success, if it meets under the shadow
of British repudiation of obligations.
On the whole, the weight of the argu-
ment is heavy in favor Of making the
payment on June IS. The amount ct
the installment due Is f19, ,000, 900 In
paper dollars There is an option to
pay in United States bonds, but that
cannot now be exercised, as the re-
quired 30-day notice has not been given.
Last December we had to pay &C, 900 900
extra through failing to give the neces-
sary notice to postpone the principal
payment.
BY a recent act of Congress Great
Britain has the right to make the June
payment in silver at price which
would reduce the cost in sterling from
$4,000 600 to f12,000,00o The honor
of Britain is worth fl2 900, 900, especially
when the payment in all probability will
be the last we shall be required to pay
under the existing agreement.
Copyright, 1898. by North American News
paper Alliance, Inc)