Evening star., 1933-04-23


- Roosevelt and British Prime
Minister Ramsay Macdonald in
i Washington places Anglo-Amer-
lean relations once more in the
spotlight of world politics.
Both peoples undoubtedly are pro-
foundly desirious to cooperate for the
common good. Both. however, are
great, powerful and highly competitive
in their instincts and have, therefore,
through most of their parallel history,
met many difficulties in the course of
their sincere and continuous efforts to
get together.
The British sought a close under
standing with the United States even
before the World War. Afterward,
! when the United States was the worlds
richest country with potentially the
worlds greatest navy, they wanted
American friendship even more, and in
the Irish question and in the question
of the Anglo-Japanese alliance made
what they considered real sacrifices In
order to get it.
Naval rivalry. however. proved seri-
GUS obstacle. Following the failure OF
the three-power conference at Geneva
in 1927, the relations became frankly
bad. The so-called Anglo-French naval
compromise agreement, which the
United States interpreted, rightly or
wrongly, as directed against 1t, made the
tension worse.
But the advent of the Macdonald
and the Labor government In England.
followed by the election of President
Hoover in the United States, opened
new prospectives. Both peoples were
alarmed Both wanted somehow to
come to terms.
New Fictions Crop Up.
Exactly what President Hoover and
Macdonald agreed to in their historic
| talks at Rapidan was never revealed
Judging from circumstantial evidence,
however, they seem to have reached
sort of personal alliance or understand
ing under which the heads of both gov
| ernments successfully co-operated
| thereafter, first in the London Naval
| Conference and later in all sorts OF ways.
The outbreak of the Far Eastern con-
flict, however, and the abandonment OF
| the gold standard by Great Britain led
to new frictions. Gradually it reluc-
family dawned on the United States
that. whereas it had been steadily sup
porting Great Britain in its rather pro-
German and pro-Italian rather than
anti-French and anti-Russian European
policies, Great Britain was opposing the
United States on the currency and war
debt issues and was tending to back
Japan in the Far East.
The American Government, on COM
ing to realize this about year ago, be-
gan to adopt somewhat more inde-
pendent line at Geneva. and Anglo
American cooperation. which President
Hoover and Macdonald had so pains
takingly built up, slowly broke down.
Macdonald personally seems to have
deplored this. yet, with a preponder-
antly conservative cabinet of which he
Is now prime minister. he was perhaps
powerless to prevent it.
| The question now is, what next are
the United States and Great Britain 60
ing to be rivals or partners?
Want to Restore Cooperation.
This is for President Roosevelt and
Macdonald to ascertain. Both certainly
want to restore Anglo American Cooper
alton. But how? On what terms? For
there Is no gainSaying the formidable
list of differences of interest or opinion
now once more tending to separate the
two great English-speaking peoples. The
main differences may be summarized.
more or less. as follows:
l. War debts.
The United States thinks these are
justly due and can and should be paid,
or, in any case. the United States is
entitled to economic compensations for
any further reductions consented to.
Great Britain maintains that they are
one of the chief causes of the world de-
| preston and should be Cancelled or cut