Evening star., 1934-03-01
us. HOLDS UP PAY
OF STAFF ABROAD
Foreign Service Officers
Must Await Passage of
Exchange Bill.

American foreign service officers
will not receive their pay checks for
February until the McReynolds bill
which is before the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee, has been re-
ported out, and the necessary appro-
priations for making up the difference
between the present value of the dol
lar and the predevaluation rate are
granted, it was stated today at the
State Department.
The McReynolds bill provides that
the salaries of all United States Gov
ernment officials residing abroad shall
be increased by so per cent: that is to
say, that it shall enable Government
servants abroad TO purchase with the
dollars they receive the same amount
of foreign currency they used to buy
before the actual-not the official
devaluation of the dollar.
But, pending the granting of the
S7,000000 necessary for this opera
ton, the disbursing officers in foreign
countries were compelled to withhold
the payment of the February salary
Causes Hardships Abroad.
The State Department explained
this was inevitable, despite the hard
ships which it may cause to members
of the American foreign service.
If the disbursing officers had made
out the checks for the month oi
February, the beneficiaries would nav,
mad to change them into foreign cur
rency in the countries where they
reside and they would have incurred
a loss of no less than so per cent
These disbursing officers cannot
help the American officials by tenn
porary loans, either. All they have
is American dollars and if they ad-
vanced certain amounts in the shape
of loan, the members of our foreign
missions abroad would incur the same
loss
The State Department was not much
worried over the situation. 1t was
said that in all probability the ap-
preparation will be forthcoming within
the next few days, possibly before the
end of the week. Gables will then be
sent to the disbursing officers to pay
out the full amount at the pre-de-
valuation rate at once. Hope is ex-
pressed that the officials will be able
to arrange to live for the next few
days by local loans.
Clerks Hardest Hit.
But. while Washington believes the
foreign service officers and clerks will
pull through somehow or other, re-
ports from abroad indicate they are
in a most unpleasant and humiliating
situation.
Some officers have private means,
or are sufficiently paid as to have a
small balance in the bank at the end
of the month.
But the lower brackets, especially
the clerks and the stenographers. who
have just enough to exist on, are in a
most precarious situation.
AS members of a diplomatic OF
consular mission of a rich country
they are expected by their landlords
and grocers to pay their bills pune
tually. AS a rule, it is difficult fol
them to obtain credit. Some of the
foreign purveyors have had bad ex-
periences in the past with members o1
the diplomatic corps, who on account
of their immunity, cannot be pursued
in court for unpaid bills. Hence the
reluctance to give credit. In some OF
the European capitals, where there
are American banks, the situation
could be remedied by the banks ad-
vancing some money, at the request Of
the head of the mission.