Evening star., 1934-04-20
PRESIDENT EAv0RS
RATIO.
Roosevelt Says Worldwide
Agreement Is Answer
to Problem.
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
1t was made known today at the
White House that President Roosevelt
feels the answer to the silver remoneti-
zation problem lies in the formula
presented at the London Economic
Conference whereby all nations would
fix definite reserves of silver in ratio
to their gold supply.
This would bring fer the first time
in history a fixed ratio throughout
the world between gold and silver. 1t
was proposed at London that the ma
tions establish silver reserves up to
Is per cent of their gold supply.
AS a result of this informal exposi-
ton Of the Presidents attitude, it was
believed today Mr. Roosevelt would
stand pat against any mandatory
legislation at this session regarding
silver.
Cooperation Essential.
As explained at the White House,
he feels it is impossible for one nation
to get anywhere in rehabiltating silver
without the cooperation of all coun-
tries.
Vic PLODlCill, ~ was SdlO, Is lkldb
there is an unknown quantity of silver
in the world-unlike gold which can
be figured to an almost exact total.
How far negotiations for an inter-
national agreement have progressed
since the London parley Is generally
unknown. Nor is there any indica-
ton of an immediate new world
economic conference for consideration
Of silver alone. Presumably informal
discussions are going on. however.
The President will confer tomorrow
with the Senate silver advocates on
the whole problem.
Conference Held.
1t also was disclosed today that an
international compact remonetizing
silver at uniform ratio with gold has
been the subject of secret conferences
here this week.
All possible secrecy has been placed
around preliminary feelers for the
idea The names of those attending
the conferences have beel4 guarded
1t also was believed that President
Roosevelts disinclination to indorse
any Of the many mandatory silver-aid
proposals in Congress was linked with
the recent private discussions here.
Bills now before Congress would
require the President to remonetize
silver in the United States and this
might make an international agree
ment impossible.
The President already has power to
do most Of the things suggested in the
proposed legislation, and specific con-
gressioral commands might limit the
direction Of international discussions.
Experts Study Problem.
The Government has recently sent
monetary experts to the Far East and
financial observers have visited in
other countries. 1t was said that one
expert was to ascertain the quantity
of silver in the Far East.
Senator Thomas, Democrat, OF
Oklahoma issued a statement yester-
day urging passage of current silver
legislation, on the ground that other
wise the public would not have suf-
ficient money to buy Government
bonds
Experts have argued before that
world monetization Of silver would
greatly help the monetary situation
and Prof. George F. Warren, an au-
thor Of the Nations present gold
standard system, has said that addi-
ton of silver to the worlds monetary
base would tend to stabilize world
prices.
Warren has argued that the drastic
decline in the price of silver in recent
years resulted from its abandonment
as money standard. He calculated
that prior to 1900 the ratio of silver
to gold ranged between 10.1 and 151
ounces of silver to l of gold; that from
1920 to 1870 the ratio was between
14.1 and 161 to /.
In his analysis of the abandonment
of silver by most of the world in the