Evening star., 1935-04-14

1t was mot sporting" There is no
doubt that. to Americans. it proved
that Europe was unjust and thus made
concessions on the debt more difficult.
The American Treasury asked per-
mission Of Congress to fund all the
debts on the best terms obtainable.
Congress would have none of it, in
sisted on a commission with repre-
Sentatives of Senate and House to ne
gotiate, prescribed period of payment
and minimum rate Of interest, and
ordered that all agreements should
be referred back to Congress.
The prescribed terms proved impos-
sible. but the excellent debt commits
sion reached agreements with prac-
tically all our debtors, so far as was
possible in accord with what appeared
to be their capacity to pay. To all
these agreements Congress assented
and for a few years payments were
duly made.
Then wars delayed aftermath, the
great depression, swept over the world.
Although there was no acknowledged
connection between debts and repara-
tions there is no doubt that our
debtors depended largely on German
in-payments for their out-payments
to us. President Hoover understood
this and when, in the Spring of 1881,
conditions had become so desperate in
Central Europe that it was clear no
more reparations could be paid for a
time, he secured an agreement for a
years holiday on inter-governmental
debts.
Sanctity of Contract.
President Hoover wanted to save the
principle of the Sanctity of contract.
He wanted the moratorium to run for
two years at least; in this he was over
ruled at home He wanted the pay
ments falling due during the mora
torium year to be added as the final
installment at the end of go years;
France would have none of this and
the amounts were funded 0er period
of 10 years. During the meetings in
Paris and London to settle details,
economic conditions everywhere de-
generated and the discussions as to
when payments should be resumed
had a hollow, academic sound.
The allies saw the handwriting on
the wall. At Lausanne they Topped
off nine -tenths of the German repara-
ton bill. Then they all demanded of
Washington reconsideration of their
own debts. They forgot that repara-
tions had been imposed, that the debt
funding had been voluntary. But an
both political parties found 1t expedi-
ent to demand full payment of the
debts.
Before the December payments were
due Mr.. Hoover had been defeated, but
Congress was playing politics as much
after the eletcion as before. Those
were difficult, vivid and tragic days in
ashington-difhcult since construc-
tive work was almost impossible be-
cause of the conflict between the
executive and the legislative branch
of the Government; vivid because
there were so many questions demand
ing solution; tragic because national
good was lost sight of in the struggle
for party advantage.
The President was determined to
save something out of the debts due,
If possible. He appealed over and
over again to Mr.. Roosevelt to join
with him in working out some con-
Structive plan for the sake of the
American people. He urged the ap-
pointment of a commission, to be
approved by the President-elec to
study the debt question and if pos
sible to reach a solution before the
assembling of the Economic Confer
ence; but Mr.. Roosevelt only answered
that Mr.. Hoover was responsible until
March 4. He refused to join in a
request to Congress for a new debt
commission. said that discussions.
which he knew to be urgent. could best
be carried on through regular diplo-
matte channels-although he knew
that no foreign government would
consider 1t worth while to talk with
an administration just going out of
power.
MIR. Hoover struggled to span the
gap of governmental impotence which
always intervenes between election
and Inauguration when the new Pres
ident represents the opposite political
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